(Image Credit: Have Dumptruck, Will Travel)
Sometimes people buy a house for such a great price that they’re willing to invest time and resources into fixing it up. This goes for the yard as much as anything else. The house may look perfect inside, but the yard looks like it hasn’t seen a lawnmower in years. The grass is too tall, the bushes are overgrown, and there seems to be more weeds than lawn.
Another possible scenario is that a homeowner has lived in the same place for years, but an illness or injury prevented him or her from caring for the yard. Regardless of how a yard ended up looking more like a jungle than part of an urban or suburban home, here’s how to clean up and overgrown yard
Don’t Try to Clean up an Overgrown Yard by Hand
Using a lawnmower or a hand-held shearing device will work well for an orderly yard, but it will only add to the workload when trying to clear a yard overrun by weeds, tall grass, and uncut bushes. It’s a much better idea to rent a string trimmer or brush mower.
With a brush mower, the homeowner can convert the mess into a manageable pile of woodchips approximately three inches in diameter. A string trimmer can cut through weeds much faster and more efficiently than the typical weed whipper can.
Use a Stump Grinder to Eliminate the Remains of Unwanted Trees
Although someone may have removed a tree from the yard years ago, it’s possible that he or she didn’t remove its stump at the same time. Not only is an unwanted stump an eyesore, it can present a tripping hazard as well.
One possibility for eliminating the stump is to hire a landscape company that performs this type of work. Another is to rent or buy a stump grinder to cut the stump into smaller pieces for easier removal. This saves considerable time and effort over attempting to remove the stump with a shovel.
Rototill the Lawn for Added Nutrients
Clearing away the weeds and other debris on the lawn is a lot of hard work. However, it doesn’t have to be for nothing. Homeowners can ensure the ongoing health of the newly uncovered lawn by renting or buying a rototiller and giving the lawn a once-over.
A rototiller contains rotating blades that breaks up the soil and the yard debris underneath it. The plant matter left behind provides the soil with valuable nutrients. These will help the grass grow better in the future.
Level the Ground
A bumpy backyard service often makes for a less unattractive, and potentially unsafe lawn. If you want to really clean things up, following these tips from Garden Tools Pro on how to level a large yard.
Manage Unruly Brush with a Brush Grubber
Use this tool to remove an entire section of a brush or just a few saplings at a time. It would be very difficult to accomplish this using a chainsaw or a lawn mower alone. After removing the overgrown parts of the brush, then give it a trim with a regular set of shears.
The most important thing to remember with trying to clean up and overgrown yard is not to become overwhelmed. Start by deciding which jobs are the most important and then tackling them one at a time.
CK Vaughn originally published this post in August of 2018. It has been subsequently edited, enhanced, and republished to include new information.