A Bit Of Fall Lawn Care Advice To Help You Keep Your Lawn Protected Throughout The Winter
As summer turns to fall the days will start to become shorter and the temperatures will begin to fall and this is that time of the year when you will do well to start your fall lawn care preparations. For most of us, the right kind of fall lawn care advice will ensure that we learn how to keep our lawns in proper condition despite the onset of the cool weather. In fact, only with the help of proper fall lawn care advice can you ensure making your lawn last through the fall season and in addition it allows you to prepare for the oncoming cold winter months.
Fertilizing Is Important
The fall season is the beginning of a time when your lawn is going to be dormant for the coming months and for this you need to ask the experts for proper fall lawn care advice. Fertilizing is an important aspect of fall lawn care as the addition of appropriate fall fertilizers will ensure that the roots in your lawn continue growing beneath the surface of the earth even in spite of the fact that the ground will be covered up with snow.
Another aspect to fall lawn care for which proper fall lawn care advice is needed is knows the correct way to go about doing power seeding which helps to increase density of the turf and which also ensures that your lawn remains in good overall health. One piece of solid fall lawn care advice that you will do well to heed is to use a power seeder that goes by the name of Turf Tamer ® that provides the turf with the right quantity of seeds that will then ensure that your lawn can easily recover from the ravages of the previous summer.
Another aspect to getting fall lawn care advice is knows how to aerate the lawn which is something that you need to pay special attention to as it helps to keep the lawn from suffering on account of compacting of the grass that will surely occur because of the heavy amount of traffic on the lawn. In addition, aerating the lawn helps ensure that the required nutrients and oxygen reach the roots and so ensures the safety of the lawn and its plants and grass.
Applying fall fertilizer is essential to maintaining the health of your lawn. It is therefore a good idea to seek a lawn doctor from whom you can get pertinent fall lawn care advice regarding fall lawn care fertilizer. You need to know the right time to apply the fertilizer and also the right quantities and remember that timing of applying the fertilizer is crucial to the health of your lawn. Only with the help of fall lawn care advice can you learn not to apply the fertilizer too early which could easily lead to winter injuries as well as to snow mold damage.
http://homeimprovement-advice.com/a-bit-of-fall-lawn-care-advice-to-help-you-keep-your-lawn-protected-throughout-the-winter.html
http://homeimprovement-advice.com/a-bit-of-fall-lawn-care-advice-to-help-you-keep-your-lawn-protected-throughout-the-winter.html
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Early Fall Advice for Lawns
5 Tips to Remedy Lawn Care Short-Comings
5 Tips to Remedy Lawn Care Short-Comings
July 15, 2009-
With record low mortgage rates, expanded FHA loans and tax credit incentives, many Americans have plunged into first-time home ownership. In fact, the National Association of Realtors reports that first-time buyers accounted for 29 percent of existing home sales in the last month. But while taking advantage of the current incentives, many first-time buyers don’t think of everything that comes along with home ownership - including how to take care of their yard so they remain rightfully proud of their new castle.
Briggs & Stratton Corp., a leading manufacturer of lawn mower engines, offers these lawn care tips for even the most challenged green thumb.
Choose the right mower.
Purchase a mower with a quality engine. Elements to consider are torque, emissions and ease in starting. Briggs & Stratton engines are found in eight of the top 10 selling lawn mowers brands. To understand more about why engines make a difference, visit www.enginesmatter.com.
Never cut more than one-third of the grass blade during any one mowing.
By following this rule, the remaining two-thirds of the plant will develop deep roots and spread out, eventually creating a dense, healthy turf. Using this technique, of course, means shorter intervals between mowings during high growth times, but a healthy lawn is the best medicine for preventing weeds and disease.
Alternate your mowing pattern.
Try not to follow the same path each time you mow. Think of a clock. Start at the 12 o’clock position and mow to the 6 o’clock position. The next time you mow, begin at the 9 o’clock position and mow to the to 3 o’clock position. The third time, mow from 1 o’clock to 7 o’clock, etc. Changing the mowing pattern every time you mow will keep the turf and soil from compacting and prevent wheel patterns in your lawn.
Water early in the day.
Watering between 4 and 9 a.m. helps ensure that the sun won’t rob moisture from your lawn. It also gives your lawn the best chance to dry in the morning. Wet grass at night can lead to disease. Most lawns need about 1-2 inches of water a week to stay healthy.
