Having a beautiful lawn is right at your fingertips. By following the advice listed below, you too can have a beautiful summer lawn.
- Stop Fertilizing – While fertilizer is important, people who over fertilize often see their yards experience more disease and insect vulnerability. Once in the fall months is best for fertilizing.
- Mowing – Taller grass is healthier, helping reduce weeds and keeping the soil cooler, which encourages healthy microbes. This also encourages bare grass to remain thick and spread on bare spots, helping promote deep root penetration. Setting the mower’s blade between three-and-a-half to four inches is optimal for drought resistance.
- Just Say No – Healthy grass is less likely to succumb to insect damage and disease. Avoiding insecticides, pesticides and fungicides is recommended, as this can harm the healthy microbes and earthworms that work together to aerate the soil.
- Don’t Overwater – Contrary to popular belief, grass does not require watering during dry spells. While the grass may turn brown, it is alive and can go dormant for several months. If someone wants a green lawn year-round, it is best to water infrequently but deeply.
- When to Fertilize – Never use high-nitrogen fertilizers, as these make lawns weak and more vulnerable to disease and drought. Fertilize in the fall – November for mid-latitudes and October for more northern latitudes.
- Why Fertilize in the Fall – Fertilizing in the fall helps the soil stay warmer, promoting deep root growth. By building these roots in the fall and winter, it means a much healthier lawn in the spring and summer.
- Fertilizer Shopping – Fertilizer offers a triangular balance of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. The highest level of nitrogen should never exceed 10-percent.
- Best Fertilizers – Low maintenance lawns usually have organic-type fertilizers. Chemical, non-organic salts are cheaper but are far more difficult on the soil and microbes.
- Lime – This is a common addition in eastern and midwestern areas in the U.S. The addition of lime once a year helps counteract the affects of environmental acid rain.
- Additional Tips:
- Sharpening mower blades often is recommended as dull blades can damage the grass.
- Instead of raking, consider running the lawn mower of leaves to help turn into soil compost.
- Push-type spreaders are best to apply lime and fertilizer. Always follow the directions.
- Mow when the grass is dry.
- Mulching mowers are excellent.
- Consider purchasing pellet lime, as it is significantly easier to apply.
Landscaping Supply of Utah offers a wide variety of landscaping supplies, including Utah bark, Utah landscaping rocks, Utah pavers and even water features Utah.
Landscape Supply of Utah offers a variety of Utah landscaping supplies and tips for do-it-yourself landscapers. While they offer supplies, ranging from Utah topsoil, Utah mulch, Utah pavers, Utah bark to Utah gravel, they also strive to help homeowners create stunning yards with ideal curb appeal.
Part of properly maintaining a yard involves spring landscaping tips. This helpful article focuses primarily on how homeowners can prepare their lawns for the upcoming season. Nothing is more eye-popping than a beautiful, well-manicure and bright green yard that beckons to have bare feet pitter patter across its welcoming surface.
- Before mowing the lawn, homeowners should first inspect their tools. Proper maintenance and repair is vital to having tools that keep a lawn looking trim, fit and healthy. Some excellent points to analyze:
- Is the lawnmower in good repair?
- Are the lawnmower’s blades sharp?
- Do weeding and pruning tools need to be sharpened?
- Is a dethatching rake in regulation rotation in the garage or shed?
- Is the outdoor sprinkler system in proper working order?
- Does the weedeater or edger require new string?
- Before planting grass, it’s important to first kill the weeds that have dug their dirty little roots into the lawn over the winter months. In fact, most pesticides work by preventing new growth, which is why it’s important to kill weeds first and then plant new grass seed later. Some people prefer to kill weeds by hand, taking a more environmentally friendly approach. Both the hand pulling or pesticide methods will ultimately leave bare spots so homeowners should plan on sowing new grass seed over the next several weeks.
- It’s all in the dirt! The best dirt leads to the most beautiful lawns. Old grass, dead plants and haphazard branches from winters’ storms may seem like good fertilizer for the lawn, but they aren’t. In fact, they simply kill the grass, as it makes it impossible for water to reach the roots. It also blocks fertilizers from penetrating down into the soil. Using a rake to thoroughly clean the yard and remove all debris is highly recommended before fertilizing a lawn. An aerator helps pull out plugs of grass, loosening the dirt. It allows valuable nutrients to penetrate deep into the soil, thus helping naturally fertilize the grass.
Other helpful tips include using peat moss on the lawn, as this ultimately requires less aerating, weeding and dethatching come spring months. While beautiful lawns don’t appear or grow overnight, diligent routines and old-fashioned hard work will ultimately pay off.
