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How You’re Damaging Your Lawn By . . . Walking On It
Before you ask . . . no, we are not suggesting that instead of walking on your grass you invest in a Marty McFly-style hoverboard. (But if you do own one of those, please send us pictures.) Winter is a great season, isn’t it? It’s the time of year when we don’t give a second thought to how healthy our grass is underneath all that snow (or, lately, ice). It goes dormant in the fall, awakens from its slumber in the spring, and then we start the taking-care-of-the-lawn seasons. Easy, simple. Did you know, though, that the simplest activity you do every day might ac
What Spring-Green Is Doing In The Winter Months
Many people think that those who work in lawn care have nothing to do in the winter. In actuality, winter is a very busy time for those who work in the lawn care industry. Some of our southern franchise locations have already started performing applications to control weeds that have germinated and are applying products to prevent new ones from germinating. Granted, the far north franchise locations may not be making any applications, but there is still a good deal of work to get done before the start of their lawn care season. What Spring-Green is doing during the winter months:
New Year, New Garden: Let the Planning Begin!
The new seed and plant catalogs start arriving in my mailbox in January. They make for good reading material when the temperature is in the single digits and there is a foot of snow on the ground. If you are like me, dreaming/planning my garden helps to chase away the winter blues. Refer to the Hardiness Chart There are so many beautiful plants and flowers to choose from, but it is important that you make sure the plants you pick will grow in your area. Looking at a Plant Hardiness map is the best way to learn this information.
Disease Triangle: If The Conditions Are Right...
As it has been said many times about the Midwest, “If you don’t like the weather, wait a minute and it will change.” In mid-December, the temperatures were below zero and there were more than 6 inches of snow on the ground. One week later, the temperatures soared to a balmy 55 degrees on Christmas night and well into the next day. As I was writing this blog, the temperatures dropped back to normal December ranges at 24° F. It is supposed to warm up to the upper 30’s as the week goes on, so we are on a roller coaster ride of fluctuating temperatures. In the pas
Preventing Salt Damage to Your Lawn and Landscape
The first real snow fell across much of the northern US in the last week or so. When snow falls, out come the ice melting products. Salt can be very detrimental to lawns and landscape if not used carefully. If you do plan to spread some, use it carefully. Try to keep the ice melting product on the paved surfaces and off your lawn and out of your landscape beds as much as possible. There are several types of ice melt products. Some of these products claim that they will not harm your plants, lawn or your pets. These are products like calc
5 Hazardous Plants To Keep Away From Your Pets
We all love our pets, especially our dogs and cats. For some families, their cat or dog is a major part of the family. Dogs and cats have many habits, some of these are bad. Dogs and cats have been known to nibble on house plants, either because they are hungry or just bored. It would be tragic if anything were to happen to them after sampling a house plant during the joyous holiday season. Plants make a great present. Amaryllis, Christmas cactus, and poinsettias, to name a few, are all lovely to look at, but each one has varying degrees of toxicity to our faithful
4 Great Gift Ideas For The Gardener In Your Life
Gardening season for most people is still months away, but the need for good gardening tools is always present. Over the years, I have purchased many gardening tools and have learned a lot. I used to pick the cheap ones because I figured that I only needed certain tools a couple days every year and I didn’t need to spend a lot of money for a seldom-used tool. What I have learned over the years is that a cheap gardening tool just won’t last very long. Having a shovel handle break or a rake bend while you are in the middle of planting can be very frustrating. Good too
Christmas Lights: Should You Hang Them On Your Trees and Shrubs?
The Friday and Saturday after Thanksgiving seem to be the traditional times to put up Christmas decorations. I spent parts of both days putting up lights, getting frustrated when half of a string did not work, took down the lights and added a new strand then found another half of a strand not working and had to repeat the same process once again. Sometimes I think it may be less frustrating to just buy new lights every year. It does look nice when it is all done, that is until half of a string goes out. Someone once asked me if a tree can get damaged when the trunk a
When Will The First Frost Happen?
Depending on where you live, the first true “killing frost” may already have occurred. Here in northern Illinois, the frost has been light and usually only in lower areas that are more in the open. We haven’t had that frost that seems to wipe out all the annuals and many of the more tender perennials in landscape beds. I spent this last weekend pulling up plants that were still growing, but I still need to get them all fully out before winter comes. I try to compost many of the plants, but there are always a few that I want to dispose of in lawn clean-up bags. I mainly do so with plants that may have h
Why Did They Fertilize Over The Top of All The Leaves?
This is the time of year when leaves come raining down from all the deciduous trees and shrubs, since it is the end of the growing cycle for most of these plants. As days get shorter and shorter in the fall, it triggers a reaction in the plant that it is time for the leaves to stop taking in nutrients, change color and then drop to allow new buds to develop for the next year. If you search the term, “rake or not to rake” you will find dozens of sites that discuss the advantages of mulching your leaves. Although, most rake them up, filling expensive ya