With the abnormally warm weather, Spring is near.  As we prepare for the coming season, we are beginning to plan the common enhanced services we offer in addition to our standard maintenance program.  These services are included on our budget proposal as they always have been.  We then propose each service a month prior to their normal seasonal production timing.  Several of our customers have asked that these be proposed as a group to avoid the frequent barrage of proposals.  This year we are offering that option and will send out a proposal for Spring Moss Control, Summer Turf Aeration, Summer Seasonal Color, and Fall Seasonal Color all together next week.  You can approve all or one at that time.

Spring Turf Moss Control  

Winter can be a tough time for lawns. Constant rain, especially in shaded areas, can lead to moss growth. We fight this every year. Although it is difficult to prevent, luckily it is easy to control. Liquid iron is sprayed on a lawn and effectively controls moss. It will actually kill it in hours, turning it black. Although it is easy to kill, it will regrow every year requiring annual treatment. We have even been experimenting with twice yearly treatment in December and March. Moss treatment is normally considered an enhanced service, but is relatively inexpensive.

Seasonal color is one of our specialties. Not only do we produce some of the most creative flower combinations but our flowers plantings are some of the healthiest due to our carefully designed installation and maintenance programs.

We have tried to add a creative design flair to our summer color plantings. Every year we come up with new and unique combinations that break from the conventional blocks and stripes seen on most other commercial properties. We have a test bed at our main office location where we try out these new varieties and combinations. We make sure they work before we plant them on our customers' properties.

Turf Core Aeration

 We recommend aeration to our customers as a standard part of our yearly turf care program. Aeration improves overall turf and is also the best method of managing thatch and soil compaction. 

Aerating during the early summer opens up the soil to allow water to easily enter the soil, reducing run-off and improving irrigation effectiveness. We can't quantitatively prove it, but we believe that aeration pays for itself through water savings.
The benefits of aeration are significant but short lived lasting only 3-4 months. This is why we propose it every spring as we enter the normal peak irrigation season. This will maximize the water saving and return on your investment. 

Fall Seasonal Color

Fall rain and cooler weather signals the change of season as we enter fall. With this change comes time to pull out summer flowers and plant winter pansies. As the summer flowers begin to fade in cooler October weather, we begin our fall pansy planting. We complete our fall planting by the early part of November.

Although pansies are winter hardy, they can suffer from disease during our wet winter weather. This is a yearly battle and was particularly a problem last winter. To combat the potential for disease, we place fresh potting soil prior to planting and then follow up with monthly fungicide treatments. We have perfected this program over the years and believe our pansy success is the best in the local area. This program is critical to their success and does increase the cost of pansies, but it is money well spent.