Avoid a fertilizer overdose.
Even good medicine causes harm when used improperly, so avoid doubling the recommended rates of fertilizer as well as seed, herbicide, insecticide, etc. One pound of water-soluble nitrogen per 1,000 square feet is the maximum amount established lawns should receive at one time.
Read more: http://rismedia.com/2009-07-14/5-tips-to-remedy-lawn-care-short-comings/#ixzz0LS8lzLFG
USING BORAX TO CONTROL CREEPING CHARLIE
USING BORAX TO CONTROL CREEPING CHARLIE
Borax (sodium tetraborate, a white, crystalline mineral salt) has been found to be an effective herbicide for creeping charlie (Glechoma hederacea, also known as ground ivy, creeping jenny and gill-over-the-ground). Creeping charlie is an invasive perennial weed that vines throughout lawns and chokes out grass. Since the 1920s, borax detergent has been used as an herbicide to eradicate weeds, but it has only recently been tested scientifically for effectiveness on creeping charlie.
Borax contains boron which is an essential micronutrient that aids in sugar transportation in plants. However, in minute excess amounts, boron has a toxic effect on creeping charlie.
Borax must be applied with great caution because boron remains immobile in the soil and can accumulate to form a "hot spot" in the lawn. Boron toxicity results in yellow and brown spots around edges of leaves. Stems wilt and eventually the weed dies. Established grass appears to withstand the minute excess of boron needed to kill creeping charlie, though it may show brown discoloration temporarily. If the borax solution is applied in too high a concentration, or repeatedly, it will then be toxic to grass and many other plants.
This treatment can be applied only once each year for two years. If you still have creeping charlie problems, then switch to a standard herbicide.
Before applying borax as a herbicide be sure to test your spraying technique and the rate at which liquid sprays from the nozzle. Fill the sprayer with water and walk at a constant pace, passing back and forth over an area the same size as the one to be sprayed with borax. Your goal is to walk fast enough to empty the sprayer tank, spreading its contents evenly over the entire area.
Borax Solution for Creeping Charlie Control:
Dissolve 10 oz. Twenty Mule Team Borax in 4 oz. (½ cup) warm water.Dilute in 2.5 gallons of water.
This will cover 1,000 square feet. If you have a smaller area to treat, cut the "recipe" accordingly.
Apply borax when creeping charlie is actively growing in the spring, when no rain is expected for 48 hours. The borax treatment appears to be most effective during warm summers when soil moisture is ample.
Remember: The borax recipe has been tested only on creeping charlie and is not to be used on other broadleaf weeds. Be sure to use the borax spray only in the lawn because research shows established grass is tolerant of the spray. It should not be used in gardens.
If creeping charlie is growing in a very shady location, think about what you can replace it with before spraying this borax treatment. Unless you can establish other plants you'll find the creeping charlie sprouting again in the same location.
A healthy lawn is the strongest defense against weeds. Maintaining a regime of proper mowing practices, watering and fertilization will enable any gardener to combat weeds in a lawn. Contact your local County Extension Office or call The Yard and Garden Line for information on lawn maintenance and fertilization.
From http://www.extension.umn.edu/yardandgarden/ygbriefs/h519borax.html
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Grub protection time is coming soon
Grub protection time is coming soon. Order Now.
Grubs will be hatching soon. When they do, they have a tendency to do a lot of damage to lawns. Here in Ontario, Merit is not longer a legal product. (even though the granular Merit that we used to use is less poisonous than table salt.)Nematodes are now the only choice in Ontario. Nematodes are microscopic worms that find their way into the grubs. Once inside, they multiply and produce a toxin that knocks the grubs off the scene.
Nematodes are living organisms and need special treatment and care. They require lots of moisture to prevent them from drying and dying. Ideally, applications done during a rain are the best. Unfortunately, there aren't enough rainy days during the August-September time period that everyone who is supposed to get a nematode treatment. The folks with sprinklers are lucky- set the sprinkler system to manual ! and give the lawn a watering. This will get the nematodes off the lawn and down into the soil.
Please order your Grub Protection Now. There are indications that Nematodes may be in short supply.
