Lawn Maintenance

[Nage Waza]

Hey guys, I have to give my yard a little TLC this summer. Any ideas on what I should be paying for someone to come and fertilize and apply weed control a half dozen times or so? I will also need power raking and aeration.

Dr. Green offered one of my neighbors to do the above services for a cost of $360, I have no idea if that is a good deal.

[renny]

the guy i go through charges $35 to fertilize my lawn, i can ask him about aeration.

[normtwofinger]

Power raking will help too. Just make sure the guy knows what he's doing, you can really ruin a lawn if the machine is set up wrong.

[Madman]

Power raking destroys root structure and isn't what you should be doing to your lawn.

Aeration, fertilizer and proper watering is what you need.

I am switching to Dr Green from Weed Man this year. (Weed Man service and quality got worse and worse for me)

[Ironhorse]

I'm looking for someone decent to do aeration this spring. Any recommendations? I'm not looking for "package" deals, as I'm quite capable of doing the fertilizing etc myself.

I thought Dr Green changed their name this year?

[normtwofinger]

Originally Posted by Madman

Power raking destroys root structure and isn't what you should be doing to your lawn.

Aeration, fertilizer and proper watering is what you need.

I am switching to Dr Green from Weed Man this year. (Weed Man service and quality got worse and worse for me)

Only if the power raking machine is set too low.

[Madman]

Power raking is sold to people to "de-thatch" your lawn.

2 problems with that.

- While it does remove/disturb a certain amount of thatch, it also removes perfectly healthy grass and roots, (no matter the depth the machine is set at), and exposes roots and bare earth. This then promotes weed growth, thins your root structure which takes weeks to grow back and allows moisture to escape the soil.

- Thatch is not a bad thing that everyone makes it out to be, a healthy lawn requires a certain amount of thatch to remain healthy. Root protection, moisture retention and organic material are all reasons why thatch is good.

If someone truly has a thatch problem, then a good core aeration is the solution and is extremely healthy to your soil and lawn.

[normtwofinger]

Well agree to disagree then. I do agree with you about aeration, it is very important.

[burn_baby_burn]

I have found that paying someone to fertilize your lawn is usually a big disappointment. They don't put on enough. My neighbors all get green drop to fertilize their lawns. I do my own and I have the greenest, thickest lawn in the close. Its green right up until it gets covered in snow (having underground sprinklers helps as well).

[Nyah]

I've had someone come to fertalize my lawn two years in a row now and the only thing I noticed was that the weeds & dandelions came in like CRAZY. I thought it would take care of the problem but it seems to have ruined my lawn, which admitedly had a weed problem before I tried fertilization. If I were to take out all the weeds in my yard there would hardly be any grass. So this year the grass is comin' out and gardens are goin' in!

[Nage Waza]

Thanks for the advice everyone! Does $360 seem like a good deal for the entire season?

[stampsx2]

Is there anything you can put on your grass to keep the moisture moisture in longer? Pete moss?

[Northendzone]

i'll bet that you could buy enough fertilizer and a nice broadcast spreader for a lot less than $360 for the entire season

[Huntingwhale]

I will stool on your lawn weekly for a case of beer.

[GFG4Life]

http://www.greenwithenvyltd.ca/

Lawn and Garden services available. Very qualified.

[fundmark19]

I just moved to a new house with underground sprinklers what type of program do you guys set yours to? I want to try and have a nice green lawn this year

[PIMking]

Depends on what kind of grass you have but every six weeks during growing season you can fertilize it with a drop spreader.

Also mulch you clippings instead of bagging them, this promotes healthy growth.

only cut 1/3 of the blade of grass per cutting, too much isn't good for it.

Cut right after the dew is off of it in the am, not during the afternoon, also water it in the am right before the sun comes up.

[PIMking]

Originally Posted by fundmark19

I just moved to a new house with underground sprinklers what type of program do you guys set yours to? I want to try and have a nice green lawn this year

Water 10 mins each section every other day right before sunrise.

[DownhillGoat]

Originally Posted by fundmark19

I just moved to a new house with underground sprinklers what type of program do you guys set yours to? I want to try and have a nice green lawn this year

Just a heads up - there's often watering restrictions in town.

[Madman]

Originally Posted by PIMking

Water 10 mins each section every other day right before sunrise.

Yep, watering in the morning is the best.

Nighttime moisture promotes fungus/mold growth because the grass stays wet for so long.