Resources

Proper Horticultural Practices

Horticulture is defined as the science and art of things that grow. At Great Lakes Lawn Care, we are invested in making your lawn look lush, beautiful, green, and healthy. But a lawn like that takes commitment to horticultural practices, year after year.

The following are some horticultural tips homeowners can employ to keep up with their lawncare programs and goals

• Thin or bare areas of the lawn should be reseeded in the spring or fall to help thicken the turf. This will help to reduce the number of weeds and insect infestations
• Lawns need at least 1½” – 2″ of water each and every week to stay healthy. Be sure you provide a good soaking to ensure water has reached the grass roots
• Water in the early morning hours before the heat of the day. Watering while it’s hot results in evaporation loss. Watering in the evening with chlorinated water may weaken the grass, leaving it susceptible to various diseases
• Cut the grass at a height of no less than 2 ½” -3 ½”
• Remove no more than 1/3 of the grass blade in one cutting
• Be sure that mower blades are sharpened each and every year to ensure a clean cut

Do you have questions about keeping your lawn healthy and beautiful? Great Lakes Lawn Care can help.

Seasonal Tips

Winter

• Get all of your lawn equipment maintenance and repair work done so you are ready for spring
• Many tool and small engine repair shops may offer winter discounts, so be sure to ask
• Winter is an excellent time to prune trees and shrubs because many plants have lost their leaves, making it easier to see their branches to decide which ones to remove
• Do not prune plants that bloom in the spring, as you could remove next spring’s flowers

Spring

• Spring is the best time of the year for planting as warm temperatures and regular rainfall makes conditions ideal for root establishment
• Be sure you wait until the threat of frost is over before planting
• Ensure that your irrigation or sprinkler system is in good working condition
• Get your lawn tools and equipment ready for the upcoming busy season
• Prune plants after the blooms fall off in the springtime

Summer

• In most parts of the country, summer means watering to avoid drought stress
• Learn about the specific needs for your lawn, trees, shrubs, and ornamental plants, or let Great Lakes Lawn Care look after it for you
• Avoid over-watering, which can be as detrimental as drought

Autumn

• Fall is also an excellent time to plant
• If you plant, be sure to water new plantings well if rainfall is scarce
• Take care to sufficiently water your lawn as it prepares for its dormancy
• Don’t forget to plant bulbs in the fall, including tulips, daffodils, and hyacinth, for a bright, beautiful spring display

Great Lakes Lawn Care Pro Tip

Any season is the right time to make sure your shrubs and trees are properly mulched in order to moderate temperatures, maintain soil moisture, deter weeds, and enhance the attractiveness of your yard. However, avoid mulching directly around the trunks of trees and ornamental plants, as this can lead to rot.

You never have to do it alone! No matter the season, Great Lakes Lawn Care is here to support you.

Controlling rampant weeds can be hard to do, especially if the weeds are the strong and resilient type such as dandelions. Once a particular weed has established itself on your lawn, removing it can be a long and difficult process.

When removing weeds, you are faced with a few treatment decisions:

• Treat aggressively with weed control
• Spray the entire lawn
• Try natural techniques for removal
• Pick them out by hand
• Spot spray

Unfortunately, proper and effective weed control doesn’t involve a single, universal solution. With the pesticide ban, effective treatment options may be limited. It requires experience and expertise to ensure the best approach is taken to ensure you win the battle for a healthy, lush, and beautiful lawn.

A FEW FACTS ABOUT WEEDS:

• Weed control cannot kill the seed of a weed, only weeds that are actively growing. It is not a preventative measure
• One weed control application is not sufficient for the entire growing season, as several crops of weeds will emerge over the course of the year
• For treating dandelions, applying weed control as soon as they appear would result in the more stubborn weeds persisting, as they don’t usually surface as early

A FEW FACTS ABOUT CRABGRASS:

• Crabgrass is a very fast-growing plant that grows low to the ground (as opposed to quack-grass or twitch-grass that grows higher than your regular grass) and starts to germinate in mid-May to early June.
• Crabgrass is very difficult to control and as of this moment we are unable to offer an application that will control it. It is recommended that you seed your full lawn in the spring and follow all our Horticultural practices so that your grass will help choke out the crabgrass before it germinates. Once crabgrass has germinated, we recommend pulling it out before you mow so that the crabgrass seeds will not spread.

Do want help reducing the weeds in your yard?

