Kids, Pets, and Traffic: Tips to Keep Your Lawn Party-Perfect

birthday party in the yard

Creating and maintaining a beautiful and functional lawn requires time and money. You’ve worked hard on your outdoor space and want to enjoy it, entertain in it, and allow the kids and pets to play at will! Unfortunately, having fun outdoors can mean disaster for your lawn if you’re not careful.

Custom Lawn & Landscape wants you to be able to enjoy your time outside worry-free. We’ve put together some common causes of damage and traffic control tips to help keep your lawn great throughout the summer months.

Frenzied Fidos

Watch where your dog urinates and immediately douse with a bucket of water or a hose and remove any other leavings.
Keep in mind, male dogs tend to ‘mark their territory’ in many places rather than all at once, whereas female dogs most often do their business in one place.
For K-9 ‘gardeners’, consider installing a decorative fence or edging to deter your pet from entering and digging in your gardens and flower beds.
Plant decorative shrubs or grasses along fence lines to keep your dog from running the fence and killing the grass.

Raucous Rugrats

Consider putting sand or pea gravel around swing sets and jungle gyms to alleviate damage and the need for constant lawn repair in these high traffic areas.
Move large items like kiddie pools or corn hole games every other day to prevent killing the grass underneath. If at all possible, pick these items up in between use and store them in areas without grass.
Include children in lawn care, educating them on what is and is not okay to dig in, pick at, or play near.

Related Read: 3 Steps to a Mosquito-Free Backyard

Excited Entertaining

Set furniture groupings, barbeque grills, and drink areas far enough from flower beds and gardens to prevent people from accidentally stepping through them.
Move lawn furniture often, if only a few inches, to prevent killing the grass underneath and reroute traffic patterns.
Pick up trash and hose the area thoroughly after an event to prevent any spills from damaging your lawn.

While these tips can help mitigate the damage of backyard parties, it’s important that your lawn is healthy to start with. Mowing, fertilizing, and watering your lawn properly will ensure that it will grow strong and lush and make it more resilient to high traffic.