Category Archives: Lawn Maintenance

Lawn, Lawn Care, Lawn Maintenance

Lawn Maintenance Tips Part 3

Posted on by Larry
25
Apr

Part three of our series on lawn maintenance explores some general tips for caring for your lawn.

Lawn Maintenance and Lawn Care in Summer

Your professional lawn care service in Phoenix | (928) 356-8167
Your professional lawn care service in Phoenix | (928) 356-8167

There is nothing like the feeling of grass scrunched between your toes.  The smell, the green, all of it makes you think of the joys of summer.  So you want to make sure that you take care of your lawn, so first and foremost where lawn maintenance tips are concerned is to be careful what you use on your lawn, as well as be careful when you apply it.

People that have lawns can be obsessive where they are concerned.  The first stirring of a weed or a bug, and they heavily treat the lawn with pesticides and weed killer.  However, bear in mind that spraying large amounts of pesticide and/or herbicide around where you live is dangerous because you are exposing yourself and your family to carcinogens present in the chemicals.  Spot spraying while more time consuming is much more healthy where lawn maintenance is concerned. You also want to make sure that what you’re using is safe for your lawn as well as for yourself.

Lawn Care

Lawn care products run the gamut from very good to ripoffs.  So do companies for that matter.  So make sure you know what you’re putting on your lawn as well as who may be working on it.  Some products for example can burn your lawn, particularly if it is hot outside.

So remember, if you want to do the best things you can for your lawn, a bit of knowledge is always best.  And if you want to save both time and money, you might wish to consider hiring a professional lawn care service.

This concludes part three of our series.  For more information on lawn maintenance tips, be sure to read part one and part two as well.

Green ServPro LLC
600 W. Ray Rd. Suite B2
Prescott AZ 85225
(928) 356-8167
http://www.greenservpro.com

Fertilizers, Lawn, Lawn Care, Lawn Maintenance

Lawn Care for Winter and Spring Part 3

Posted on by Larry

Part three of our series on lawn care for winter and spring explores the use of synthetic and natural fertilizers.

Which Fertilizer Should I Use as Part of Lawn Care?

Get Lawn Care in Prescott | (928) 356-8167
Get Lawn Care in Prescott | (928) 356-8167

Which fertilizer should you use?  Should you use artificial fertilizer or stick with natural fertilizers?  How often should you fertilize your lawn?  As a professional lawn care service in Prescott, we get asked these sort of questions a lot.  First off, artificial fertilizer works just as well as natural fertilizer does, and it doesn’t have that much odor.

However, you have to be careful that you don’t put too much nitrogen based fertilizer down, or put any of it down when it is too hot outside.  Otherwise, you can scorch your lawn.  Before fertilizing as part of lawn care, make sure you check the labels to see what the nitrogen mix is. If you need help, don’t risk your lawn, call in a lawn care service instead.  Now, let’s go over natural fertilizer.

Is Natural Fertilizer Best?

Is natural fertilizer best?  There’s a lot of debate about that.  Environmentally, natural or organic  fertilizer is a little better than chemical fertilizers, however, what a lot of companies don’t tell you is the downsides to natural fertilizers.
Steer manure for example, while it is very effective, will make your lawn stink like a stockyard.  Also, some other types of natural fertilizers like compost are only of limited effectiveness.  You also have to watch some organic fertilizers as unless it’s screened, you have to be ready to do some weeding, as you are likely to get weeds on your lawn.  So, what you have to be careful of is finding the balance between effectiveness and eco-friendly.

When you don’t know what to do, you want to make sure that you don’t run the risk of ruining your lawn.  Call in a lawn care service if you have any questions.

This concludes part three of our series on lawn care for winter and spring. Be sure to read part one and part two as well.

Green ServPro LLC
600 W. Ray Rd. Suite B2
Prescott AZ 85225
(928) 356-8167
http://www.greenservpro.com

Lawn, Lawn Care, Lawn Maintenance

Lawn Care for Winter and Spring Part 2

Posted on by Larry

Part two of a series on lawn care for winter and spring explores fertilizing and watering.

When Do I Water My Lawn in the Winter?

