Lawn Care

> Back to In the Community




Part 1Listen and Read: Listen to the recording about landscaping, answer the questions, and then read along with the audio recording.

We just bought a house with a great lawn, but I want to be sure to take care of it so it looks nice in the neighborhood. At the beginning of each spring, I aerate the lawn so the water can better penetrate the soil. Then, I mow the lawn once a week to a good height, and I check the sprinkler system to make sure the grass is completely watered. Otherwise, we’ll see dry brown spots in the lawn after a while. Next, I fertilize the lawn twice a year with a weed and feed mixture which helps green up the grass and kill broad leaf weeds like dandelions. I sometimes have to use an insecticide to kill bugs that are eating the roots of the grass. Finally, I trim the edges of the lawn along the fence and the sidewalk to make everything look really sharp and tidy.

Part 2: Discussion

Do people have grass lawns in your hometown to beautify their yards? If not, what ground cover is used instead? How does the climate of a particular area affect how homes are landscaped?

Part 3: Online Investigation

Companies always produce commercially-sold products that can be used to improve the grass or landscaping around a home; however, there are a number of “homemade” solutions that people can create using products that they might already have around the house. Search the Internet for a lawn greening recipe that anyone can make. What does each ingredient do?

Part 4: Online Listening Practice (from www.esl-lab.com):