Fertilization, aeration and the end of the season

Fertilization, aeration and the end of the season

Fertilization

Right now is a great time to aerate and put fertilizationdown fertilizer. Milorganite is great as well as other “winterizer” type fertilizers. Fertilization can be done by the homeowner. By using milorganite your remove the risk of burning your lawn. It’s really a great way to fertilize your lawn. Fertilization at this time can also involve putting down various weed killers. This allows you to get a jump on weed control before spring. Don’t lose sight of the fact that a healthy vibrant lawn is one of the best ways to prevent weeds. If the lawn is thick and healthy weeds don’t have a place to grow and thrive. Just like you and me, grass needs to be fed, that’s why we do fertilization. You can shop Home Depot for the right fertilizer by clicking here (an affiliate link) Late Night Shoping? Buy Online, Pick Up In Store . Here’s a great video by “Grass Daddy” I’ve been watching his videos and while he’s in Rhode Island (we’re in Wisconsin) many of the principles apply equally as well.

Aeration – core aeration

It’s also a great time to aerate your lawn. Aeration is great to break up compacted soil and allow water, air and nutrients an easier path to the roots of your lawn and promotes new growth.core aeration

Wrapping up the season

It was a really great season for Green Meadow Lawn Care. The bottom line was good and we served more customers this year than ever before. So thankful for the opportunity to aerate more lawns and even re-seed/over-seed a lawn as well. Thank you! Have a great winter!
Keep the tools clean and the blades sharp!

Keep the tools clean and the blades sharp!

Proper maintenance and storage of your garden equipment is a must. If you leave your shovel or rake outside in the weather or store it with debris, especially wet debris, your tool will rust. A rusty or corroded shovel isn’t nearly as effective as one that is shiny and smooth. That smooth surface is meant to allow your shovel to easily penetrate the dirt and then release it into your wheelbarrow. Likewise, if your mower blades aren’t sharp you’re just ripping the blades of grass and that can be an invitation to disease. Also, if you’re merely ripping the tops off the grass, then when it dries, you’ll have a washed out look to the lawn as the tips turn that dry tan.
A nice shed or garage is a good place for your tools when they’re not in use and learning to sharpen your blades is the path to a beautiful lawn.

People who’ve inspired this blog

People who’ve inspired this blog

In our journey called life people come and go and some are a mainstay. There are also others that come into our lives through books, video, podcasts, seminars, and so forth. Many of the people in our lives may have an impact from time to time but there are those who have inspired us to actually do something and not just listen. It’s great to be learning but we need to do something with that learning, act on it. So, here I am writing the third blog post because it was time to act – get this website done and published and start blogging. Oh, the blog isn’t the primary purpose of this website, but it is meant to provide my thoughts about our lawn care business, and what we do to make our lawns beautiful. An adjunct purpose was to develop the website as I have started a freelance web development business. Talk about two very diverse businesses.
So, who inspired this blog. I’d have to say that my wife would be my biggest cheerleader, giving me plenty of time to work on this site and give me advice on time management and space utilization for my office. Thank you!!
The next one I discovered when learning about some new web development “tools” and that would be Brad Hussey. He is training about 30 or so freelancers and one of the pieces of advice was to just get a site out there. Well, he was talking about our web design site, but I needed a portfolio to add to it, so this is one portfolio piece. Thanks Brad!
The other one is Pat Flynn of Smart Passive Income. I really don’t recall how I found him, but I’ve been binge listening to all of his podcasts catching up from episode 1. One of the things I’ve heard him say and many of his guests – you have to act at some point, you won’t get anywhere by only learning. So, here I am putting into action the things I want to do.
Now you go out there and get going, you can do it!

Rain and mowing

Rain and mowing

Rain is essential for gardens, bushes, trees, animals and of course, grass. Rain and dew leaves the grass wet and most people won’t attempt to mow their lawn when it’s wet. Can you cut grass when it’s wet? Should you cut grass when it’s wet? Ideally, if you can let it dry that’s the best scenario, but ideal doesn’t describe the lawn care business. It seems that mowing your lawn when the grass was wet was discouraged mostly because many home owners only had a push mower which meant mowing hills and ditches had an element of danger. Danger? Sure! If you slip on the incline and your foot went under the mower, well, I’m sure you can imagine. Push mowers now have a bar that acts as a dead man’s switch to kill the mower’s engine if you let go. Even so, you could potentially hold that bar and still slide a foot under the mower.
Do we mow when it’s wet or raining? We have and as long as the grass isn’t overly long it works out well. Having said that, the prospect of hills comes into play on our properties and frankly it is dangerous because your wheels lose traction and if you slide into something you run the risk of getting injured or damaging something and/or your mower.
It is important to always have sharp blades, but especially when the grass is wet. So for me, the bottom line is that it’s not a great idea to mow in the rain or with dew on the ground, but you hafta do what ya hafta do.