Tropicals are expensive to replace every year so if you have some you really like you can overwinter them in your house or basement. Most tropicals will overwinter with minimal care all that is required is to water once a month and make sure they recieve some light. Light can be provided naturally or by artifical lighting.
Have you ever gazed out of the kitchen window at your beautiful wildlife garden on a cold winter’s day? It looks so barren and lonely. Have you ever wondered where the butterflies go during this time of year?
Don't forget to cut your ornamental grasses and shrub roses back this spring before spring growth starts. This is important to remove old growth as well as encourage new, healthy growth.
A lot of customers are calling in asking why the mowers skipped them this week. We actually recommend skipping the weekly mowing after a fall renovation. The seed is still very fragile and cannot handle the machines running over it. Usually the grass has not germinated by this time anyways, so it is not always needed. If you are doing a complete overhaul of the lawn with a full renovation, you might have to skip mowing even longer.
Mowing is one of the cultural practices that has the greatest effect on weed infestation. When mowing the grass too low, it becomes less competitive and weeds especially adapted to low mowing heights will increase. This is the case with a grassy weed like crabgrass, which is more of a problem in lawns that are mowed short.
The center for Childhood safety offers these tips for safe lawn mowing:
Make sure to sharpen your blades before the first mowing- Dull blades cause "tearing" of the blade which causes the tips to have a brown discoloration. In addition, it is not healthy for the plant. Ensure that used blades are free of cracks, nicks or bends before using them.
2 1/2-3" Mow height (1st mowing only)- This will remove the old tips and encourage new growth resulting in better vigor and appearance. Height should be moved to 3-3 1/2" for subsequent mowing(s).
Weekly mowing is scheduled to begin this Wednesday 3/31. Spring is finally here!!!
If you didn't already have a spring leaf cleanup this spring and the yard is a mess, please call the office. We'd be happy to bag the leaves and cleanup debris during the first mowing.
Lirope is consider the bullet-proof by most gardners but dry weather and excessive watering creates new problem. We are seeing a new disease described as crown rot, caused by Phytophthora palmivora. The disease is exacerbated by wet soil so don’t do any irrigation for the rest of the summer. Fungicide drenches can control the disease but they are too expensive to consider
Check out this modern take on the old watering can.....it doubles as a sculpture! This idea takes the original watering can structure and turns it upside down, being wider as opposed to taller. The unique design also frees up space with storage. Check them out at www.alessi.com
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