Landscape and Gardening Tips – February
What our Pros are doing:
Hawks Landscape Designers: ·
Our landscape designers are busy planning this spring projects for their clients. Our schedule for spring installations is starting to fill!
Hawks Landscape Maintenance staff:
Our Arborists are out pruning dormant trees. Oaks and elms must be pruned only in the winter months to avoid potential disease issues.
Our Arborists are also pruning fruit trees, removing suckers, water spouts, crossing branches and crowded growth to open up the center of the tree to sun.
Our Horticulturists are continuing ...
Landscape and Gardening Tips – January
What our Pros are doing:
Gardening in January? Absolutely! Now is the perfect time to call us!
Hawks Landscape Designers:
Our landscape designers are busy planning this springs projects for their clients. It’s never too early to begin to plan your outdoor space for the upcoming season.
Hawks Landscape Maintenance staff:
Our Arborists are out pruning dormant trees. Oaks and elms must be pruned only in the winter months to avoid potential disease issues.
Horticulturists are beginning to assemble proposals for the care and maintenance of both ...
November turf tips
A late fall fertilization (Winterizer) sets up your turf for the winter. Using a slow release nitrogen product provides nutrients that feed your lawn until the ground freezes. This will help establish a strong, deep root system and store nutrients that will carry it through winter and green up earlier next spring. When the ground thaws in spring, the slow-release nitrogen kicks in again, ensuring a faster green up and a healthier lawn. Always read and follow the label directions. Winterize your lawn equipment by cleaning the deck of debris and draining the fuel. Store ...
October turf tips
We’ve made it to Fall and the leaves are falling. Rake the leaves off your lawn to prevent them from matting down and smothering grass. I prefer to change my mower over to a “Mulching deck” to take care of the leaves. There is nothing like a nice sunny Saturday afternoon listening to a Badgers game and mulching leaves….Touchdown Wisconsin!!! A mulching mower chops leaves into small bits that can be left on the lawn where they will break down and add nutrients to the soil. Continue to mow and remove leaves until fall. Now is the time to aerate your lawn, the ...
September turf tips
Fertilizing your lawn in early fall greatly improves turf density; the grass develops new shoots and stems, improves root structure and sets up food stores for winter. Choose quality fertilizers that contain micro nutrients as these are essential to the overall health of the grass plant. Toward the end of September, start cutting your lawn a little bit shorter. (My target height by the end of October is 2.25 inches).
If you have over seeded your lawn in late Aug. to filled bare spots and increase density, don’t forget to water lightly and frequently until the ...
August turf tips
It’s still hot out and the lawn is a little brown. The cooler fall days and more frequent rains will help your lawn and all your plants perk up. The end of August is a great time to seed. Whether it’s over seeding to thicken your lawn or topdressing with soil and sowing seeds to fill bare spots, starter fertilizer and watering is the key to success. If you are seeding large areas, choose a quality fertilizer product that contains a balanced blend of nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus, these are the three most necessary ingredients for a strong beginning. Watering ...
July turf tips
Continue to mow lawn at 3 inches to shade the plant crown and roots. Pull any weeds that may show up in the yard. Long, hot summer days tend to dry out your lawn and turn it brown. Don’t worry! Cool season grasses like bluegrass, fescues and rye grasses are better suited for cooler weather and as a result will naturally brown for a while but, green up again as the weather cools and the rains return. Avoid high Nitrogen fast release fertilizers as the natural salts in nitrogen can dry and burn your turf. If you irrigate your lawn, it is better to water less frequently ...
June turf tips
Time to check on your lawn mower, are the blades still sharp? Dull mower blades tear the grass which promotes plant desiccation, it’s better to ‘cut’ the grass blades than to tear the grass blades, sharpen if needed. When the temperature rises, so should your mower deck. Cut your lawn at about 3 inches, this will allow the grass blades to shade the roots a little bit and keep them cooler. Watch out for White lawn Grubs! The most common grub in our area is the larval stage of Japanese Beetles and June Bugs. These larva or otherwise known as lawn grubs ...
May turf tips
Mow your lawn in different directions each time you mow; this will help prevent rutting your lawn and leaves a distinct pattern to your yard. Dandelions and other broadleaf weeds will start to show themselves. Now is the best time to apply a selective broadleaf herbicide. As the name suggests; a selective broadleaf herbicide targets weeds in your lawn that have broad leaves, most common are dandelion and clover, this herbicide will not damage your desirable grass plants such as bluegrass, ryes and fescues which make up a typical lawn in our area. Be careful when ...
April turf tips
Time to get out and rake that lawn! Snow cover tends to mat down the lawn, raking your grass loosens it up and allows air flow to dry your lawn out after a long winter. This can help prevent fungal diseases in your turf and reduces the amount of thatch in your lawn. Voles; a mouse like critter, can create a lot of surface damage to your lawn…don’t worry about this; voles do not damage the plant but, simply eat the tops and not the crown of the grass plant as they ‘tunnel’ through your lawn. Simply rake up the debris; the turf will typically ...