White grub prevention
This link is to an article from Kansas City. We can't use the products she is suggesting here in Ontario, Canada, but the other information is helpful.Eat Your Weeds Away: Dandelion Greens
Written by Leslie QuigleyPublished on May 29th, 2009
I can remember as a kid blowing the fuzz off of a dandelion weed and making a wish. Little did I know that dandelions were nutritious. Dandelion greens are considered a leafy vegetable that contain more nutrition than broccoli. Having a higher content of vitamins A, and C, and iron. Dandelions also contain lots of magnesium and potassium.
The best time to eat dandelion greens is in the spring and early summer when the leaves are still young. Dandelion greens should be harvested in early spring, before the flowers appear. Th! ey’re a bit bitter but taste fantastic in a salad. You can als! o saute the flowers, roots and leaves with onion and garlic, serve them on a sandwich or salad, boil the leaves and serve like spinach or add them to your green smoothies like I do!
Dandelions are a natural diuretic and a spring tonic. Dandelion is used to cleanse the body naturally and is an herbal detoxification saint. It is believed that the herb produces beneficial effects by removing toxic pollutants in the body that have accumulated over time. It has also been known to prevent or cure various forms of Cancer.
Dandelions have many therapeutic benefits they support digestion, prevents anemia reduce swelling and inflammation, helps with hypertension and lowering blood sugar, treat skin problems such as eczema, warts and acne and number of other ailments including gallstones and gout. It is known as one of the most effective and beneficial herbal remedies. The roots, stems, and leaves of the dandelion excrete a white sticky resin, This sticky resin when applied! directly to warts daily, several times a day, will slowly help to dissolve them.
A few other ways to use dandelion are : Make a tea using the flowers by boiling them in water for 15 minutes, roast the roots of dandelion to make a coffee substitute and for you wine connoisseur’s try making dandelion wine.
Dandelion’s are considered weeds and are known to be pesky. Plain and simple dandelions have a bad rap! So, next time you think of a dandelion think of all the great qualities it possesses. Forage your lawn for these nutritious leafy greens rather than spray them down with toxic chemicals. For old time’s sake, you can blow a wish to health. Take advantage of their healing and cleansing benefits. Eat your weeds away!
Article at
http://ecochildsplay.com/
Somethin’ strange…in your neighbourhood?
By Jim HynesRaccoons destroying your garden, skunks living in your cabana, bats in your attic, ants in your kitchen, fungus on your tree leaves, weird worms in your lawn? Who you gonna call? Call UNIS!
McGill students Mel Lefebvre and Christie Lovat field hundreds of calls (and emails) like these every summer in a non-descript former classroom in the Raymond Building on Macdonald Campus. The two are officers at the Urban Nature Information Service (UNIS), a not-for-profit organization affiliated with McGill’s Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences providing answers to horticultural, wildlife and green-living inquiries from callers all over Quebec.
The program started as the Horticultural Information Centre back in 1982, a free service offered by the Plant Science Department. In 2001, it merged with a similar service called the Wildlife Information Centre, run by the Department of Natural Resource Sciences, to create UNIS. Today, the program is staffed by students and overseen by two coordinators: Dr. David Bird, professor of Wildlife Biology in the Department of Natural Resource Sciences, and Dr. Danielle Donnelly, a professor in the Plant Science Department.
When they can, Lefebvre and Lovat offer solutions to horticultural and wildlife dilemmas both common and unusual. They will even examine samples, of insects or damaged leaves for example, to get to the bottom of their callers’ problems.
When it comes to situations involving wild animals, however, UNIS acts as more of a referral service.
“If we are unable to help someone, like in the case of caring for an injured bird, which is illegal in Quebec without the proper permit, we can provide the numbers of organizations who can help,” says Lefebvre, who will be completing her studies in biodiversity and conservation at the McGill School of the Environment in the fall.
Every summer, UNIS staff update the list of the services they refer people to, services with names like Eco-Bug Doctor and Squirrel Rehab, to make sure the information they are providing is still accurate.
Some calls though, like the first one they received one morning in early July, can be handled with a little experience and common sense. A man in Dollard-des-Ormeaux has discovered a duck and a nest with four unhatched eggs in it near his backyard swimming pool, so Lefebvre advises him to pit the nest in a box and walk, it, slowly, to a nearby park that has a pond. Mother duck, she explains, will surely waddle behind.
Many calls to UNIS last summer, says Lovat, a Botanical Science student, were about white grubs and the animals that like to eat them ravaging suburban lawns.
