News from Sunshine Landscaping

Without snow cover to protect your lawn from traffic I have been noticing that footprints are showing up in the turf.  When the grass is frozen or there is a frost on the lawn, the small plants cannot deal with the weight of someone stepping on them the way that happens when the blades are turgide.  Keep an eye on the delivery guy and make sure guests are not taking the shortest route if that involves walking on the grass.  I have seen paths develop during the winter if the same area keeps getting trampled.  Lawn care for the Spring should include some fertlizer when the grass starts growing toward the end of March.  Try a half rate fertlizer application of some water soluble Nitrogen, that is not dependented on warm soil tempertures to break down the Nitrogen source to make it available to the plant.  This time will be too early for Crabgrass control, so I would recommend a straight fertilzer product and not a Step 1 bag containing crabgrass control.  Some seeding could be done at this time, especailly in shady areas where the crabgrass will not compete as well.

The fall season is quickly descending upon Worcester County. Before you know it all the leaves will be either on your lawn or clogging your gutters.

The fall grub eating season has arrived several calls from Worcester, Ma. You may have noticed claw marks and divots in your beautiful green lawn. It could be a sign of grubs in your lawn attracting both skunks and crows. We brought out our popular article from 2009. Enjoy!

Come visit us at Holden Days tomorrow on Saturday, August 27 and see what we have been up to.  Talk with us about liquid aeration and other lawn care tips.  We have a new water surfactant called Aqua Stretch that can reduce your water and irrigation usage by one third.  Now is the time to be seeding and liming.

Central Region (Boylston) – General Conditions: Weather remains unstable in typical April fashion. Cool, wet and rainy days are punctuated by an occasional warm sunny one. Minor bulbs such as Scilla and Chionodoxa, continue to bloom, while crocus, snowdrops and winter aconite have all but finished. More Narcissus cultivars are opening, and species tulips, and hybrids in protected location are beginning to bloom. Hellebores and Pigsqueak (Bergenia sp.) are in full bloom. White Forsythia (Abeliophyllum distichum); February Daphne (D. mezureaum); Winterhazel (Corylopsis spicata and C. pauciflora); Mountain Pieris (P. floribunda); Fragrant Honeysuckle (Lonicera fragrantissima and L. purpusii), Rhododendron dauricum;  and some Boxwood (Buxus  microphylla) are in full bloom. Pests/Problems: Vole activity seems to be on the rise.

Here is the current Stonemakers of Worcester project we are working on in Worcester. This video shows the pour and the forming of the wall. Once the wall is formed and shaped, we paint and seal it. Notice the nice fountain feature!

Mother Nature has been very harsh this winter and we are all anxiously anticipating the arrival of warmer spring weather and an opportunity to get out and start our spring clean up projects. 

    WINTERIZING EVERGREENS

Sudden warm spells when the ground is still frozen, can also be a problem. During these warm spells, the needles of evergreens respond to the warmth by opening their pores. This lets water evaporate, but the roots are only able to draw limited water from the frozen ground. When the roots cannot keep up with the demand, the needles will turn brown and die. Twigs and buds on the ends become brittle and snap easily when bent.

While it is near impossible to figure out before the storm what will actually happen, once the storm ends, our crews work diligently to move the snow out of the way and make it easier to move around in the winter.  The number one goal is to move or scrap the snow out of the way.  Sometimes the snow is packed down by cars and foot traffic; this makes it much more difficult to scrap the snow off the surface once the bond forms between the snow and pavement.  We use a variety of chemicals to melt the packed snow and as it turns to liquid it runs off or if there is a lot of slush it will need to be plowed for best results.  Each storm requires a different mix of chemicals and physically removing the snow in order to get the job done.

Summer usually means heat and drought stress here in the Central Worcester area.  Over 10 inches of rain in July of 2009 changed the stress factors affecting lawns.  Irrigation hasn't been a problem; it has been getting the lawn to drain this summer that is more important.  Fungus problems occur when the lawn is wet for more than 6-8 hours.  This has been ideal weather for diseases like Red Thread, Pink Patch and Leaf Spot.  Fortunately these diseases do not affect the crown of the turf plant; it is just the leaves that turn brown.  Therefore, with favorable weather changes the grass starts growing again and the lawn recovers.  As the August temperatures are forecast to be above 80 degrees, the recommendation for treating Red Thread disease is to spoon feed the lawn with fertilizer to help the lawn outgrow the symptoms of the disease.  Turf managers who decide to treat Red Thread can use fungicides such as Prostar or Hertiage, which have proven to be far better in UMass field tests.