Top five reasons lighting can make your life better Creating an outdoor space that is beautiful, functional, and relaxing is on many homeowners’ must-do lists. Adding outdoor lighting can create opportunities for more enjoyment – from designing a welcoming front door to extending the hours you can spend on your patio. Here is a look at the top five ways professionally installed outdoor lighting can make life at your home…
One of the good things about fall is we get to start planning our lawns and landscapes for next year. Some of us may be thinking about ways to enhance a plain lawn, while others are looking for a way to make it easier to mow around beds, features, and plantings. These design tips will make it easier to mow while giving your yard a more finished, landscaped look. Planning…
When planting a new lawn, take the time to fix any existing grade problems (after removing the old turf and before adding amendments to the soil). For minor grading problems, small versions of earth-moving equipment are often available to rent or buy. You can also use a landscaping rake for working topsoil to the proper grade. To make minor grade adjustments use a landscape rake. Water the area. Later, fill where…
You have put a lot of work into creating a new lawn, so don’t forget the most important step. Plan for watering needs before you plant your lawn. Insufficient water and overwatering are the leading causes of new-lawn failure. Take precautions to prevent damage. Minimize play and foot traffic on new and sodded lawns for at least three weeks. Do not fertilize new lawns for at least six weeks. After…
St. Augustinegrass (Stenotaphrum secundatum) Easily grown from sod, plugs, or sprigs, St. Augustinegrass produces a dense blue-green turf that has good shade and salt tolerance. It is highly popular in coastal areas from Florida to California. Drawbacks: Thick thatch if heavily fertilized and watered. Vulnerable to chinch bugs and grubs. Recommendations: For USDA Hardiness Zones 8 to 10. According to the National Turfgrass Evaluation Program (NTEP), look for slow-growing Amerishade, cold…
There are two ways to purchase grass seed. One method is to visit the garden section of a retail store and pick out a package labeled with the intended use, such as “Shade Mix.” Alternatively, you can buy the latest cultivars and make up your own mix. Either way, you will still need to know the basics about purchasing seed, beginning with the terms species and cultivar. Species refers to…
Why Overseed? Warm-season grasses have a major drawback for homeowners—their color disappears when winter arrives! To have green grass in winter, some southerners overseed their lawns using cool-season grasses, such as fine fescue, bluegrass, or ryegrass. How Does It Work? These annual cool-season grasses find a hospitable habitat among the dormant southern grasses and then die off with the return of warm weather in the spring. What Are…
(ARA) – What do those guys on the landscaping shows have that you don’t have? (Besides their own TV show, that is.) They have all the right tools to make their job easier, whether they’re building a deck, clearing brush to make way for a new patio or digging a hole for a backyard pond. Fortunately, you don’t need the budget of a television landscaping celebrity or the storage space of…
There are four methods of planting a new lawn: sod, seed, sprigs, and plugs. Sod Apply a starter fertilizer high in phosphorus, such as 2:1:1 or 1:1:1 ratio, then lightly water the area. Have the pallets of sod delivered to a shady spot if possible and begin work immediately upon delivery of your order. Sod can go bad quickly, especially if it heats up or dries out. If you cannot…
Planting a new lawn is a big job; it may be best to tackle the project in sections. You can begin this process by redoing the worst or most visible lawn areas, and then make plans to tackle the remaining areas the following year. Starting with smaller sections instead of the entire lawn keeps the job manageable and makes the critical step of watering feasible for homeowners who do not have…