“We don’t have as many white grub questions this year. A lot of our calls right now are about tree diseases. The cold spring has resulted in a lot of cold damage to trees. People are concerned that trees that were beautiful and full last year have fewer leaves and dead branches this year,” Lovat says. “In most cases we just reassure them that their tree is not dying and will come back to normal if they cut off the dead branches.”
The past two years have offered a new challenge to the UNIS officers as they got to take their know-how on the road to be shared with local municipalities and their residents. In bi-weekly visits to Terrasse-Vaudreuil, a community on the farthest reaches of the West Island, they give workshops and field questions on subjects like environmentally friendly lawn care, composting methods, white grub control, recycling, and dealing with wild animals in urban settings.
Another challenge, an ongoing one, is funding. UNIS has traditionally been funded through donations from various Quebec municipalities, a grant provided by the Federal Government, and by support from the Natural Resource Science Department. Funding cuts of any kind, UNIS says, could jeopardize the future of the service.
To reach UNIS, call 514-398-7882, email them at unis.macdonald@mcgill.ca, or visit them online at www.unis.mcgill.ca
Article from http://reporter.mcgill.ca/
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Gee, McGuinty, thanks a lot for all the new weeds and grubs
June 24, 2009 Wednesday
Final Edition
Gee, McGuinty, thanks a lot for all the new weeds and grubs
BYLINE: John Angus, The Ottawa Citizen
SECTION: NEWS; Pg. A13
LENGTH: 340 words
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Leaner green lawns
If you're looking for ways to tighten your budget, make landscaping and lawn care a DIY project.
If you
have a lawn/tree/shrub that needs some Tender Loving Care- get The KING OF
GREEN:
Another Yellow Flower to Watch For
Most people are aware of and know what a dandelion flower looks like. And it's okay if you like them because you're into dandelion wine or just pretty yellow flowers
Bird's foot trefoil is a lesser know yellow flower. It it not often found in lawns. You are more likely to see it along the roadsides. Especially roads without sidewalks, just near the rural boundaries or along the edge of a field.
What is the significance of this flower? It's what we call an indicator plant. When birds foot trefoil is in bloom, it indicates the chinch bugs are at the height of egg laying.
Of course, after the eggs come the baby chinch bugs or nymphs. These little guys like to suck the sap out of grasses. Enough of them can do a lot of damage to a lot of lawns.
Chinch bug Article in Library.
Friday, June 19, 2009
Why do some people get chinch bugs?
A homeowner asked, "Will I need chinch bug treatment every year?"
And, "Why do I have chinch bugs and my neighbour doesn't?"
Chinch bugs like warm, sunny conditions. They're like "fair weather" enemies. You are most likely to find them in the sunniest spot on your lawn. Check for them on the south facing lawns, away from trees, shrubs, even fences. Any where that there isn't any shade.
Chinch bugs overwinter in the bushes, along the house foundations, anywhere they can hide for the winter. They are back on the lawns now. (a bit earlier this year than most years.) We are finding them now. This picture is not very clear but it show how small the chinch bugs are.
With the new organic treatments for chinch bugs, not all chinch bugs will be eliminated. We can achieve a level of control that permits the lawns to not show visible damage. This means a few chinch bugs will survive to come back another year.
There are a few things you can do to reduce chinch bug damage and populations.
1. Mow the lawn high. We recommend 3" mowing height. The longer grass blades shade the soil and keep it cooler. A little bit extra shade may be enough to discourage the chinch bugs.
2. Water deeply and infrequently. A stronger, healthier lawn will withstand chinch bug damage better. Chinch bugs suck the sap from the grass. Damage is always worse, for instance, on bentgrass, which is a shallow rooted variety. Deep watering encourages deep roots.
3. Overseed with perennial ryegrass with endophytes. Short version- endophytes discourage chinch bugs. So by having more endophytic perennial ryegrass in your lawn = less chinch bugs.
And the neighbour- maybe he has more shade and is doing all the right things. Sometimes, though it's the neighbour who neglects his lawn that seems to avoid chinch bugs, while you look after your lawn and why do you get the chinch bugs?
I guess, you have to look at it from the point of the chinch bugs. If you were a chinch bug looking for a lawn to feed on, would you choose a neglected lawn or would you choose the green, succulent one that a homeowner can take pride in? Since chinch bugs are sucking insects, small wonder they pick the nice lawns. One of the downsides of having a nice, green lawn.
Chinch bug Article in Library.