Know How Much to Water your Lawn as Part of Lawn Care | 480-420-0902
Know How Much to Water your Lawn as Part of Lawn Care | 480-420-0902

We are often asked by some of our lawn care customers: “when do I water my lawn in the winter?”  Be aware that in the winter months, you do not want to water your lawn too much.  A good guideline to follow is actually based on the temperature outside.  A great many cities have water conservation guides that can give you a timetable of how much and when to water as well.

The warmer it is, the more you’re going to need to water your lawn.  When it is winter and spring however, cooler temperatures mean that water doesn’t evaporate as much.  This in turn means that you don’t water as much.  Water your lawn every ten days in the winter on the average.  Part of the answer is also based on your grass type.  When in doubt, call in a lawn care service for tips on when to water.  But what about fertilizing your lawn?

 

Do I Fertilize My Lawn in the Spring?

You want to fertilize your lawn in the late fall and in the early spring.  However, don’t let the season fool you.  When to fertilize is based on temperature.  You never want the external temperature to be above 85 degrees when you fertilize, particularly if you use chemical fertilizer, as this can cause a chemical reaction and thus burn your lawn.

Our next article will cover the great debate regarding fertilizers: synthetic or artificial.  Until then, if you need any lawn care tips, feel free to contact us.

This concludes part two of our series on lawn care for winter and spring. Be sure to read part one and part three as well.

Green ServPro LLC
600 W. Ray Rd. Suite B2
Prescott AZ 85225
(928) 356-8167
http://www.greenservpro.com

Lawn, Lawn Care, Lawn Maintenance

Lawn Care Part 2: Winter Lawns

Posted on by Larry

Winter ryegrass overseeding is something that you’re going to have to start soon to transition your lawn.  As for why, it is all in the type of grasses that are present.

Why Do I Have to Do Winter Ryegrass Overseeding?

It's Time for Winter Ryegrass Overseeding | (928) 356-8167
It’s Time for Winter Ryegrass Overseeding | (928) 356-8167

Grass is one of the most diverse types of plants out there.   Most people don’t know  that such plants as palm trees and bamboo are actually giant species of grass, and of course what’s on your lawn is also grass.  However, in the winter, warmer weather grass goes dormant, leaving your lawn a barren yellowish white color. There are two types of winter ryegrasss, perennial ryegrass, and annual ryegrass.  Regardless of the type of ryegrass, they provide a green cover during winter.  Be aware, however, that winter ryegrass overseeding may cause you some problems in the spring, unless you take care of it properly.  Ryegrass competes with other grass types for water, sunlight and fertilizer.

When you do overseeding with ryegrass it is adabtable to either sun or shade. If you get annual ryegrass  be aware that you plant it in the fall.  Also, annual ryegrass dies out in late spring.  Perennial ryegrass is another option for winter ryegrass overseeding, however, be warned that it can choke out other grass species.  Whatever type of grass you’re looking plant, you’re going to have to do some preparation first.

Winter Ryegrass Preparation Steps

First off, as temperatures begin to drop in the fall, your turfgrass will need less water. Remove any excess thatch to allow seed to make contact with the soil. A heavily thatched lawn tends to result in irregular patches of overseeded grass, so mow the lawn closely.

With winter ryegrass overseeding, timing is everything.  Overseeding should be done thirty days before the first frost, when daytime highs are near 70 °F and nighttime lows are usually above 50 °F.   If you seed before this narrow window or after, you could lose your ryegrass.  When you plant winter ryegrass, apply 10 pounds of annual ryegrass seed per 1,000 square feet.

Even a winter lawn requires a bit of maintenance.  You can do it by yourself if you wish, or as a labor saving step, call in a lawn care service.

Green ServPro LLC
600 W. Ray Rd. Suite B2
Prescott AZ 85225
(928) 356-8167
http://www.greenservpro.com

Lawn, Lawn Care, Lawn Maintenance

Lawn Care Part 1: Artificial Versus Natural

Posted on by Larry

Lawn care has come to mean a lot more than just fertilizing and watering.  You also have to know what type of seed to plant, when to plant it, and in some cases, when to remove it.   In part one of our two part series on lawn care, we will cover artificial lawns versus natural ones.  Part two of our series will cover winter lawns and overseeding.

