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Here we are again, reaching the end of summer, slowly. But, there are still some necessary tips you should all follow to keep your lawn in tip-top shape. These tips can help your lawn stay green and healthy! For Mowing: 1. Mow only in the cool parts of the day (morning & evening). 2. Mow high – at about 3 inches or higher. Most people don’t realize the effect this can have on a lawn. When you mow your lawn at 3 inches + you allow the grass to shade itself. This helps the turf from drying out and becoming dormant, brown patches. Here is a picture to help show what a good mowing height looks like. This picture was taken a few days after this lawn had been mowed. It shows that the mowing height was spot on. The mowing could almost be even higher. Here is a picture of the mowing measuring stick we hand out to customers. It gives a good representation as to how high the grass should be mowed, and it helps with any questions people have. For watering: 1. Watering should be done only in the cool parts of the day, again in the morning and evening. By doing this, you allow the moisture to really sink into the turf, without being evaporated by the sun. Another thing you can do to take care of you lawn is to look out for lawn diseases, like brown patch, red thread, and dollar spot. You can also look out for weeds, like dallisgrass, crabgrass, nutsedge, and spurge. If you see these in your lawn, contact us right away so we can perform an application to combat them.

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We are now offering gift certificates!! We’ve received requests for gift certificates in the recent past, and we are now offering them to all customers! The time is here to start thinking about lawn care, and if you know someone who may need it, contact us for a gift certificate. If you know someone who needs help with an irrigation system, we can also help. Even if you want a tick application applied to your yard we can help with that too! The minimum amount is $50, and there is no maximum. They can apply to any and all applications, including the four rounds, grub control, tick applications, irrigation start-ups, and more. However, they may not apply to a prepayment. If you would like to purchase a gift certificate, please comment below, email championlc1@comcast.net, or call us at 1-800-566-5731.

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As we round the corner towards Spring, and the snow begins to melt, many of you may notice your lawn along the driveway is damaged by plows. A few snow storms this winter occured during a warm period where the ground hadn’t been completely frozen. When we approach warmer weather these bare areas will fill up with undesirable weeds (mainly crabgrass). It is important to seed these areas as soon as possible. But, seeding in Spring can be difficult when there are many grass types competing for the same space. So, once the desired grass type has become established it is important to treat these areas with a herbicide, to kill or prevent future weeds from growing. These new grass ares can be a struggle all season long, but with the right care, it can be very rewarding. Proper weed treatement and watering schedules can be very helpul, and it is important to stay on top of it.

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Recently, we received questions regarding lawn conditions with melting snow, leaving an odd look to lawns.  It appears that with the recent snow cover melting away, mice have been active between the snow and turf. Mice have created tunnels by chewing the grass leaves off to use as bedding and insulation for food stores. I know my own lawn usually has this same damage from mice.  They tend to move between this snow/turf area creating tunnels.   The tunnels allow the mice to move freely to food and nesting areas without being detected by predators.  What we see when the snow cover melts are these areas where the grass was chewed, and many times we will find balls of the grass.  If broken apart you may find tuffs of fur or seeds that the mice intended to eat at a future time. No long-lasting damage occurs to our turf as it will recover with spring growth.  Keep in mind, however, that if your lawn has this occurring problem we strongly suggest setting out control methods. The mice will more than likely attempt to enter our homes or our buildings, where they will build nests or chew items that we cherish.

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Heat and humidity have been the norm for this past week, and predicted rain showers were more localized than anticipated.  The fifth official heat wave has been recorded, and the lawns have remained unchanged mostly, with the exception of the few property owners who have continued watering and have been mowing high and only when necessary.  These lawns have improved slightly with growth and improved color.   If given the opportunity to water, do so as the reward will bring positive change to the health of your lawns. Although weeds and crabgrass are stretching and growing faster than the grass, (we continue to treat as we find weeds), this will begin to change as we progress through the month of August.  August historically will continue to produce heat and humidity.  August also usually triggers the transition of night-time temperatures becoming cooler.  This temperature change will aid with the slowing of crabgrass and hopefully the return of rainfall.  The rainfall many times is brought north with the increase in warm tropical depressions. Knowing that this transition is just around the corner we have begun the scheduling of seeding, aeration, and composting for stressed lawns.  The window to re-establish and seed lawns is limited and ideal germination temperatures will fluctuate.  Therefore, late August thru September is the best time to get this done.  Our experience with seeding beyond this time frame has been less than effective, resulting many times with greatly reduced germination. If you have areas of concern and would like us to look at your lawns please contact us.

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Recently our lawns have been stressed due to weather conditions. Record heat, combined with less than average rainfall, has resulted in turf grass shutting down and going dormant. Dormant turf starts by becoming discolored and eventually turns tan. This is very natural and is a healthy way for the grass to survive long, hot, dry periods. However, if these conditions persist, some turf will die. Watering of the turf will usually ensure that little to no damage occurs. So, given the opportunity water as soon as possible do not rely on rainfall.   During this period of dormancy and stress it appears that selected weeds and crabgrass are growing in areas thinned by recent weather conditions.  If this is a concern to you we ask that you inform us immediately. July 26, 2012 we saw  a much-needed rain fall and it appears this coming week we have a good chance to get daily showers. As we begin the third lawn fertilizer application for most of our customers we will be treating weeds, crabgrass, and nutsedge as warranted.  This is also an opportunity for us to identify areas that would benefit from late summer, early fall seeding.

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The Natural Choice for Sustainable Lawn Care In natural systems, organic matter generally cycles in place, added to the soil through root and stem decay of winter killed annuals and leaf decay. A thriving microbial community digests and breaks down this organic matter to release nutrients back to the soil. Organic soil amendments may be needed to help balance the soils chemistry, stimulate its biology, and restore its physical composition. Such amendments may also be needed to feed turf grass in a lawn, which has extraordinary nutrient needs because it is grown in an unnatural way, perpetually mowed and kept green as long as possible. A well balanced soil fertility program is one that increases humus content, organic matter and beneficial microorganisms recycles nutrients, improves water retention, balances minerals and buffers pH in addition to compost, organic matter (manure) and compost tea other amendments may be indicated based on soil test results. These include natural surfactants to aerate soil, root stimulants and developers, rock dust, secondary and micronutrients, flocculants, vitamins, beneficial microbes, enzymes, organic humus, fulvic acid, kelp or dextrose. What is there to expect when moving to a organic lawn care program? A learning curve takes place, and weekly cultural habits may need to be altered.  You may notice a brief increase in crabgrass and weeds. To address this concern, seeding of these areas will be necessary and will aid in creating a thicker stand of turf, which will eventually prevent weeds and crabgrass from getting established.  Removing of clippings when weeds or crabgrass are present is required. Removing of clippings will immediately remove future unwanted weed or crabgrass seeds from being re-established. A thick lawn is the best way to prevent weeds and crabgrass from getting established. Mowing no less than three and half Inches each time will build a deeper stronger root system.  This, in turn, will produce a healthier stand of turf, that will be able to combat drought, disease, insects and other stress’s put upon the grass.  Mow only as needed, and sometimes it may be advised to skip mowing cycles when the grass is stressed.

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