A lush green and smooth carpet of grass, with beautiful plants, is something that every home owner dreams to have. Many people really work hard on their lawns but still are not able to get the desired results. Actually, it’s an art. You should be careful while maintaining your lawn, otherwise you can ruin it unintentionally.

A famous landscape designer, Gary Alan, says, “You know how in golf they say ‘Be the ball’? Well, you’ve got to be the grass.” It means that you should know what the grass in your lawn needs. Here we are sharing 5 tips that will help you in taking good care of your lawn.

Below are some great tips to help you with your lawn and landscape. For an easy going no hassle Boise lawn care estimate, call us today!      
208-643-0181
1. Type of Grass you have in your Lawn:

There are many different types of grasses. Some grow short, whereas, others grow tall. Some require full sun, some can tolerate light shade. Some cannot survive with foot traffic, while others can survive in drought. On the bases of the weather the grass can survive in, there are two type of grass:

• Warm-season grasses – this type of grass grow at its best during summer, and go dormant in the winter season.
• Cool-season grasses – this type of grass has two spurts; a moderate one that grows well in spring, and a big one, which grows better in fall. Usually, this type of grass go dormant in summers.

To take good care of lawn, it is important to know the type of grass you have in your lawn.

2. Weeds and How to Get Rid of Them:  
            
Weeds are unwanted plants that grow on soil and eventually spoil its fertility. Almost every lawn has some number of weeds on it. Although, they are small, sometimes they are hard to get rid of. The lush green grounds of championship golf courses are an example of weed free lawns.
Some of the common weeds are:

• Dandelion
• Yellow woodsorrel
• Yellow nutsedge
• Spotted spurge
• Quackgrass
• Ground ivy
• Crabgrass

Some common ways to get rid of weeds are:

• Right amount of herbicides
• Right amount of fertilizer
• Right amount of water
• Mow your lawn higher
• Hand weeding

3. Use Organic Fertilizer:

Instead of buying expensive and synthetic fertilizers, try some organic, natural, and homemade fertilizers to nurture your lawn. Organic fertilizers are a healthier option as compared to synthetic ones, as they may have many bad effects on pets, and people, especially kids.
Now days, many organic and ‘Go Green’ fertilizers are easily available online and offline. If you are interested inn homemade fertilizer, you can ask for recipe from professional gardeners or elderly people who do gardening. There are many websites as well, where you can find authentic recipes for such fertilizers.

4. Soil Aeration:

If you want to grow healthy plants, without using synthetic fertilizers and pesticides, your soil should be healthy. For a living and healthy soil, the soil organisms have to eat, drink, breathe, digest, and excrete well. To perform all these functions efficiently, they need air and thus, there should be enough air pockets in soil, i.e., soil should be good aerated. 
Your soil can become compacted, due to excessive:

• Foot traffic
• Use of fertilizers
• Mowing

At this point, soil needs your help to get enough water and air. With the help of a particular tool, you can cut the sol edges and leave holes for water, air, and fertilizer, making your soil healthy again.

5. Be Gentle with Pests:
Many insecticides and pesticides companies advertise their product as each and every pest is dangerous for your lawn. On the contrary, this is not true. Most of the pests are useful, and only few cause real damage. Avoid using any such product that claim to kill all pests, as most of these products are not only harmful for your lawn, but also for yourself, your kids, your pets, and above all your planet.

Spring has come and we are kicking this year off strong! We are into our first week of lawn mowing and just in time for the rain right, lol! So what should you expect in Boise Idaho this year? And how will that effect your lawn mowing routine in 2017?
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Recently winter has laid her head to rest and spring is feeling great! We had a number of sunny warmer days mixed with rain and the grass is loving it! The recent rain and colder temperatures may slow a few people down from their first mowing in 2017, but we’re going full steam ahead.
This spring is predicted to be a little drier and warmer than normal with a smooth transition into the hot months of July and August. To see a bit more about the predictions the Old Farmers Almanac is making check them out here.