Additionally, Landscape Supply of Utah offers a superb collection of topsoils, including Topsoil Plus, Fertimulch Poultry Compost, Topsoil, Organic Compost and Playground Sand. Their experts can help determine which combinations of soils are right for individual landscaping requirements.
With spring just around the corner, many people are analyzing their yards and anticipating the latest, greatest landscaping features to add. However, there are some important tips for homeowners to follow before embarking on a new project. These include:
- Clean, Clean, Clean – Never underestimate the importance of spring-cleaning the yard. Removing dead foliage and tree branches helps maintain a finished look in garden beds and throughout the lawn area.
- Weed Patrol – This is one case where it’s OK to be a little obsessive compulsive about the yard. If homeowners let weeds get out of control, the results can rapidly turn into a complete disaster. Spring is an opportune time to weed existing flowerbeds, remove any weeds and spray for weeds. Once this time consuming task is completed, homeowners can expect to spend a mere 10 to 15 minutes several times a week to maintain this pristine, well-manicured look.
- Fertilizing – Once all weeds have been removed from flowerbeds and lawns, it’s important to fertilize flowers, grass and shrubs. This will help give plants a lively start for the spring season. There are a significant number of options available, including all organic options to traditional weed killers. Flowerbeds and shrubs should be treated differently from garden fertilizers, as no one wants to put harmful poisons near the foods they intend on digesting.
- Irrigation Systems – These can easily spring a leak in the winter months. If a homeowner has an in-ground sprinkler system, spring is the perfect time to check for leaks and make sure everything is in proper working order. Additionally, a homeowner should confirm that the pump and tank are both functional, especially since they have likely been dormant during the winter months. Wandering around the yard to check sprinkler heads is also highly recommended and any damaged heads should be fixed and/or repaired.
- Mulch – This one aesthetic tip can turn a yard from drab into fabulous in a matter of hours. Professional landscapers recommend that homeowners install an additional four inches of new mulch to help retain moisture and prevent weeds. Mulch should be even distributed around the edge of plants to help ensure that moisture will be directed towards the plant’s root ball and not simply runoff.
An additional tip for homeowners is to check with their home insurance company if they are planning on planting significant trees and/or shrubs. Some homeowners’ policies offer supplements that will help offer insurance replacement due to natural disasters, such as hurricanes, windstorms, hail or tornadoes.
Landscape Supply of Utah offers a number of landscaping supplies for do-it-yourself home gardeners, including Utah topsoil, Utah pavers, Utah mulch and Utah landscaping supplies. They also offer a complete nursery, boulders, flagstone, decorative gravel and cobble and feature elements, which includes fire and water.
As spring nears, you are likely considering new ideas for your garden. Maybe you are going for something different this year – establishing a new flowerbed, incorporating an herb garden, or simply changing the structure and appearance of your garden. There are endless ways you can jazz up your garden this spring, from adding a few changes here and there to constructing a new garden from scratch. Here are some points and items that may help you make a decision:
- Boulders. Boulders add instant aesthetic appeal especially when arranged harmoniously with the other elements of your garden. A boulder can add a sense of balance, create a point of focus, and add structure or physical support.
- Pavement and pathways. These not only provide areas for standing and walking but also add a decorative touch. Decorative flagstone, Utah gravel or river cobble can be used for this purpose with very attractive results.
- Form and surfacing. Utah gravel or river cobble can also give form to a garden bed, or serve as a simple, but beautiful option for certain surface areas of your garden. Stone walls and/or fencing can also create form while creating a uniform look and neat design.
- Decorative Utah landscaping rocks, when harmoniously designed can create a stunning effect.
- Soil. The quality of your soil is of optimal importance and affects the health and growth of your garden. Adding topsoil to your beds can help replenish overused soil and improve overall soil quality. Utah topsoil is also great for new plants and seeds, which need especially nutrient-rich soil. Also consider Utah bark mulch options to help prevent soil erosion and weeds while enriching the soil and retaining moisture.
- Ponds or fountains. Consider installing some element of water – water features add a wonderful ambience to any garden and the options in terms of style and design are endless.
- Extras. Extra items such as a birdhouse, wind chimes, or garden sculpture can add character to your garden, create charm, inspire a sense of well-being and (in the case of a birdhouse) make your garden a lovely place of activity.
These are just a few ideas – think about what you want to change this spring season and start envisioning your new garden!
