Time for mulching!

Time for mulching!

The aesthetic benefits that mulch brings to your Northern Virginia landscape are obvious. But have you ever wondered what purposes it serves beyond beautification? In addition to improving the looks of your property, mulching is one of the best ways to protect and improve the health of your landscape plants. Applied properly, mulch benefits small plants, trees and soil in the following ways:

• It helps to retain soil moisture
  
• It reduces weed growth
  
• It maintains a more even soil temperature throughout the year
  
• It helps to prevent soil erosion
  
• It prevents crusting of soil surfaces to improve water absorption
  
• It protects tree and shrub trunks from lawn equipment damage
  
• It encourages the expansion of root systems

That’s a lot of benefits! But to make sure mulch is able to do its job, it’s important to apply it correctly. Mulch should be applied to new plants as soon as they’re installed. For established plantings, spring is the best time for application. Care should be taken not to pile mulch up against trunks and stems, and it should be applied at least 6" to 12" beyond the drip line of the tree or shrub. The finished mulch bed should be no more than 4" deep.

For a great-looking landscape and healthier, more beautiful trees and shrubs, mulch today!

Get Rid of Broadleaf Weeds - Just Say "No"

Here's some tips and techniques for making sure you get control of your lawn pests, before they get control of you.

We’d all like to have a thick carpet of green grass without any weeds, but the reality of the situation is that broadleaf weeds are very determined pests. No lawn is immune to them, their seeds are always present in the soil, and they germinate throughout the growing season. Dandelions are probably the most familiar, but others such as ground ivy, henbit, knotweed, chickweed, plantain and thistle can all make an appearance in your turf behind your back.

Broadleaf weeds have trouble growing in dense, healthy lawns. Therefore, the first step in Saying "No” to them is to develop a hearty stand of grass through ongoing care and maintenance. This should include regular fertilization, insect and disease control as necessary, adequate irrigation in the absence of rainfall (1" to 11⁄2" per week), and proper mowing (removing no more than 1⁄3 of the grass blade at a time).

WHAT IF THAT’S NOT ENOUGH?

Despite your best efforts to maintain a great-looking lawn, broadleaf weeds can still show up from time to time.When this happens, they need to be treated with a post-emergent herbicide. Post-emergents must be used when the weeds are actively growing (many broadleaf weeds can’t be treated with pre-emergents like those used to prevent crabgrass seeds from sprouting). Once applied, it can take up to three weeks for the weeds to die off completely. Repeated applications may also be necessary, since broadleaf weed seeds continuously germinate.

Remember, when it comes to broadleaf weeds, don’t concede. It’s easy to “Say No” to these annoying pests with good lawn care practices and post-emergents.