3 min read
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.
When the time comes to focus on the lawn, it can seem like a daunting chore since a forgotten or ignored lawn quickly becomes unruly. The grass becomes too long, or brown, or dry, or disappears leaving large bare areas throughout the property. Maybe the local fauna has decided to make a meal out of your lawn and it has been torn up, rolled back or otherwise destroyed.
The good news is that there is a solution! Nutri-Lawn Vancouver are the experts in lawn care here in the Lower Mainland and understand completely the issues that affect our landscape. In our 5 part series, we’ll take a look at the top issues affecting our lawns and how we can solve them!
1. Animals destroying your Lawn
Does this look familiar? Raccoons, skunks or even crows making a mess tearing through the lawn each and every night gets frustrating. Each time you replace the divots they just tear the lawn apart again!
An endless cycle, but the good news is that there are steps you can take to reduce this continual cycle and prevent it from occurring again.
Let’s begin with the why. Why are they tearing through your lawn? These animals are looking for the European Chafer Beetle grubs that land in your lawn each Summer. The Lower Mainland has been plagued by this bug and our lawns are the unfortunate victims. The European Chafer Beetle grubs are laid in the lawn each Summer and have a one year life cycle. As they mature in the lawn they feed on the roots of your grass causing browning circular areas throughout the lawn that get bigger over time. As these bugs move throughout the lawn they attract the Raccoons, the Skunks and the Crows who then tear up your lawn to get their meal.
Once the animals have started to destroy the lawn there are a few options you have in order to stop or reduce their interest in your lawn. The first one would be Coyote Urine. Now that may sound like an odd recommendation, but being a natural predator of these animals, it helps to keep them off your property. Coyote Urine can be purchased at most Hunting Stores throughout the Lower Mainland (or try this option at Canadian Tire). Next, for the crows. There are two tips we can offer to deter the birds and that would be pie plates and cayenne pepper. If you have any trees or shrubs on the property, try hanging some tin pie plates from the trees as the Crows really hate the shiny spinning metal. Birds are also not big fans of the capsaicin in chilli peppers (what makes them hot), so making a spray (or paste) in a spray bottle and spraying it on your lawn will help to keep the birds away.
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OK, let’s chat about prevention. The first line of defense for your lawn is a yearly application of Beneficial Nematodes. Now, there are millions of different species of Nematodes and it does take the right species to battle the European Chafer Beetle so it is always best to call the experts, like Nutri-Lawn Vancouver, and let us worry about the proper species, the proper application with properly calibrated machines. This application is important to schedule each and every year to ensure that the new generation of European Chafer Beetles are controlled as much as possible.
Of course, ensuring that your lawn is as healthy as possible is also very important. Just like a healthy body is able to defend against a cold, a lawn that is fertilized regularly, mowed and watered properly, aerated yearly and seeded will go a long way in protecting your lawn from unwanted invaders.