Synthetic Lawns:  They Have Come a Long Way

Get lawn care in Phoenix
Get lawn care in Phoenix | (928) 356-8167

Originally, artificial grass was created for sporting arenas.  Because many of them were domed, grass would not get enough sunlight and would often die out.  Astroturf was made in the 60’s and covered the field of the  Astrodome.  Now we are four generations later on artificial grass, which is a good thing we might add. It used to be that artificial grass looked, well, artificial. When it was first released, synthetic grass was often in an unnatural shade of green.  Nowadays, with new technologies, synthetic lawns have come to resemble their living counterparts.  And there are several advantages of artificial turf over regular grass.

Artificial turf obviously doesn’t require water, and it helps to control insects including some harmful ones like mosquitoes. As it is usually made of plastics and resins, it is also immune to termites.    Another thing is that artificial grass offers is stain resistance, as well as obviously no weeds.  However, it also has disadvantages too, such as you pretty much have to replace it every few years or it will be very obvious that you have it, as it will become sun bleached and brittle.  And some people want more.

Natural Lawns: Tried and True

To some people, artificial grass is a weird idea.  A lawn should be green and growing, and fun to walk on.  It evokes memories of hot summer days, the smell of fresh cut grass.  A natural lawn has all of that, plus it can lower the temperature of your home by being a natural repository for water.  However, just like synthetic turf, lawn has its minuses too.  First off, you’re going to need to mow it, and water it, and every now and then put down water to keep it green.

Each person is different, so why should our lawns all be the same? So whether you want some fescue or bluegrass to scrunch between your toes or a low maintenance artificial lawn, it’s all in who you call.  The best call to make is to a lawn care service.

Be sure to read part two our series on lawn care as well.

Green ServPro Landscape LLC
600 W. Ray Rd. Suite B2
Prescott AZ 85225
(928) 356-8167
http://www.greenservpro.com

Lawn, Lawn Care, Lawn Maintenance

Lawn Care: Frequently Asked Questions Part III

Posted on by Larry

One important process of proper lawn care is fertilizing your lawn. So let’s get started…

Lawn Care: When Should I Fertilize?

Get Lawn Care in Gilbert, Arizona
Get Lawn Care in Gilbert, Arizona | (928) 356-8167

According to most lawn care sources, early autumn is best for fertilizing your lawn. Fertilization is a basic procedure to keep your lawn green and full. If you fertilize properly, it makes your lawn beautiful. If done improperly however, it can lead to problems, such as fertilizer burn.

If you’re not careful you can over-fertilize your lawn.  Fertilizer burn occurs when the levels of nitrogen reaches toxic levels for the grass. If you do over fertilize your lawn, and you notice leaf scorch or fertilizer burn, first off, don’t panic. Be aware that your lawn can recover, but it will take time. You may need a lawn care professional to come in leech the fertilizer out by diluting it slowly and gradually.  The type of fertilizer you use can also help to prevent burning.

What Fertilizer Should I Use for Proper Lawn Care?

Even among lawn care services there is often debate about what fertilizer you should use.    Some are strong proponents of organic fertilizer, while others use a balanced nitrogen solution.  To cut through the confusion, you want to make sure that the product you’re using doesn’t have a high nitrogen percentage, and you also do not want fertilizer that has too low of  a percentage.

As you see, sometimes it is a little more complicated than you might think.  When you are in doubt, call in a lawn care service in Gilbert instead.

Part two of this series on lawn care  explored gas and electric mowers, and part one covered when and how much to mow your lawn.

If you need lawn care, call a professional. Green Servpro has been serving the Greater Phoenix area for over 25 years.

Green ServPro LLC
600 W. Ray Rd. Suite B2
Prescott AZ 85225
(928) 356-8167
Get Lawn Care

Lawn Care: Frequently Asked Questions Part I
Lawn Care: Frequently Asked Questions Part II
Lawn Care: Frequently Asked Questions Part III

Lawn, Lawn Care, Lawn Maintenance

Lawn Care: Frequently Asked Questions Part II

Posted on by Larry

Part two of a three part series on lawn care explores the use of lawnmowers. There are three types of lawnmowers out there:  manual, gas-powered, and electric.  Which is best?  Well, they each have their strengths and weaknesses.

