Tag Archives: fertilizing the lawn

7 Weed Fighting Tips

Most of us are happy for an early spring, but one ugly truth remains that the early arrival of spring, just enough natural precipitation and hand watering gets the weeds taking off like mad. If you are in the midst of battling wild weeds, here are seven strategic tips that the ALCC wants you to know:

1. You must use fertilizer. Weeds thrive in lawns that are not fertilized.

2. Drying them out, will not help kill them. Don’t let drought-stressed weeds fool you. They may look on the brink of death, but they are not.

3. Know your weed before you pull it. Make sure you get all the root out too, or it will grow back.

4. Know your weed treatment’s limitations. Weed treatments range in what type of weeds they effect from broad leaf weeds to any plant period.

5. Make sure follow the product label. You’ll want to know what the product is good for and where it might do more harm than good.

6. Is there a breeze? Be aware that the treatment can drift even in a slight breeze.

7. The best strategy in the weed war is always the offense. The best success comes from being proactive first.

How do you usually treat weeds in your Colorado lawn and/or garden?

Photo via coloradoweedbusters.com

What your Lawn Needs from You

Did you know there was a science to lawn care. It’s not a complicated science, but still science nonetheless. Take a look at these four things researchers at Colorado State University (CSU) and experienced professionals had to say about lawn care.

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1. Water – Check your soil moisture by sticking a screwdriver into the soil. Hard and resistant soil needs water, so if this is the case, allow water to soak at least at a good 3 inches into the soil, when it starts to run off or puddle, then stop watering.

2. Fertilizer – Wait until May to fertilize your lawns. You can apply it early, but only for the reason of “weed and feed”, which helps to control germination in early-season weeds.

3. Aeration – Be strategic about aerating your dry lawn. To get optimum benefits of aerating, your soil needs to be moist.

4. Mowing – Knowing how low to mow is very important. Standard Kentucky bluegrass lawn wants to be about 3-4″ tall, by nature. Set your mower height at 3″ and don’t cut off more than 1/3 of the total height of the grass.

Are you having issues with your Denver or Boulder area lawn?

Source: alcc.com

What to Look for when Selecting Fertilizer

Photo: butlerswcd.org

When it comes to fertilizing your Colorado landscape, there are a few things you should be looking for. During the spring, your grass builds the roots which support the lawn all season long. The roots take in the fertilizer, which results in a beautifully lush lawn. If you are unsure about what to look for when selecting fertilizer, here are a few key things you will need to consider.

Look for a balanced label of nutrients and a slow-release formulation.
There are 3 key ingredients to look for on the bag: N- nitrogen, P- Phosphorous, K- potassium. Though all the nutrients work together, nitrogen is the most important.
A 4th key ingredient on the label is Fe- iron. It is important to note that fertilizer with iron that falls on to the sidewalk and gets wet will create permanent red rust stains on the concrete.
Look for the word “homogenous” on the label. This means is that the particles of fertilizer are all about the same size. This helps in spreading the fertilizer more evenly over the lawn in order to make it uniformly green.

Lifescape Associates can properly fertilize and maintain your lawn so you don’t have to worry about stains on your sidewalks and uneven green spots in your lawn. If you live in the Denver, Boulder or Vail area, give us a call at 303-831-8310.