Your Lawn is The Gateway to Your Home

A yard is the first impression people get from a home.Yards should look appealing and inviting, a place where you’d like to relax on a pleasant spring afternoon. An easy way to do that is to keep the grass freshly groomed – don’t forget the edging – and plant beds freshly mulched, says John Merrill, editor of American Lawns . According to Merrill, you should make sure the lawn is neatly mown and edged.

An ignored lawn, or a lawn that has become thin and weedy, only detracts from an important first impression. It does not provide that mystical curb appeal, but instead detracts considerably from your home's value. However, with just a little effort and planning, your lawn can be a major asset.

. According to american-lawns.com, there is no magic pill to achieving a better lawn, but there are some basic steps you can follow that will go a long way in giving you a lush, healthy lawn you'll be proud to walk over. Here then are the 5 basic steps to help anyone achieve a beautiful lawn.

1. Get the mowing height right for the right time of year.
There's a lot more to mowing than just cutting the grass every Saturday. One of the most fundamental steps to a perfect lawn is getting the mowing height right for your type of lawn and for a particular season.

Most grasses can survive with a length of 2" - 3". This applies for spring and early fall. In the summer, if possible, set it a little higher*. Never go below the minimum recommended height except for the last mowing of the season which should be around 1.5" for most turf grasses. There are exceptions to this, but if you have a lawn that requires that exception, you already should know your mowing height.

Mowing height is important because the length of that grass blade is the part that absorbs sunshine which the grass blade then miraculously converts into food! Imagine if you were a blade of grass and got hungry, all you had to do was stand outside and soak up some rays!

There are many that think fertilizer is lawn food, but that's not true. Plants actually make their own food using sunlight. it needs to grow and develop into a healthy plant.

In fact, fertilizer isn't even absorbed by the plant as it's put down on the soil. In laymen's terms, the fertilizer that gets put down on the lawn must first go through the digestive juices of a lot of tiny microbes that live in the soil. Only then is it in a form that can be absorbed and used by the plant, not as a food, but as building blocks to build more cells and carry on the process of converting carbon dioxide into oxygen.

Never remove more than 1/3 at any one mowing. This may mean you'll have to mow more often during prime growing times (usually spring and early fall).

Leave the clippings on the lawn after you mow. This not only saves time and energy, but the clippings decompose and add vital nutrients back into the soil. Grass cycling recycles plant nutrients back into the soil. Clippings contain the same beneficial nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium nutrients as that expensive bag of fertilizer. In fact, clippings can provide up to one-third of the annual feeding requirement for your lawn.

2. Use a sharp blade.
The type of mower doesn't matter, but the blade's condition does. A dull blade tears at the grass. Take a close look at a grass blade a few days after mowing. If the blade is dull you'll notice a jagged brown line across the tip of the cut grass. This is a good indication that your blade needs sharpening. Professional mowers sharpen their blades about every 8 hours of use. For most homeowners, twice a year is recommended.

The jagged edges caused by a dull mower blade make it more difficult for the grass to fight off pests and disease.

3. Regulate the water intake
Over watering your lawn causes more damage than a lack of water. Most turf grasses can handle dry spells, but not flooding. Most grasses require 1" - 1.5" of water per week. This is enough water to moisten the soil to 4" - 6" below the surface for clay soils and 8 - 10" for sandy soils.

Don't guess at how much water your lawn is getting. For measuring Mother Nature's contribution, invest in a rain gauge. If at the end of the week she's contributed enough, hold off adding more. If she comes up short, you'll want to add some supplemental watering. Again, measure how much water your sprinkler is putting down.

You'll have to follow local regulations when there are watering bans, but just remember that less water is acceptable and grass is a very resilient plant. When the rains do return your lawn will come back with a little encouragement on your part.

4. Give your lawn a regular, balanced diet-- just don't over-do it!
Don't over-fertilize your lawn with too much of a good thing. 4 balanced fertilizer applications a year is plenty: spring, summer, early fall and after the first frost for cool season grasses. If you're in drought conditions, skip the summer application. Never skip the fall application. It’s important to use lawn products by following label instructions. Get the best results by following the directions. Over application will not improve performance. As mentioned above, fertilizers are processed through their interaction with tiny microbes before they can be used. Over-applying fertilizers can create unfavorable conditions for those microbes, even killing them. When that happens, the soil becomes sterile and the grass won't grow.