What About Gas Powered Lawn Mowers and Lawn Care?

Get Lawn Care in Gilbert, Arizona
Get Lawn Care in Gilbert, Arizona | (928) 356-8167

It’s estimated that over 50 million people that don’t use lawn care services in the US mow their lawns every weekend.  This has an alarming cost, both to your pocketbook and to the environment.  First off, gasoline is not cheap.  As of the time of this article, gasoline is running at about $3.75 a gallon on average.  Per year, we use 800 million gallons of gas and produce tons of air pollutants. Until the late 1990’s, garden equipment wasn’t covered under emissions standards.  Lawn mowers alone emit dangerously high levels of carbon monoxide, volatile organic compounds, and nitrogen oxides, and are responsible for up to 5% of the nation’s air pollution particularly in metropolitan areas.

One of the most effective ways of reducing air pollution is to reduce the number of internal combustion engines out there.  Hiring a lawn care service in Phoenix, AZ, is actually better for the environment.  Less use of gasoline, and less use of lawn mowers.  If you still wish to use a gas mower, they are fairly durable, only needing spark plugs every now and then and routine maintenance.

Are Electric Mowers Used in the Lawn Care Industry

Yes. There are two types of electric mowers used by your Phoenix lawn care service: battery based and corded.  A battery powered electric mower  has a battery that you put in a charger until you need it, then you pop the battery in the lawn mower and then mow.  The advantage to battery-powered units is that there is obviously no danger of unplugging them accidentally all the time, however, they can also run out of a charge if they’re not fully charged.  A corded mower is more likely to keep going, that is until you yank the cord out when it gets tangled.

The old-fashioned push mower is obviously the best for the environment, however, it is much more labor intensive to mow even just a small yard.  So as you see, lawn care is a lot simpler in the hands of a pro.

Part one of our series on lawn care covered how much to mow, and part two explored the types of mowers to use.  Part three of our series will explore how much and when to fertilize.

Green ServPro LLC
600 W. Ray Rd. Suite B2
Prescott AZ 85225
(928) 356-8167

Lawn Care: Frequently Asked Questions Part I
Lawn Care: Frequently Asked Questions Part II
Lawn Care: Frequently Asked Questions Part III

Lawn, Lawn Care, Lawn Maintenance

Lawn Care: Frequently Asked Questions Part I

Posted on by Larry

Lawn care is all about knowledge.  What type of seed, how often you should mow, and what you should use to control weeds are just some of the questions you need answered before you start setting up your lawn.

Lawn Care:  How Often Should I Mow?

Get Lawn Care in Gilbert, Arizona
Get Lawn Care in Gilbert, Arizona | (928) 356-8167

Grass grows fairly quickly.  A good rule of thumb for mowing your lawn as part of proper lawn care is every week to ten days.  Otherwise,  your lawn will begin to get out of control.  When you mow your lawn as you may or may not know, make sure it hasn’t rained for at least two days and also that you haven’t watered your lawn.  Otherwise, instead of cutting your grass all you are doing is flattening it slightly.  Then it will start to grow at all angles. Cut the grass when it is relatively dry, and then figure out what you want to do with the mulch.

Lawn Care: Mulch or No?

A lot of people argue about mulching.  One lawn care professional on television will highly recommend a mulching mower, while another one will recommend that all of the cut grass should be removed to help eliminate weeds.  For the record, mulching neither helps nor stops weeds from growing.  It can provide a level of fertilizer for your lawn and help you to build turf effectively.  Too much mulch however, particularly if you haven’t mowed your lawn in a while can lead to bare spots on your lawn.  So use your best judgement on mulch.  You also have other considerations if you want to mow your lawn yourself, like what type of mower to get.

Believe it or not, manual lawn mowers still exist, even more than a century after they first came out, and they do have a bit going for them.  For one thing, they’re durable.  A manual mower can last years or even decades, and need just a bit of sharpening every now and then. They are great exercise too.  The biggest drawback they have is that they are slow.  It takes two to three passes of a section of grass to get it to cut down.  If you get tired, you’re better off calling in a lawn care company to mow your lawn for you.

Part two of this series on lawn care will explore gas and electric mowers, and part three will cover when and how much to fertilize  your lawn.

