Part 3 in our series of What does my Lawn Need Blogs brings us to Brown and Bare Lawns. In our other 2 parts, we discussed Animals Damaging our Lawns and last week we chatted about standing water. This week, a sight that we see most often in the Summer, those dry, dormant, brown and bare lawns!
In our last blog, we chatted about the animal damage that we can see on lawns throughout the Lower Mainland. Animals like raccoons, skunks and crows are digging, pecking and rolling the lawns looking for the European Chafer Beetle grubs. If you missed our last blog, check it out here.
Greetings, lawn lovers! It is I, The Grass Expert, here to talk to you about a dastardly winter lawn care issue that affects many a Canadian around this time of year: winter desiccation.
Winter desiccation takes place when the turfgrass plant is in its dormant or semi-dormant stages, and can cause varying degrees of damage severity to a lawn. All turfgrass species are prone to winter desiccation if the right conditions persist.
Life here in the Lower Mainland can get pretty hectic - and expensive - which keeps us all on the go most of the time. Usually the only time we have to even consider our lawns happens to fall on the trusted weekend, a time we spend with our Family, Friends and all those other chores that always seem to pile up.
Heigh-Ho, Heigh-Ho, it's off to shovel we go!
For those who live in areas with routine and heavy snowfall in winter, this phrase has probably passed through your minds a few times this year as you slog outside with a shovel in hand and a scowl on your face. Winter and snow/ice storms go hand in hand, making shovelling as Canadian a pastime as, say, ice hockey or curling. What a world we live in!
In 2019, our lives have been so packed with needs that we have left little time for enjoyment. Going to work, school for you or the kids, spending time with friends and family, school activities, social activities, grocery shopping, trips for work or pleasure, pets, exercise, holidays, health needs...and the list can go on and on.
Things like taking care of the house have become automatic or forgotten. Until the one day that you walk out of the door during your morning ritual to work (or school) and realize in a brief moment that the windows need to be washed, or the siding cleaned, or perhaps the lawn needs some TLC, but when and who has the time? You get into your car, start the engine and as the radio comes to life and the little voices inside informs you of your daily commute or the weather or even a great song, that thought of the lawn leaves the mind.
With winter in full swing, many parts of Canada are getting cold enough and have enough precipitation to hold impromptu outdoor skating rinks. Sure, a patch of ice for hockey-related purposes is great. But on your lawn? Well, not so much...
The effects of Ice coverage can cause varying degrees of lawn damage depending on the severity of the ice coverage, the length of exposure, and the hardiness of the turfgrass species effected. Where snow coverage is generally considered desirable with the exception of the increased risk for snow mold disease, ice coverage on the other hand is more of a concern and is undesirable, often causing more severe damage that requires renovation practices to speed up recovery.
The last we spoke, our topic was Calcitic Lime and how it can help to balance the pH in your soil along with the benefits it will provide your lawn. This week, we will broaden our chat to see what else could be causing weeds and moss to take over your lawn, as well as how to fix those issues.
Oh yes, wait a minute Mr. Snow Plow! Winter is officially here and in many parts of Canada, white snow is starting to blanket the front and back yards of many a property.
Mother Nature aside, some of the most severe damage that can happen to a lawn over the winter months is often the most preventable. Snow removal equipment that is used to plow, blow, and remove snow can easily - and unintentionally - damage the turf when the boundaries aren’t properly identified, much to the chagrin of homeowners. The edges from the road, driveway, sidewalk and along walkways are most vulnerable to harm, and can result in extensive damage if not properly monitored during the winter months.
Before we get into the what, let’s begin our story with a picture. You walk out of your home early one May morning stretching your legs and grabbing the morning paper (or taking the dog for a walk in case you are more of a digital reader, maybe it’s your morning walk that beckons you outside, but you are at your front door). The sun has just started to come through the trees and is hitting your face. The gentle warm breeze carries the sound of birds chirping, creating a melody that is right out of Merrie Melodies.
As you take that first step outside, you look to your lawn. The lawn you just spent that weekend last month spraying weeds and raking moss out. The lawn that cost you all that money. The one that caught your sweat - now has weeds, again!