 5. Prevention is the best medicine for a healthy lawn
Preventing problems is better than having to correct them. Consistent maintenance is the key. Repair bare spots as needed. Spot treat for weeds with the right herbicide following label directions. Use pre-emergent herbicides for most grassy-type weeds like crabgrass.

Soils can become compacted in high-traffic areas or in areas that have mostly clay soils. Have your lawn aerated once a year, preferably in the fall when soil temperature is around 60 degrees.

Lawn care is serious business, so let the professionals at ProMo Lawn Care make your yard the gateway to your home! And remember:

Not all lawn service contractors are created equal. We're one of the best because we hire the best, make your lawn look its best, and offer the best pricing for professional lawn care in Southwest Florida.

Call us now:
1-800-NEW-LAWN (639-5296)
Local residents call (239) 458-9200

How to Create a Hardscape

According to HGTV, hardscaping is an attractive feature and offers many appealing options, from a rustic stacked wall to a fully developed outdoor living room and kitchen. Once you've decided to create an outdoor space, you must plan carefully to meet your hardscaping goals.

The first step is to consider the landscaping. Be sure to consider the entire area available to you for hardscaping before you design an element, even if you're just tackling one space for now. Doing so now can save you time and money later. Samuel Salsbury, a member of the Association of Professional Landscape Designers states:

"At the bare minimum you should plan a design for the whole area, or consult a professional to create a design for you. If you don't consider the site comprehensively, it's like building one room of a house, and then a year or so later, a second room. You may decide to plop down a patio, and then decide you want a barbecue, pond or walkway and the patio blocks your plan."

Another important thing to take into consideration is the drainage requirement for the space. Too many times, hardscapes are ruined by poorly planned projects. Drainage from your home or lawn can wash away a wall or flood a patio. Make sure you pay close attention to the drainage requirements of your landscape before building your hardscape. This will help to ensure your projects will stay beautiful and last for years to come.

Once you have planned your hardscape, and dealt with possible drainage problems, you can begin to build the yard of your dreams. However, don't forget to start with a focal point to draw your eye through the landscape and create a destination.

Choosing balanced elements for your hardscape project is a must for your project to feel natural. Sabrena Schweyer, APLD, in Salsbury-Schweyer states:

"Too-linear elements can create an unnatural feel. I see way too many people plop in a straight or L-shaped sidewalk, or stick a linear or rectangular patio or deck on the back of the house without giving further thought to the natural lines of the space. You should try to include curves and shapes in a way that the hardscape elements transition gracefully into the rest of the landscape."

Choosing the right materials for your hardscape, as well as choosing the appropriate greenery for your surround is very important to keep your space balanced. Be sure to leave 'green space' for children and pets to play as well.

For more information on how to design a hardscape, go to
http://www.hgtv.com/landscaping/how-to-create-a-successful-hardscape/index.html

Rainwater Harvesting

According to HarvestH2O.com, rainwater harvesting focuses more on protecting a precious resource than on catching a limited resource. After all, Florida has an abundance of rain during the summer months. However, much of this rain normally becomes runoff on the streets, catching pollutants such as fertilizers and pesticides along the way to the lakes, streams and waterways. By harvesting the rain rather than letting it run its natural course, residents can dramatically reduce the storm runoff and its associated pollution of waterways, reduce their monthly water bills, postpone the need for costly stormwater infrastructure improvements, and have healthier plants.

 What is Rainwater Harvesting?
Rainwater harvesting is simply the collection and distribution of natural rain water for irrigation applications. The simplest systems consist of little more than plastic barrels or drums to store the water. Add a spigot at the bottom and screen the top to prevent insects from intruding and you've got yourself a nice rain barrel. Some manufacturers might use durable hardware and heavy-duty fittings in their rain barrels, but the basic idea is simple.

Why Should You Harvest Rainwater?
The incorporation of rain water collection and distribution as part of a responsible landscape design can help ease the burden on municipal water resources. Since rainwater harvesting systems are not connected to municipal water supplies, it's likely that your monthly water bill will decrease substantially. More important for you lawn, however, is that most installations may be eligible for exemption from watering restrictions.

How Does it Work?

