Turf Tips

SPRING TURF TIPS

Raking:

Rake just hard enough to remove surface debris and "comb out" the lawn. Dethatching with a power dethatcher is

best done in the fall. Raking also helps the lawn recover from "Snow Mold", which appears as reddish brown circles in the

lawn.

Mowing:

Sharpen the blade, change the oil and spark plug, or have a service to a tune-up for you. A sharp blade is critical to

achieving a clean cut on your lawn. I find it best to have a spare blade, I put on a freshly sharpened blade once a month. A dull

blade will tear the grass blade, leaving it more susceptible to insects and disease.

Try to mow frequently enough so that you only remove 1/3 of the grass blade each time. Also, alternating mowing directions

weekly reduces mower ruts, and provides a cleaner cut. If the grass gets overgrown due to excessive rains, it is best to set your

mower up high, mow the lawn, and then mow it a second time at the correct height, which is generally about 3".

Seeding:

Everyone loves to seed in the spring. It is, however, generally the wrong time to do it. If at all possible, we recommend

that you seed in late August/early September for far better results.

SUMMER TURF TIPS

Watering:

Generally, lawns require an inch of water per week to stay healthy. If the lawn has 6 inches of loam or more (this is very rare, except on older properties), the inch can be applied all at once, and the soil will hold the moisture for quite a while.

Most lawns, however, have only a few inches of sandy loam, requiring more frequent watering. A quarter inch every other day is enough under normal conditions.

One way to determine how much water your sprinkler puts out is to put a flat pan somewhere within the sprinkler pattern. Then, time how long it takes to put in a quarter inch of water. You will then be able to determine how long to let it run for. Obviously extremely hot of dry weather will cause the lawn to require additional watering, so you need to adjust your watering accordingly.

Mowing:

We recommend mowing at 3 to 4 inches during the summer. Set your mower on a flat surface, and measure the distance between the cutting edge of the blade and the ground. For riding mowers, allow 1/4 to 1/2 inch extra, as the mower will settle into the lawn a bit due to the weight of the machine plus the rider.

Try to mow frequently enough so that you only remove 1/3 of the grass blade with each cutting. Changing your mowing pattern frequently will help prevent ruts from forming due to the weight of the tractor. Also, sharpen the blade 2 or 3 times yearly to maintain a clean cut.

For more information on mowing please visit: http://home.howstuffworks.com/grass

UNDERSTANDING GRUBS

The Japanese beetle grub is probably the most damaging turf insect in New Hampshire. Grubs cause damage by feeding on the roots of the grass.To understand grubs, you need to know the lifecycle of the Japanese beetle.

We usually see Japanese beetles emerging from the ground in late June and early July. These adult beetles feed voraciously on all sorts of plant material, sometimes causing severe injury. In early August, just prior to dieing, the

beetles lay eggs in the soil. These eggs quickly hatch into grubs. The grubs will begin feeding immediately on the grass roots. They feed through the fall, and burrow down just below the frost line for winter. Come spring, the

grubs rise to the root zone once again, and feed into early June. Then they pupate, and emerge as adult beetles, just in time for July fourth!

This cycle repeats itself every year. By applying preventative grub control once a year, We keep these nuisances under control!

We recommend against Japanese beetle traps, as they attract more beetles to your yard, resulting in more grub problems! If you have a trap, get rid of it or put it 100 feet into the woods to attract beetles away from your property!

A common misconception is that moles in your lawn are an indicator of a grub problem. This is almost always not the case! The primary food source of moles is earthworms, which are everywhere. Therefore, grub

control will not prevent having moles in your lawn!

For more information on grubs please visit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mole_(animal) or http://www.american-lawns.com/insects/japanese_beetle.html

CONCORD CUSTOM LAWN CARE + 20 Dunklee Rd Box 16 Bow NH 03304 + PHONE/FAX: (603)228-1997

Ticks

Our tick control program consists of three applications, approximately mid-late May, July, and September. For severe infestations, additional applications may be required.

The material used kills ticks on contact, and control can last up to 4 weeks.

Although highly effective against ticks, the product used is safe enough to be used indoors, and can also be used inside pet kennels.

Ticks are important vectors of a number of diseases, including Lyme disease, Q fever, Colorado tick fever, tularemia, tick-borne relapsing fever, babesiosis, ehrlichiosis and Tick-borne meningoencephalitis, as well as anaplasmosis in cattle and canine jaundice.

For more information on ticks please visit:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tick

http://www.idph.state.il.us/envhealth/pccommonticks.htm

Nutsedge : Yellow Nutsedge- This is a very difficult to control grassy weed. Lime green in color and grows faster than the other grass. Nutsedge starts blooming in Mid-May and continues through the end of the year. It is spread by mowing, seeds carried by birds and if left to bloom, the seeds are carried by the wind. Previously, there has not been a product to eliminate this grassy weed completely, we could only control with minimal success, with it coming back later that season and most definitely every year after.

Arkon- This is a new product on the market that is sprayed on Nutsedge once a year between Mid-May and Late June. It’s a slow acting product, allowing the chemical to reach the nut of the plant and eventually kill it.

The way it works, is over a 2–3-year period, we spray this once a year, and by year 3 the nutsedge should be gone in those areas. It almost acts as a growth regulator in the sense that is stunts growth so when mowed, it’ won’t grow faster than the other grass, and over that 2-3 period will be gone all together.