Many of us like to have a nicely proportioned backyard, even if homebuilders refuse to give it to us. If you are fortunate enough to have a yard, you also need to regularly look after it; otherwise it can become unmanageable leading to unsightliness. There are many lawn and yard care products available on the market, which can be used to have an impressive grass and foliage area surrounding you home. One of the first things that you need to look into, as part of your yard care activities, is to check the quality of soil you have. This can be done by consulting with a local nursery, which can also let you know how much nutrients are found in the soil in your area. If soil quality is poor, you will likely need to improve it through fertilizers. The fertilizer recommended to you will usually depend on how much you need to improve upon the soil condition and the kind of grass or plants you want to grow. There are different type of lawn grasses to choose from ranging in color, height and thickness of growth. The grass you choose should be based on the purpose for which you want a lawn in your yard; such as: will your yard be for a play area, aesthetic landscape purposes or even soil erosion control. If you are thinking about fertilizing your yard's soil, it's best to fertilize it during the latter part of the spring season and during the early months of summer, when it is most active. Care must also be taken not to over fertilize as the result will be more top growth rather than root growth. In taking care of your yard, you must also be aware of insects that can affect your yard and take care to prevent them from ruining what took such hard efforts to cultivate. Most notably, it is important to watch for weeds and remove them as they occur. Rodents are another issue that needs to be dealt with and the best way to keep pests out is to develop thick, healthy turf because doing this will desist pests from making your new garden their new habitat. If you expect your yard's lawn to grow according to your expectations, you need to implement the right irrigation and drainage system. The proper amount of water may take some trial and error, or you can consult a professional; you should know when you find the right amount of watering, because there should be no water stagnation. Proper maintenance of a healthy lawn is necessary and you need to regularly mow the lawn to keep your lawn in the right condition, in order to get the look that best compliments the overall design.