Rainwaterservices.com shows how rainwater harvesting systems can be designed for nearly any application, ranging from large municipal development to small residential landscape irrigation.  In all cases, the core components are the same. Think of the rainwater system as a hybrid of sorts that combines principles of storm water management as well as irrigation.  The parts of a complete system include the following:

• Collection: comprised of the catchment area (i.e. roof) and conveyance system (i.e. gutters and downpipes)
• Holding vessels: cisterns or other suitable storage container
• Roof-wash system (optional): usually the first 10 -20 gallons of rain are diverted from the cistern to improve water quality and minimize debris build-up
• Delivery system: From an engineering and construction standpoint, the delivery system is virtually identical to that of a traditional irrigation system (i.e. pumps and sprinklers); water is withdrawn from the source (i.e. cistern) by a pump that delivers the water to sprinkler heads for irrigation of landscaping.
• Filtration (optional): to remove particulate and contaminants for downstream application.  Can be simple or complex depending on the requirements and applicable health and/or environmental regulations.

What Are The Benefits of Using Rainwater?

• It is free; the only cost is for collection and use.
  
• It lessens demand on the municipal water supply.
  
• It saves money on utility bills.
  
• It makes efficient use of a valuable resource.
  
• It diminishes flooding, erosion, and the flow to storm water drains.
  
• It reduces the contamination of surface water with sediments, fertilizers and pesticides from rainwater run-off resulting in cleaner lakes, rivers, oceans and other receivers of storm water.
  
• It can be used to recharge groundwater.
  
• It is good for irrigation and plants thrive because stored rainwater is free from pollutants as well as salts, minerals, and other natural and man made contaminants.
  
• It is good for laundry use as rainwater is soft and lowers the need for detergents.
  
• Potential EXEMPTION from watering restrictions.  Many localities allow (and some require) irrigation with rainwater harvesting to be exempt from watering restrictions.

So, whether you use a simple plastic barrel to harvest rainwater, or choose to have a system constructed, the benefits are the same. Harvesting rainwater is good for the environment and could save you money! Just remember to call ProMo Lawn Care to maintain your beautiful yard!

We are a full-service lawn and landscape company serving Cape Coral, Ft. Myers, Estero, Bonita Springs, Naples and Punta Gorda. We are insured professionals and a member of the BBB, so if you want it done right, call us or fill out our free estimate form at promolawns.com!

According to the Florida Lawn Handbook, several insects and insect relatives live in Florida lawns, but not all of them hurt the grass. Many are harmless, some are beneficial, and some are pests. Only a few cause significant damage and need immediate control. For example, chinch bugs, spittlebugs, and grass scales live on the plant foliage and suck plant juices. Other pests, including sod webworms, grass loopers, and armyworms, eat the grass leaves. Mole crickets, white grubs, and billbugs live in the soil and primarily damage grass roots, in addition to creating tunnels and/or mounds. Other insects and related pests (e.g., fleas, millipedes, chiggers, sowbugs, and snails) are nuisances because they may bite people or pets or invade houses, garages, or swimming pools.

Preventive or by-the-calendar treatments (pesticide applications made every 4 to 8 weeks) may kill many beneficial organisms and contribute to a persistent pest problem. Thus, pesticides should be applied only when damage is apparent. Research has demonstrated that the need for pesticide applications to control insect outbreaks can be drastically reduced by following these management practices.

Monitoring

  Early detection of insects is vital to any management program. Check the lawn for pest activity every 14 days in the winter and every 7 to 10 days in the spring, summer, and fall, especially in “hot spots” where damage tends to reoccur.
Factors other than insect outbreaks may also result in thin or brown grass, including diseases, nematodes, drought, and nutritional disorders. Correct identification of the problem can save money, prevent excessive damage to the grass and unnecessary pesticide applications.

Nutrition

Over-fertilization generally increases plant susceptibility to sap-feeding insects. Some insects tend to feed more on actively-growing plant parts, rather than the older, slower-growing ones. Incidence of damage from these pests can be greatly reduced with applications of minimum amounts of slow-release nitrogen fertilizers in combination with other macro-and micronutrients. Contact your local county Cooperative Extension office for fertility recommendations and sources of slow-release nitrogen fertilizer for each of the turfgrass species in your particular area of the state.

Mowing

Improper mowing, coupled with over-watering and improper fertilization can cause lawn grasses to develop a thick, spongy mat of live, dead, and dying shoots, stems and roots which accumulate in a layer above the soil surface. This spongy mat, called thatch, is an excellent habitat for chinch bugs and turf caterpillars, and chemically ties up insecticides, therefore reducing their effectiveness. When a serious thatch problem exists, it may be necessary to remove the thatch mechanically (vertical mowing, power raking, etc.). Proper mowing practices can make grass more tolerant to pests and greatly improve the appearance of a lawn. The best recommendation is to mow often enough so that no more than one-third of the leaf blade is removed at each mowing.

For more information on lawn insects, including identification and control of specific insects, visit 
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/lh034