by Chip HarkesPosted on Posted in Lawn Care — No Comments ↓

This post is the third part in a four part series about watering your lawn and landscape.

An underground sprinkling system does have it’s perks, it also has it’s drawbacks. The same can be said of using a hose and sprinkler to water your lawn.

Underground sprinklers, specifically the sprinkler clocks can be a very nice convenience. The sprinklers will turn on and off once the clock is set. The clock can go off at a time that works for you.

Remembering to adjust the sprinkler clock can be an issue though. You cannot just set the clock in the spring and expect it to be the correct settings throughout the entire growing season. You will have to make adjustments as time goes on. This is where a hose and sprinkler work the best. You can adjust as the weather changes quite easily.

Underground sprinkling has a higher chance, if properly installed, to provide coverage that is even. However, no system is perfect. This is where a hose and sprinkler can shine because you can add more water to localized areas that are starting to dry out. This is especially true during hot and dry stretches.

When repairing a hose and sprinkler, it is easy to diagnose and simpler to repair. An underground sprinkler system has the majority of it’s parts underground. This means that it can be harder to diagnose a problem, and there may need to be digging up the grass to make repairs.

Now both ways to water your lawn has its pros and cons. And there is no single right answer for watering your lawn, it should be what works best for you and your lawn. The main thing is to keep your lawn watered and healthy.

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by Chip HarkesPosted on Posted in Lawn Care — No Comments ↓

This post is the second part in a four part series about watering your lawn and landscape.

How often should you water your lawn? That is a good question, however there is not a simple answer. The simplest answer would be enough water to keep the grass hydrated. But how much is enough?

The biggest factor for that answer is the weather. Is it hot? Cool? Rainy? Dry? Windy? The hotter, drier and/or windier it is, the more water your lawn is going to need. And the reverse is true for cool or rainy weather, the less water your lawn may need.

The soil type that your grass is growing in can change the amount and frequency of water that is needed. Sandy soils do not hold onto water that well, but clay soils do. If the soil can hold onto water, you may be able to go a little bit into a drier spell. With sandy soils, the water will filter through faster, thus needed to replenish the water for the grass more frequently.

The variety of grass can be another variable. Fescues can go longer without water compared to bluegrass. Ryegrasses are in the middle of the two. Some varieties within a species will last longer/stay greener in a drought situation.

Because of all of these factors, there is not a simple answer to how much water your lawn needs. What we recommend is to monitor your lawn, and adjust the amount of water it receives as needed.

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by Chip HarkesPosted on Posted in Lawn Care — No Comments ↓

This post is the first part in a four part series about watering your lawn and landscape.

Every living thing needs water. This includes the grass and plants all around us. Some plants need more water than others, but all plants need hydration.

We have had some hot and dry stretches this summer. As a result, some of the grass and some landscape plants are starting to show it. They are looking lighter green to even brown, and looking dry and starting to wilt. Now most of these plants will recover when mother nature provides rain, but it is best not to find out which ones will and which ones won’t. We have already seen some plants that have fallen victim to the heat and lack of water. This can be avoided.

The best thing to do is to keep your lawn and landscape properly watered. This way your plants will stay healthy. And when it comes to the fall and even next season, the plants in your lawn and landscape can provide the show they are supposed to, and not be catching up from the heat of the summer that has gone by.

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by Chip HarkesPosted on Posted in Lawn Care — No Comments ↓

As we get into the middle of summer, we are hoping that our lawns still look perfect. And with a few tasks, that is easily achievable. However, if you start to run short on watering your lawn, and it starts to dry out, evenly slightly, then there may be another problem starting to brew, crabgrass.

If your next thought is ‘I put down pre-emergent crabgrass control, why am I seeing crabgrass?’ It comes back to your lawn not getting enough water. It may sound weird, but we will go over how the two are related.

The pre-emergent crabgrass control works by creating a barrier on top of the soil. When the crabgrass seed tries to grow, it reaches the barrier and is killed. Thus no crabgrass is your lawn.

Now when a lawn has a chance to dry out, the soil dries out, and the pre-emergent crabgrass barrier breaks down. The drier the soil and lawn, the faster the barrier breaks down. So you may be thinking, ‘I will just water my lawn to no end’, that is bad as well, don’t do that. Maybe not so directly for the pre-emergent crabgrass barrier, more for the lawn itself. You will drown the lawn in water and the grass will become harmed.

What you should be doing is providing the water that your lawn needs on a regular basis. If it is in the form of rain, then that is good. But if there is no rain, then sprinklers will need to take over for mother nature. Either way, your lawn drying out is not good for trying to keep crabgrass away.

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by Chip HarkesPosted on Posted in General — No Comments ↓

We want to wish everyone a happy and safe Independence Day (aka the Fourth of July)! As we celebrate our independence, cannot thank all of the men and women that have served our great country enough for all of the sacrifices that they have made to keep the United States of America free.

I know that this post has nothing to do with lawns or landscape, but everyone needs a time to sit back and appreciate what we have; including our freedom, and the blessing to live in this great country.

Happy Independence Day!