Include A Mix Of Plants
Be sure to include a mix of many different plants and grasses in your lawn. A diverse landscape is better for the environment and can be easier to maintain, because it prevents pest problems from spreading to the whole lawn.
For places where it is hard to grow a lawn, try plants more adapted to the area. See Plant diversity for more information.
Lawn Care Calendar: A Month
In this article, Im going to outline the lawn care calendar that I work by every year.
To help you as best I can, Ive broken down this lawn treatment schedule month by month so you know exactly what to do and when.
However, like everything when it comes to lawn maintenance, theres a caveat to everything
And thats the weather.
This lawn calendar is meant to be a guide only.
Unfortunately, we cant control the weather so youll have to use your best judgement when it comes to the timing of individual tasks.
Some years, if the weather is on our side, we can start certain tasks a little earlier than normal. Sometimes though, you might have to wait a little longer.
So dont stick to this like glue just because its in black and white on a computer screen.
Take a look at what the weather is doing and plan your jobs around that.
When Should I Fertilize My Lawn For Winter
Use this quick rule of thumb for the best time to add winter fertilizer to your lawn: Apply in September, unless you live in the southern third of the U.S. Thats because the northern two-thirds of the U.S. is home to lawns with cool-season grasses or transition lawns with both cool-season and warm-season grasses.
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How To Get Rid Of Lawn Grubs
In most climates, grubs are near the surface of the soil. Theyre at their smallest and most vulnerable in August and September, so these are the best months to treat for them.
Sod Solutions recommends Dylox 6.2 Granular White Grub Insecticide, which needs to be applied with a broadcast spreader and watered within 24 hours. However, this product is toxic to wildlife, and shouldnt enter storm drains or drainage ditches. For a natural pest solution, try one or more of these options:
- Introduce nematodes beneficial, microscopic worms that feed on grub worms.
- Introduce milky spore, a naturally occurring disease that attacks grub worms but doesnt harm other plants or wildlife. The spores must be spread several times over two years, but they protect your lawn for 10 years or more.
- Create a bird-friendly habitat by placing birdhouses and birdbaths in your yard to attract insect-eating birds like robins, wrens and jays. Theyll eat the grubs, along with the beetles once they start to emerge.
Why Is Watering Grass At Night Bad
While watering during the day causes water to evaporate too quickly, watering in the evening allows water to cling to the grass for too long. Overnight, the water will continue to rest in the soil, around the roots, and on top the foliage, which will encourage it to rot, develop fungus, and attract insects.
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Spring Lawn Care Steps
Rake
Spring raking removes lingering fall leaves and grass blades that did not survive winter. Left alone, these dead blades add to your lawn’s thatch layer. Raking also loosens matted grass clumps caused by snow mold, which can smother new growth.
Use a spring-tine rake with a strong upward pull to remove dead grass. Rake when soil is not soft and muddy, or you risk pulling up healthy grass crowns.
Overseed
Fill bare or thin spots in the lawn by overseeding. Late spring is the best time to overseed warm-season grass. Fall is the ideal time for cool-season grass, but in colder regions, spot-seeding small areas in spring yields good results. When you overseed, apply a slow-release nitrogen fertilizer. Five weeks after overseeding, apply a quick-release nitrogen feed.
Learn about causes of bare spots in lawns, how to prevent them and how to treat them.
Aerate
Vital for a truly healthy lawn, aeration is the solution for compacted soil. How often you should aerate your lawn depends on soil type and how you use your lawn. Late spring to early summer is the right time to aerate warm-season grasses. Fall is the best time for cool-season types. But if you didn’t get to it last fall, you can tackle it in early spring. Learn the secrets behind aerating and how to aerate properly.
Dethatch
Spring is the right time to dethatch turf. Aim for early spring for cool-season grasses and late spring to early summer for warm-season grasses. Learn more about dethatching.
Weed
Fertilize
Water
Life Cycle Of Grub Worms
Female beetles normally lay their eggs during summer. The grubs go on to hatch around late summer and feed on turf roots from this time till winter. During winter, they burrow deep into the soil to overcome the harsh weather, and when spring arrives, they go on to begin feeding again.
Around late spring and summer, they pupate and eventually transition to become full adults in midsummer.
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Why Has My Grass Died Over Winter
Yup, some winter kill is caused by voles, and it happens due to those little rodents tunnelling around your lawn, eating your plant roots and leaving slim bands of dead grass in their wake. Your Best Defence: Usually, this problem isnt much of a problem as the surrounding grass will just create new roots and shoots.