Pest Control

Insect problems are apt to develop when conditions are the most favourable. As the weather warms up, insect activity and populations will increase.

Your first and best line of defence against these pests is a call to Great Lakes Lawn Care . Why? Because a healthy lawn is your best approach against insect damage. The objective is to cultivate a thick, healthy lawn, because it’s not overly attractive to pests as either food or as a habitat. Healthy lawns are also better equipped to survive the inevitable foraging of insects.

A FEW FACTS ABOUT GRUBS

• The best time to treat for grubs is in August to October with an application of beneficial and natural nematodes
• White grubs feed on grass roots
• It is not effective to treat in the spring, because the grubs are too mature
• It is very common to have parts of the lawn dug up in the early spring and fall by skunks and raccoons in search of food. This does not necessarily indicate a grub problem, as they will eat dead and dying grubs as well as other organisms in the lawn.
• Our experienced technicians and managers can inspect a lawn to see if control measures are warranted and recommend treatment if required

A FEW FACTS ABOUT CHINCH BUGS

• Chinch bugs are black with white wings and measure less than 1/4 of an inch at maturity
• The wingless nymphs are red with one white band across their backs
• Chinch bugs feed on grass blades and suck the fluid out of the blade
• Chinch bugs are most active in the hot summer months and the first sign of an infested lawn is a yellow patch that gradually expands, turns brown and dies.
• Grasses that grow in full sun or are drought-stressed are most susceptible to infestation

A FEW FACTS ABOUT LEATHERJACKETS

• The damage to lawns is caused by the larval or grub stage
• Due to their leathery grey-brown skin, they are commonly referred to as Leatherjackets
• In its adult stage, the leatherjacket is known as the European Crane Fly and their large mosquito-like appearance is easy to identify and appears in late summer in large numbers
• The female Crane Fly can lay up to 280 shiny, black eggs in the grass or soil
• The eggs hatch within two weeks and the larvae begin feeding
• Between August and May they feed at the soil level on roots and seedlings almost continuously
• During the colder periods of the winter, they burrow deeper into the soil where they are better able to survive frost and flooding. As the temperatures moderate in spring, the leatherjackets will rise to just below the soil surface to resume feeding
• Lawn damage first appears as brown patches that soon become bare if infestations are heavy

Our experienced technicians and managers can inspect a lawn to see if control measures are warranted and recommend treatment if required.

If you think that you may have an insect or pest infestation, contact Great Lakes Lawn Care for a free lawn analysis and quote. We will diagnose the problem and make recommendations for next steps.

The Environment

At Great Lakes Lawn Care, we are committed to an environmentally-friendly approach to lawn care and maintenance. A thick and healthy lawn and landscaped property contributes to an overall healthy environment in a number of ways including:

• Maintains air quality by absorbing air pollutants like carbon dioxide, sulphur dioxide, and smog
• Generates life-giving oxygen through photosynthesis
• Traps dust particles that can cause respiratory illnesses and allergens
• Builds topsoil through decay of grass clippings and other roots and shoots
• Reduces the erosion of topsoil

A great lawn also has financial benefits. Protecting and enhancing your grass, trees, and shrubs may increase your property value. As well, healthy, mature trees shading your home may cut your energy costs significantly.

Grass growth helps regulate soil formation. In a healthy lawn, one grass plant is capable of producing over 380 miles of fibrous roots. When crowded together on a lawn, the collective grass roots are not nearly as extensive, but still act as an integrated root structure which holds soil in place. As roots die off and are replaced by new ones, the soil is enriched by numerous microorganisms that eventually form nutrient-rich humus. Many living organisms live around soil particles and roots.  In one pound of root fibres, there are over 93 billion organisms including bacteria, fungi, and protozoa. In 100 m² of grass and soil, there are 45 quadrillion microorganisms that weigh as much as 70 pounds. Reproduction of these organisms is very rapid, and their life span is very short. Soil organisms promote soil health through decomposition of plant matter. Moisture and organic matter are required for soils to be biologically active. Therefore, the health of soil and lawn grasses is very co-dependant.

At Great Lakes Lawn Care, we recognize the extensive environmental benefits your lawn provides. A healthy lawn and thick, luscious grass is one of the most important components of a healthy urban environment.

Investing in your lawn makes good sense – and it’s got for the environment, too! Great Lakes Lawn care is committed to beneficial environmental practices through lawn maintenance and lawncare programs.