Gardening: Hardy Perennials

Along with lawn care, here is a list of some of our favorite hardy flowering perennials.

• Gaillardia; Blanket Flower - flowers much of summer and hardy; 2-3";   http://gardening.about.com/od/choosingperennialplants/ig/Perennials-for-New-Gardeners/Gaillardia--Blanket-Flower.htm
• Achillea; Growing Yarrow -  spreads; 6"-36" tall;  http://gardening.about.com/od/plantprofile1/p/Achillea.htm
• Geranium - colorful, blooms for several months
• Pinks

http://www.perennial-garden-plants.com/pictorial-flower-guide.html

Lawn Care: 2012 Notes

We had a mild and relatively short winter in the northeast US -- so we are preparing our lawn earlier than usual this season.  We have already laid down lime -- and fertilizer this year.  Here are some notes from previous blog posts.

Lime

• One of the first things I do each spring is lay lime down.  Here are more detailed tips about lime. 

Fertilizer Tips

• The fertilizer serves double duty: it fertilizes the grass and kills the weeds.  
• It's best to lay the fertilizer down when the grass is still damp: either during the early morning (so the morning dew catches the fertilizer) -- or after it rains. 
• The wetness helps the weed killer stick to the leaves -- killing the weeds.
• You do NOT want to lay the fertilizer down before an expected rainstorm or else much of the fertilizer will get washed away.  
• Do not lay the first feeding of the season down until it is consistently in the 60's.  You want the fertilizer to help grass when it is growing.  

Other Lawn Care Tips

• Aeration & Compost
• First lawn mow of season

• Mowing: Depending on the weather (temperatures, amount of rain, etc.) -- try to mow at least once a week. Cutting often (and not too short: rule of thumb is less than 1/3 of the blades of grass) leads to healthier grass.
• First mowing of the season: this first cut of the season should be on the short side. The shorter mowing will encourage the roots and grass to wake up and start growing.
• Water: only as needed. Again, this depends on your location and climate. If you need to water: water deeply and only once week or so (if there's no rain). Infrequent, but deep waterings will promote deeper roots and stronger/healthier grass (as opposed to frequent/shallow watering). Some people measure the water (putting out cans to see how much water the sprinkler is putting out) and aim for 1 inch per week. The best time to water is early in the day (avoids heat/evaporation).

Lawn: First Mow of the Season

Here are some basic tips on lawn care -- and especially the "first mow" of the season:

Excerpt:

• First mowing of the season: this first cut of the season should be on the short side. The shorter mowing will encourage the roots and grass to wake up and start growing.

• Water: only as needed. Again, this depends on your location and climate. If you need to water: water deeply and only once week or so (if there's no rain). Infrequent, but deep waterings will promote deeper roots and stronger/healthier grass (as opposed to frequent/shallow watering). Some people measure the water (putting out cans to see how much water the sprinkler is putting out) and aim for 1 inch per week. The best time to water is early in the day (avoids heat/evaporation).

Please click here for other early spring lawn care.

Lawn Care: Early Spring

Spring has arrived so it's time to lay down some fertilizer and lime (depending on your soil / region).

Lime

• One of the first things I do each spring is lay lime down.  Here are more detailed tips about lime. 

Fertilizer Tips

• The fertilizer serves double duty: it fertilizes the grass and kills the weeds.  
• It's best to lay the fertilizer down when the grass is still damp: either during the early morning (so the morning dew catches the fertilizer) -- or after it rains. 
• The wetness helps the weed killer stick to the leaves -- killing the weeds.
• You do NOT want to lay the fertilizer down before an expected rainstorm or else much of the fertilizer will get washed away.  
• Do not lay the first feeding of the season down until it is consistently in the 60's.  You want the fertilizer to help grass when it is growing.  

Other Lawn Care Tips

• Aeration & Compost
• First lawn mow of season

Lawn Care: Aeration & Compost

After days of rain, the sun is out today! There's always a silver lining...

It's best to aerate the lawn after rain, so I will be aerating the lawn later today. Remember to aerate using a device that pulls cores out of the lawn, and doesn't just poke holes.

Aerating is a great thing for your lawn. It removes thatch, loosens compacted soil, and allows nitrients to get to the roots of your lwan more easily. Some tips on aerating:

• A device that removes cores of soil and thatch is MUCH better than the devices that just poke holes in the lawn. You can buy a device that you step on to aerate your lawn or rent a heavier-duty machine.
• Aerate before the active-growing time of your lawn; and not when weeds are actively growing (can stir up weed infestation).
• Don't aerate during periods of heat and drought. Opening up the lawn during times of stress like that can hurt your lawn.

While I'm at it, once I aerate the lawn, I lay down some compost/manure/good topsoil.

• I use a broom or light rake to level the compost.
• This is also a good time to level out your lawn. If there are any dips or lower areas, you can lay a little more in those areas. (Speaking of lower areas, if you DO have minor dips in your lawn, you can lay thin layers every month or so to build that area up).
• Finally, I water everthing to wash things down -- and avoid smothering the grass.

This should give the lawn a good jumpstart to the growing season. Here's to a beautiful, thick, lush, green lawn that you can be proud of.

Lawn Care: Spring is Coming (Lime!)

JUST a heads up: I am laying some lime down right now...

Spring is coming -- and it's almost time to get your lawn into shape. When you are out running errands, make sure you get your fertilizer, lime, and compost/manure. More on compost/manure and aeration soon.