If you need lawn care, call a professional.  Green Servpro has been serving the Greater Phoenix area for over 25 years.

Green ServPro LLC
600 W. Ray Rd. Suite B2
Prescott AZ 85225
(928) 356-8167
Get Lawn Care

Lawn Care: Frequently Asked Questions Part I
Lawn Care: Frequently Asked Questions Part II
Lawn Care: Frequently Asked Questions Part III

Lawn Care, Lawn Maintenance

Lawn Maintenance: Getting the Right Company

Posted on by Larry

Getting lawn maintenance is important, and with summer coming up, its a good idea to  look into hiring a service.  This article explores the reason why you want to hire someone to take care of your lawn.

Get lawn care in Phoenix
Get lawn care in Phoenix | (928) 356-8167

Lawn maintenance isn’t bad from the fall to the spring.  Grass has a slower growth rate because of the cooler weather, and the weather is much more temperate.  However, summer is not that far away and Phoenix is infamous for it’s heat as this article excerpt from Wikipedia shows:

Get a Lawn Maintenance Company to Beat the Heat

Phoenix has a subtropical desert climate (Köppen: BWh), typical of the Sonoran Desert in which it lies. Phoenix has extremely hot summers and warm winters. The average summer high temperatures are some of the hottest of any major city in the United States, and approach those of cities such as Riyadh and Baghdad. The temperature reaches and exceeds 100°F (38°C), on average for 110 days of the year,[27] including most days from late May through to early September. Highs top 110 °F (43 °C) an average of 18 days during the year. On June 26, 1990, the temperature reached an all-time recorded high of 122 °F (50 °C).[28]  To read more about Phoenix, please [CLICK HERE], otherwise, keep reading about lawn maintenance.

Lawn Maintenance:  When You Do It is Key

Doing anything outside in Arizona during the summer is hot work, so hiring a service is your best bet.  As a rule, any form of  lawn care is handled in the early morning in Arizona.  Even the pros know that.

Hiring the right company is important.  You want a company that has experience.  While the neighbor kid may have a lawnmower, if you can’t trust him to show up when you need him to, it won’t do you a lot of good.   You want to get a professional in, and the best one is a lawn maintenance company.

Green ServPro LLC
600 W. Ray Rd. Suite B2
Prescott AZ 85225
(928) 356-8167
greenservpro.com

Lawn Care, Lawn Maintenance

Lawn Maintenance for Commercial Properties

Posted on by Larry

It isn’t just homeowners that can benefit from lawn maintenance, sometimes business owners can benefit from lawn maintenance too.

When to Get Lawn Maintenance for Your Business

Lawn Maintenance for Your Commercial Property
Get Lawn Maintenance for Your Commercial Property | Call Us | (928) 356-8167

Make no mistake.  Not every business will need lawn maintenance.  if you have an office space that you are renting from a landlord, and you’re in a high rise, obviously, you don’t even have a lawn to take care of.  But what about if you own a business park?

You will definitely need lawn maintenance then.  Why?  Well, it is a matter of applied economics.  If your business park or plaza appears unkempt, unintentional or no, it presents an image of being unprofessional.  If your tenants think that the plaza is unprofessional when it is time for them to renew their lease, they will most likely gallop to another business plaza that does take care of their lawn.

Lawn Maintenance:  It’s All About Image

If an unkempt lawn says ‘unprofessional,’ what does a neatly trimmed lawn say?  Think about it.  When you go somewhere that is pleasant including something like a lawn that is cared for with proper lawn maintenance, your subconscious remembers, and you will want to go back there again.

You think we’re making this up?  It’s actually proven at least from a real estate perspective.  The visual appearance of the exterior of a house is called ‘curb appeal.”  The same principle that works for houses also holds true for businesses as well.  People are more likely to do business with companies that give off an appearance of professionalism.  One of the best ways to convey an image of professionalism is by how your business looks.  And one of the best and least expensive ways of improving how your business looks is with proper lawn care and maintenance.

Green Servpro is a Prescott based lawn maintenance company.  Call us today and let us show you how we can help you and your business.

Green ServPro LLC
600 W. Ray Rd. Suite B2
Prescott AZ 85225
(928) 356-8167
http://www.greenservpro.com