What does this really mean to you and the lawns across the Boise area?  
This year’s weather has made it even more important to take a few extra steps this spring in preparation for the lawn mowing season.

After the harsh Winter, we just had you still may be experiencing snow mold in your yard? If not feel like one of the lucky few. Most of the snow mold will go away without much effort but other patches of this mold can kill and destroy your grass. Get your snow mold treated as soon as you can this spring.

Moving into a warmer drier spring it will be even more important to treat your soil and grass as we get started into the lawn mowing season. We recommend an early aeration of your lawn, getting the soil ready to support healthy grass. As well a treatment of weed control and fertilizer to replenish the soil with the needed nutrients and ridding it of invasive species.

We likely won’t need our sprinklers for a good while making a great time to repair, replace or install a new sprinkler system.

Lawn mowing this year should be fairly status quo, with once a week being sufficient. While once every other week being a minimum for a healthy lawn. Being it’s a little warmer and drier this spring you might leave the grass a bit longer when you cut. This should help it retain more water and nutrients. Although it almost ensures a once a week cut.

A few lawn care tips if you’re a DIYer and are planning on managing your yard in 2017.
Get your mower serviced or in top working order.

• A new spark plug might be necessary and are just a good idea to swap out each year.
• A sharp mower blade will help with a clean cut and clumping through your lawn.
• Use the best gas, lawn mowers use little gas and good gas helps your machine go a long way

We are all about the DIYer and wish you the best. If doing it yourself, just isn’t your thing, visit our Home Page check us out. And contact us for a hands-off lawn care solution.

​It’s hard to believe Spring is here and our lawns will soon need mowing here in Boise. Before we get ahead of ourselves, there are few lawn care tasks we recommend doing this spring.

1. Maintain equipment:
Your lawn mower is likely the most utilized tool in your garage. Through both weekly use and storing your machine lawn mowers require proper maintenance. The better your lawn mower performs the better the final results will look.
We recommend to winterize your machine once the season comes to an end. Then have a tune up done in the spring, to include a new spark plug, oil change and sharp blade. Throughout the cutting season ensure you have a sharp mower blade regularly check the fluid levels.
 
2. Grass Length: 
The length of your grass effects the overall health of your lawn. A properly trimmed lawn will help reduce the number of weeds which grow throughout your lawn as well help promote a healthy root system.
In the summer we recommend cutting your lawn no shorter than 2 ¾ inches or so then about an inch longer on the winter. One of the most common improvements we see when evaluating the lawn care of a property here in Boise is the length of the grass, usually being cut too short. By leaving your grass just a touch longer it helps it retain water and endure the heat of our summers.

3. Cutting Conditions:
For proper lawn care we recommend mowing your lawn once every 7-10 days when grass is completely dry. Many professional mowers can cut grass in damp conditions but most residential machines tend to leave clumps of grass behind when it is mowed in wet conditions.
 
4. Directional Mowing:
We all like a nice pattern after we finish mowing the lawn, showing onookers just how great of a job we did. Another trait is most of us are creatures of habit and naturally tend to follow the same patter week after week, year after year. This can actually cause damage and at the least isn’t ideal for optimal lawn care causing compacted soil in the high traffic areas.
We recommend cutting your lawn in an alternate pattern every other time you mow your lawn. This will help reduce the soil compaction and a much healthier lawn.

5. Mowing Safety:
This should probably be under the first bullet point and is ultimately the most important. Lawn mowers can cause serious harm to others in the yard or yourself. 
Make sure you are familiar with and have the ability to operate your mower as instructed by the manufacturer.

Never reach down to the mower base while the blade is engaged.

Always be aware of where your feet are in relation to the mower. When you take corners or back up with a push mower it is possible to get a little too close to your feet.

Clear the area of any debris such as rocks or toys essentially any objects which are not grass. These objects can be picked up and shoot out of the mower in an unpredicted manner causing damage to property or others in the area.