• Most people know it's good to lay down fertilizer. It's best to feed your lawn at least 3-4 times a year. However, if you only do 2, make sure you do your fall feeding (helps promote strong roots for the winter and starts the spring off stronger) and early spring feeding. I like to spread out feedings and do 1 or 2 feedings during the growing season -- as well as a winterization (just before the lawn goes dormant).
• Thus, for Fertilizing, I aim for April (after first short mowing), June, August, and Oct.
• Lime: The ph of soil in the Eastern Part of the US is relatively low due to rain and humidity. Rainfall leaches calcium and magnesium from the soil, creating an "acid" condition or low ph (below the 6.2 to 6.5 ph desired by healthy lawns). The low ph prevents the grass from absorbing nutrients and giving us the nice green color we like.
• First, test the soil to make sure you need lime. The best time to lay lime down is the fall, so it has time to settle in. Some like to lime in the early spring to get ready for the growing season. When you lime, try to space it between (or before!) fertilizing your lawn.
• I like to lime either in the fall (after the last feeding) or spring (before the first feeding).

Lawn Care: Cordless Lawnmowers

Is your old gas lawnmower giving you a hard time starting up? Many people are trading in their loud, finicky, gas lawnmowers for cordless mowers. Cordless mowers are great for a lot of reasons:

• Little or no maintenance compared to gas mowers that need oil changes, air filters, spark plugs, etc.
• Electric power (inexpensive battery recharges) compared to $3/gallon.
• Less noise.

Features to look for:

• Removable battery. The batteries won't hold the charge as well over time. Most lawnmowers have this feature, but you should check to be sure.
• Mulcher. Particularly good when it comes to autumn (leaves all over the place!). Also, it's good to mulch your grass and help feed your lawn.
• No cord. Electic mowers need you to be attached to a power outlet. Cordless mowers help you to avoid the tangle of long wires in your lawn.

Currently, we like two models. Both are highly-rated by Amazon users and can be sent to you via free shipping. Prices vary -- but mid-$300's are OK prices, low $300's or lower are great prices for these models.

• Earthwise (normally around $333) - 20 inch, 24 volt
• Black and Decker (normally around $369) - 19-inch, 24 volt

Lawn Care Basics: Mowing (First mow of season!) and Watering

Taxes are done... so we have time for another chore: the lawn! I look at the lawn as a challenge. Get it looking nice, neat, and green -- and you get a good sense of satisfaction. And you get some good exercise! Here are some basics. We talked about liming your lawn and fertilizer in a previous post.

• Mowing: Depending on the weather (temperatures, amount of rain, etc.) -- try to mow at least once a week. Cutting often (and not too short: rule of thumb is less than 1/3 of the blades of grass) leads to healthier grass.
• First mowing of the season: this first cut of the season should be on the short side. The shorter mowing will encourage the roots and grass to wake up and start growing.
• Water: only as needed. Again, this depends on your location and climate. If you need to water: water deeply and only once week or so (if there's no rain). Infrequent, but deep waterings will promote deeper roots and stronger/healthier grass (as opposed to frequent/shallow watering). Some people measure the water (putting out cans to see how much water the sprinkler is putting out) and aim for 1 inch per week. The best time to water is early in the day (avoids heat/evaporation).

Lawn Care: Aerating & Compost

I am wondering if they made taxes due April 15th so that we would have time for the lawn! The lawn-growing season is here -- and this is my early season schedule:

1. Lime -- end of March
2. Aerate & compost (more on that later) -- just after taxes (April 16 or so)
3. First mow (shorter than ususal to promote root and grass growth) -- depends on weather; but as needed, and a little on the short side.
4. First spring fertilizer soon after first mow.

Aerating is a great thing for your lawn. It removes thatch, loosens compacted soil, and allows nitrients to get to the roots of your lwan more easily. Some tips on aerating:

• A device that removes cores of soil and thatch is MUCH better than the devices that just poke holes in the lawn. You can buy a device that you step on to aerate your lawn or rent a heavier-duty machine.
• Aerate before the active-growing time of your lawn.
• Don't aerate during periods of heat and drought. Opening up the lawn during times of stress like that can hurt your lawn.

While I'm at it, once I aerate the lawn, I lay down some compost/manure/good topsoil.

• I use a broom or light rake to level the compost.
• This is also a good time to level out your lawn. If there are any dips or lower areas, you can lay a little more in those areas. (Speaking of lower areas, if you DO have minor dips in your lawn, you can lay thin layers every month or so to build that area up).
• Finally, I water everthing to wash things down -- and avoid smothering the grass.

This should give the lawn a good jumpstart to the growing season. Here's to a beautiful, thick, lush, green lawn that you can be proud of.

Lawn Care: Getting Ready (Lime!, Fertilizer)

Spring is here -- and it's almost time to get your lawn into shape. When you are out running errands, make sure you get your fertilizer, lime, and compost/manure. More on compost/manure and aeration soon.

• Most people know it's good to lay down fertilizer. It's best to feed your lawn at least 3-4 times a year. However, if you only do 2, make sure you do your fall feeding (helps promote strong roots for the winter and starts the spring off stronger) and early spring feeding. I like to spread out feedings and do 1 or 2 feedings during the growing season -- as well as a winterization (just before the lawn goes dormant).
• Thus, for Fertilizing, I aim for April (after first short mowing), June, August, and Oct.
• Lime: The ph of soil in the Eastern Part of the US is relatively low due to rain and humidity. Rainfall leaches calcium and magnesium from the soil, creating an "acid" condition or low ph (below the 6.2 to 6.5 ph desired by healthy lawns). The low ph prevents the grass from absorbing nutrients and giving us the nice green color we like.
• First, test the soil to make sure you need lime. The best time to lay lime down is the fall, so it has time to settle in. Some like to lime in the early spring to get ready for the growing season. When you lime, try to space it between (or before!) fertilizing your lawn.
• I like to lime either in the fall (after the last feeding) or spring (before the first feeding).