Spread Some Grass Seed
Use your hands or a broadcast spreader to spread grass seed throughout your lawn. Want more power? A slit-seeder cuts little slits in your yard and plants the grass seed automatically.
Before sowing the grass seed, dethatch your yard to expose the soil by a ½ inch, and soak your yard. Start sowing at the edge of your area. Divide the remaining seed and apply half while walking in one direction, and the rest while walking in another. Lightly cover the seeded area with compost and topsoil.
When you overseed is dependent on where you live.
Northern Climates:
Overseed in late summer or early fall to help young grass germinate, establish strong roots, and store food needed for spring.
Southern Climates:
Overseed in the early summer to help it grass grow strong roots and store nutrients right before fall.
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What Happens If I Cut My Grass Too Short
Known as scalping, when you cut off more than one-third of the grasss height, your lawn could go into a state of physiological shock, resulting in brown or bare spots. Why? When you cut grass too short, you are depleting your lawn of essential energy reserves which can weaken or kill the turf. If its too late and the damage is done, dont think you can fix everything with a quick dose of fertilizer. Applying fertilizer will only make matters worse, possibly burning the already vulnerable grass.
Spring is an important time of year for lawn care and landscaping. The calendar tells us that spring begins on March 21st but if you live in Columbus, Ohio, you know this may not be the case. This article outlined various ways to treat your yard in spring and the importance of timing lawn treatments just right. If you have questions, contact Five Seasons Landscape Management, your local commercial lawn care provider.
Kong Junior Scarlet Coleus
Kong Junior Scarlet coleus brings season-long color to shade or part shade spots. Like all annuals, this beauty looks best when its set off by a swath of healthy green grass.
Ball Horticultural Company
Growing healthy turf pays off in more ways than looking good. A stand of thick grass also crowds out weeds, stands up to drought and holds its own through seasonal temperature extremes. Want to tend your best lawn ever? Take our crash course on lawn fertilizing basics.
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Can I Fertilize Grass In Winter
Dont fertilize too early! During the winter months, grass is likely dormant if you havent been irrigating. When you fertilize too early in springmeaning its still winter youre providing nutrients before the grass has broken dormancy. Deeper, healthier roots support a healthier, weed-resistant lawn.
Reseed Late In The Growing Season
For a healthy spring and summer lawn, reseed in the late summer/early fall. Whether youre seeding a small patch or a whole yard, youre going to be much more successful if you wait for the cooler, damper weather of late summer or early fall. Its almost impossible to get seed to survive during the dog days of summer in most regions, its simply too hot and dry.
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How To Treat Your Lawn In Spring
As commercial landscapers, people often ask us how to treat a lawn in the spring, and our reply is not as much how, but when. Living in Columbus, Ohio, it could warm up to 70 degrees in February and snow as late as April, so its imperative to time it right and wait until your lawn is ready. Too early and you could crush or kill new grass. Too late and youll miss precious windows of time for certain lawn applications.
Find out how to treat your lawn in spring to have beautiful grass to enjoy year round.
Is It Too Late To Apply Grub Control
Preventative measures work best before the fall season. But if perhaps fall meets you unprepared, you could still take your bet at saving your lawn.
For lawn owners, Imidacloprid is one of the most common grub control treatments. Usually, products with Imidacloprid are usually most effective when applied during summer, probably at the end of July or at most early August.
However, there are other newly emerging products that could control the damage of late application. These products still work just fine even right into September.
Even if you couldnt take your shot at grub preventative treatments, you could always go for curative control.
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Lawn Care Calendar: Jobs For November
All is quiet on the lawncare front. Its not too late for aerating and its certainly not too late to apply winter feed if you havent done it yet.
Keep off the lawn when the grass is frozen. Remember to take all the summer toys, furniture and paraphernalia off the lawn.
You may or may not need to mow. Use your judgement. If you do mow, the blades must be really sharp. This is not the time of year to risk tearing at the leaves, if you cant offer a clean cut, dont do it at all.
Can Brown Grass Turn Green Again
Its natural for grass to go dormant to conserve water during periods of limited rainfall, and drought-induced brown grass should turn green on its own as the weather cools and rainfall increases. You can also restore your lawn by giving it an inch of water on a weekly basis with your lawn sprinkler.
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Problems Caused By Lawn Fungus
Overall, grass rust fungus is not a huge problem so dont stress if you have noticed it on your lawn.