​We also recommend that you not allow pets or children in the yard while you are mowing it. Things happen that are unexpected and this is just one extra precaution we recommend to protect your loved ones. 

As summer comes to an end its important to consider the following lawn care tasks. Summer tends to take its toll on our lawn with drought and high traffic. Paying attention to and Performing some or all of the below tasks will help ensure a healthy vibrant lawn through Winter and into Spring.
 
Thatch

Thatch is the layer of dead and live organic material between the soil and the green shoots of grass.
Easily check your lawn by pulling a plug or shovel of dirt up from your lawn. Measure the area at the base of the grass above the soil. Once it’s much thicker than ½ inch it’s time to start thatching your lawn.

There are a number of technique which can help, Aeration or a good old raking with a wire rake. Make sure to remove the debris from your lawn.

Our favorite technique is to hire a Lawn Care Professional :) 
 
Moss

The Fall is a great time to take control of ay moss that might be growing in your yard. It’s important to kill the moss before trying to remove it. Otherwise you are likely to spread the problem through your yard.

There are a number of products which you can apply to the moss to kill it. Once dead you should be able to remove it from the yard with a rake.


Aerate

Aeration is an important part of a healthy lawn. We recommend aerating once a year and at a minimum once every couple of years. Aeration can be done at a basic level with a pitchfork and your boot. Simply make many holes through your lawn.

However, to properly aerate your law you’ll want to use a specific machine made to pull plugs out of your soil. Depending on the density and needs of your lawn these plugs can adjusted. This allows for the soil to decompress and the thatch to remain healthy.
 

Over Seed
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The fall will be ideal weather and after the work you’ve done in clearing your lawn of moss aerating and thatching. The yard will be prime for light application of seed, and a fuller application in any bare dead spots.

Its recommended to mix seed and soil really well and spread them together across the lawn together. There are also specific products at the store pre-mixed you can use.
 

Lay Sod

If your need to lay sod in your lawn for any large dead or bald spots, Fall will be a great time. This will allow for the sods roots to take hold and in the new soil, preparing for the winter ahead.

When laying sod we recommend clearing the ground of debris, moisten the soil and rake it to loosen it up. Before placing the piece of sod down lightly rub your glove across the dirt side, loosening that side a little as well.
 

Fertilize

​Our lawn and the soil have been through a lot since spring and will likely need help replenishing their nutrient base. Fall is arguably the most important time to apply fertilizer which will help ensure a healthy lawn while its dormant for winter. 

Many fertilizers have a weed killer mixed into the formula. Read the instructions carefully. If not it would be an ideal time to kill those broad leaf weeds such as dandelions.

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Water

Watering your lawn will continue to be important until mother nature takes over. We recommend at a minimum once every day for a long period or once every day for a slightly shorter period.
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If you over seeded as mentioned above or laid new sod sown, water much more. Those new seeds and the new sod will need to stay moist until the roots really take hold. It will take the seeds longer, but the sod will need extra attention as well likely through throughout the season. 

Thanks for checking out our recommendations and tips. Please visit our home page and call us with any questions.

-BLE

Hey all,

we hope you had a great summer! As fall approaches, Kids are back in school and we all seem to have a tad more time on our hands.

Not that we have a ton of time. This summer has been great for our lawn care business here in Boise, thank you all!

But, with the few minutes we do have we wanted to create a blog to help not only our clients but others here in the area best care for their yard throughout the year.

So welcome to our blog :) 

We plan on posting tips and tricks to help you best care for your yard throughout the year.  If you haven't fully read our home page please visit the bottom section where we give some excellent summer lawn care tips, click here. 

Our upcoming post will be a few suggestions on how to best prepare your lawn for another critical time of the year, Fall. Through proper care you can bring  your lawn back from any summer stress and prepare it to survive the Winter ahead. 

So stay tuned as there is much more to come.