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Lawn ClippingsYOUR MONTHLY NEWSLETTER FROM SUBURBAN LANDSCAPING -- APRIL 2011
Free Lawn Mowing!
Refer a new client to our service and receive a free weekly mowing, it’s that simple. If the referral is on the same block that you live, we offer two free mowings. Make sure your referral mentions your name to get your free lawn mowing.
Valparaiso Office
Is Open
Suburban Landscaping is now offering service from our new Valparaiso office. We are now servicing most areas east of I-65, including the towns of Valparaiso, Chesterton, Hobart, Lake of Four Seasons, Portage, and Michigan City.
Seeding Your Lawn
vs:
Weed Control
If you are planning on having your lawn seeded this spring, remember that the pre-emergent fertilizer that is applied in the early spring can stop your grass seeds from growing. The chemicals that prevent crabgrass seeds from germinating also prevent the grass seeds from germinating. If you have already had your pre-emergent fertilizer applied, you should wait six to eight weeks before seeding.
April Services
InApril we will be starting several services including:
· Spring Leaf Clean Ups
· Gutter Cleaning
· Fertilization
· Lawn Mowing
· Aeration
· Mulching
· Landscape Installation
Please call for an estimate on any of these services your interested in.
Preemergent Weed Control Preemergenct herbicides are used to control crabgrass weeds before the seeds germinate. If Suburban Landscaping is not handling your fertilization this year, you will want to make sure your fertilization company is applying your application soon. Many weed seeds have already germinated in southern Illinois, however, most in our area are still lying dormant and will be controlled by the preemergent herbicide.
Crabgrass, the annual grassy weed that most people can easily identify, is going to be germinating very soon, so be sure to have your preventatives applied. Crabgrass will start germinating when the soil temperatures are approximately 50° F at the quarter inch level for five to seven consecutive days. If you don’t get your pre-emergent down in time, there is a post-emergent cure, but it is a much more expensive application.
Insect Alert April Planning Brings May Flowers
Annual flower planting time is coming soon! Call ahead to plan your annual flowers, vases & pots, and even to prepare the soil for your own planting beds. Popular varieties and colors go quick, so call today.
Don’t Let Them Bug You!
This spring would be a good time to watch for Spruce spider mites in Colorado Spruce trees. Shake a limb over a sheet of paper. If you see tiny, moving dots, smash one and it should produce green or orange-yellow streaks. Damage can range from a light brown discoloration to death. Later this month be on the look out for Pine Sawfly in any Pine trees. This insect will appear in groups, feeding on the needles of Scotch, Mugo, and other pines.
Bishop’s Weed(Aegopodium)
Also known as Ashweed or herb Gerard, this low perennial ground cover is very popular in Illinois and Indiana. This fall, however, your Bishops weed will probably be looking a little thin and weak. The symptoms are not caused by disease, rather they are caused by weather scorch. The variegated variety of this plant is most common and does not do well in sunny locations. This injury is most common in a period of very hot weather following a time of lush growth The two ways to cure this problem are: periodically mow the plant throughout the season. Mowing encourages new growth and helps keep the plant dense. Or, apply a spring fungicide. Call our office for a quote this spring.
SNOW MOLD
When the snow melts in spring, it reveals circular patches of bleached out-looking lawn that range in size from a few inches to several feet across. This usually is the lawn disease known as Snow Mold. After long periods of snow cover, the entire lawn can be affected. The blades of grass in those areas are dead and matted together.
Both gray and pink snow mold can occur. Gray snow mold is generally the less serious because it kills the blades of affected grasses, but it does not kill the crowns or roots, as pink snow mold can.
 The best ways to prevent Snow Mold are mowing your lawn well into fall, until it has stopped actively growing. Your last cut of the season should be slightly shorter than you would normally cut your lawn, say down to 11/2 to 2 inches. This keeps the grass from matting down on itself under snow cover, which creates a favorable environment for the development of snow mold. Also, Rake and remove fallen leaves from the lawn before snowfall.
Call our office for to schedule a fungicide treatment.
What Are The Benefits Of Mulching Your Clippings?
Mulching mowers return the cut grass clippings to your lawn when mowing. The benefits of returning the clippings to the lawn include a healthier lawn (clippings serve as fertilizer and help retain and conserve needed moisture), and cost savings (you save on both clipping disposal and fertilizer costs). 25% of the fertilizer applied to your lawn is removed with the clippings each. Suburban Landscaping mulches clippings as often as possible, without leaving clumps on the lawn.
One myth about clippings is that they cause a thatch build up. This isn't the case. Herbaceous lawn clippings are broken down and absorbed by the lawn within a few days. Whereas, thatch is naturally caused by the lawn shedding its much harder outer “shell”, not associated with clippings at all.
From The Landscape Department:
Ed Horrell in the landscape department is booking work now for all of your landscape needs. Let Ed know if you have any tree removal, mulch installations, dead plant replacements, or brick pavers to be reset.
Suburban Landscaping is a full design and build company with 27 years of experience building quality landscape improvements.
Jasek Residence, Tinley Park, IL Zimmerman pine moth
Zimmerman pine moth is a common trunk borer in Scotch, Austrian, Eastern White, and red pines. Although it is difficult to control once inside the tree, its life cycle makes it relatively easy to control while on the outside of the tree. Trunk damage appears as white, crusted areas of pitch an inch or two wide at branch whorls.
 The caterpillars are underneath this pitch and tunnel under the bark and into the tree. Usually the affected branches will die. Tunneling into the trunk for several years weakens the trunk to where it snaps off at that location, causing the loss of the upper part of the tree. Have your Pine trees inspected during this time of year.
WINTER ANNUAL WEEDS
There are several winter annual weeds that germinated last fall and have overwintered as seedlings. These weeds will flower this spring and then die in the summer when temperatures rise. Some examples of these weeds are Henbit, Deadnettle, and Common Chickweed, to name a few. You can see pictures of these weeds on our website.
DORMANT OIL Dormant oil sprays are specific, highly-refined petroleum products that are mixed with water and applied to trees and shrubs to control aphids, spider mites, and scale. Dormant oils destroy pests by suffocating them. When applied properly, the thin film of oil plugs the spiracles or pores through which the mite or insect breathes. Call our office for an estimate for treating your trees. Solution To Shady Areas Many people ask how they can grow grass in shady areas. All of the most common types of turf grass require some sunlight to survive. However, there is a “turf alternative” that will grow in shady places that grass wont. This plant is the groundcover Pachysandra. Pachysandra is a low maintenance, perennial ground cover that requires little care after establishment. Pachysandra, as you see in the picture, all grows to the same height and produces a green blanket of foliage.
The Good Dirt
Spring Office Hours:
M-F 8:30 am to 5:00 pm
Addresses:
Office: 1604 East End Ave.
Chicago Heights, IL 60411
Mailing: P.O. Box 1145,
Homewood, IL 60430-0145
Valparaiso Branch
P.O. Box 1146
Valparaiso, IN 46384
Tin Cans With String?
Illinois: (708) 799-6228
Indiana: (219) 736-6228
Fax: (708) 756-1122
Email us at:
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