Some of the minor problems that rust fungus does cause includes:
- Reduces the ability for the grass to
- Lawn will look less healthy
- Grass growth will slow down
- While rust will not kill your lawn, it will eventually cause it to become weak and less resilient to weather and physical damage
- The dust will cling to shoes, clothes and garden equipment and may stain
Spring Lawn Care Advice: April
As spring continues the weather is more likely to be consistently warmer. Be aware that the odd frost can still fall so dont cut the grass too short and avoid walking on the lawn if there has been a frost. You will probably find that you will be mowing the lawn more frequently now too. April is the time to apply a fertiliser to your lawn to encourage growth particularly if youve been treating a moss problem which can leave your lawn looking bare. If you do have some bare patches, now is the time to sow some grass seed. Being rigorous with lawn care during the spring will yield great results in the summer. Here is our selection of spreaders which will help you spread seed, fertiliser or herbicides quickly and efficiently.
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Clean Up Your Tools For A Fresh Start Next Spring
They’ve served you well all season, but now that you’ve completed your fall yard maintenance , it’s time to put the tools away. You’ll keep them from rusting if you clean them up before you hang them up. Also, if you’re done mowing for the year, don’t forget to do your winter mower maintenance before storing.
Top Tips For A Healthy Lawn
A green and healthy lawn is easy to achieve with a bit of work. A little effort now will save you a lot of effort later, because healthy lawns are less vulnerable to pests, weeds, drought, and other problems.
Follow these seven tips:
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Get Your Property Ready For Snow
Before the snow flies, take a few minutes to inspect your property. Remove rocks, dog tie-out cables, extension cords, holiday light cords and garden hoses. Then stake out paths that run near gardens so you dont accidentally suck up rocks and garden edging with your snowblower. by pounding in driveway markers. If the ground is already frozen, just drill a hole using a masonry bit and your battery-powered drill.
Watering Your Flower Mound And Highland Village Tx Lawn
The best time to water your lawn can be a touchy subject in Texas because many communities put water restrictions in place, especially during summer. But, grass needs water to stay healthy and grow, so if Mother Nature isnt raining down on your lawn, you need to run a sprinkler if you expect grass to stay healthy and continue growing.
Many of the lawns we care for have irrigation systems, and yours might, too. Here are some tips for when and how often to water.
The best time to water your Texas lawn is in the early morning. This way, soil can soak in moisture before the sun causes water to evaporate and, generally speaking, the wind velocity is slower earlier in the day.
An exception to this rule is when water restrictions are in place. Lets say your municipality allows homeowners to water their lawns twice per week. We recommend watering morning and evening on those two days so you can achieve four watering timeswhich is ideal for summer.
Moving into the question of how often to water in summer, we recommend three to four days per week. In winter, plan on watering your lawn in the morning once a week.
As for how long to water your Texas lawn, plan on 10 to 35 minutes per zone, depending on the type of irrigation heads your sprinkler system has. Rotor heads must run longer25 to 35 minutes per zonewhile spray heads can do the job in 10 to 15 minutes per zone.
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The Best Time To Fertilize Texas Grass
Lawn care is a year-round necessity in Texas if you want a healthy lawn because our grass is always growing. Sure, it slows down in winter, though grass still needs nutrients to stay healthy. We fertilize Denton and Collin county, TX lawns four times from April to October to provide consistent turf nutrition.
Fertilizer must be watered in, so if theres no rain in the forecast after it is applied, plan on running your sprinkler system for the recommended time based on your sprinkler heads .
As we said, give the mower a rest for at least 24 hours after a fertilizer application so the product can absorb into the soil.
Perfect Lawn Maintenance Timing: When To Fertilize Water Spray Weeds And More In Texas
Theres a lot involved in Texas lawn maintenance, and timing is everything. When is the best time to apply fertilizerand what time of day should you water your lawn to get the best results? From controlling weeds to seeding a lawn, when you perform these essential lawn care and landscape tasks is the difference between success, and possibly hurting your lawn.
We know many folks who decide to care for their own lawns, and theres nothing wrong with thatexcept when they overlook timing and end up not getting the results they expect. Basically, you can do all the right things for your lawn at the wrong time and end up wasting your weekend and your money.
So, lets dig into this timing issue.
Here, well give you insight on the best time in North Texas to fertilize, water, spray weeds, prevent insects, service your irrigation system, seed a lawn and more. Youll see, theres a reason for this North Texas lawn care scheduleand with this knowledge, you can do all the landscape maintenance yourself, or hire a pro to handle the landscape maintenance needs youre not comfortable handling on your own.
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