Adding quality Salt Lake City topsoil should always be the first step of any landscape project in Utah. Whether you are landscaping a new home, or adding a new landscape to an older home, starting with quality top soil in Salt Lake City is imperative for success.
New homes that are built typically have no useable topsoil, because the building area will be scraped down to level the building site. Large, heavy machinery compacts the soil that is left causing the soil to be very hard, and moisture will just run off instead of seeping down into the remaining ground. Small bits of building debris, and leftover trash from the building site will also be scattered around. When the building is finished the soil around the newly constructed building will not be able to grow any type of quality landscape.
Older homes suffer from Utah topsoil erosion, because of years of rain runoff, snow melt, wind, and even over irrigation. Topsoil in Utah can erode after years of wear and tear, however exposed soil will erode much more quickly. Even if the topsoil has not eroded, after years of plant growth the macro and micro nutrients will have been depleted unless they are methodically replaced.
These are some of the reasons that whether you are planning a landscaping project for a new home, or an older home, you will need to add quality topsoil for successful results. However, the topsoil is only the first step, or the foundation of a successful landscaping project.
Topsoil does not generally carry all the macro and micro nutrients that a successful landscaping project requires. After the Utah topsoil is delivered and evenly distributed, you will want to add high quality Utah compost to provide the necessary nutrients for a healthy landscape.
Salt Lake City compost can be delivered by Landscape Supply of Utah, after they have delivered the topsoil for your landscaping project. Your plants will be very healthy when grown in compost at your Salt Lake City residence. Plants that are grown in quality compost have been proven to handle weather extremes better, and survive more adverse climate changes than plants that are grown in depleted or artificially fertilized soils.
Landscape Supply in Utah can deliver from 1 yard bags of compost to dump truck loads. Fertimulch poultry compost will grow very happy, healthy plants with a strong root system. People that prefer to use organic materials can also have organic compost delivered by Landscape Supply in Utah.
The professionals at Landscape Supply in Utah can help you plan your next landscape project. For the do it yourself project use the landscape material calculator that is available on the Landscape Supply of Utah website, which you can find at the LandscapingSuppliesUtah.com. These are just some of the reasons quality Salt Lake City topsoil with high grade compost added is the foundation for any successful landscape.
Why Mulch? That is one of the most common questions that people ask when planning a landscaping project. There are many reasons why people should use mulch in their Salt Lake City landscaping. A few of the reasons are listed below:
Mulch Protects from Erosion
Mulch Helps Keep Soil Heaving to a Minimum in the Spring
Mulch Conserves Moisture
Mulch Lowers Landscape Maintenance
Mulch Suppresses Weeds
Mulch Adds Additional Organic Matter
Mulch Prevents Soil Compaction
Mulch Provides a Cover of Uniform Color and Texture
These are just a few reasons to use Utah Mulch in their landscaping projects. There is a wide variety of different types of Salt Lake City bark that you can use in many different landscaping projects. Landscape Supply in Utah carries dark chocolate mulch, medium natural mulch, fine natural mulch, supreme bark mulch, black mulch, and even certified playground bark.
You can also use Utah bark to protect your trees from weed eater damage by placing a circle of landscape fabric around the trees and securing the landscape fabric to the ground. You can place a border of rocks, bricks, landscape timbers, or other types of borders around the outside of the circle of landscape fabric next to the grass, which will create a backstop for the weedeater cord to hit so the weedeater cord will not cause damage to your trees that can eventually kill them.
Place Utah bark of your choice over the landscape fabric a couple of inches deep, to make a beautiful maintenance free ring around your trees. After the grass dies underneath the landscape fabric you can pull back the Utah bark out of the way, and cut an x in the landscape fabric large enough to dig a hole to plant flowers in the soil. Once the flowers are planted, pull the landscape fabric back up next to the flowers so no soil is exposed, then spread the Salt Lake City bark evenly around the flowers so you cannot see any of the landscape fabric. This will create a beautiful landscape effect that can protect your trees from weedeater damage.
Contact Landscape Supply of Utah at 801-816-9104, and their experienced professionals can provide you with many different ways to use bark and mulch in your Salt Lake City landscaping projects.
No matter what the climate in your state, a fire pit out in the back yard makes a great focal point for your landscape design. On those cool or even cold winter evenings, you and your friends and family will enjoy relaxing around a blazing fire in the back yard while sipping cocoa or hot tea.
Many homeowners just don’t feel up to the challenge of building their own fire pit so they hire an SLC landscaping company to do the work for them. If you are handy with a few tools, it’s really not that difficult to design and build an outdoor fire pit.
Tip One
The first and most important tip is to choose the right location. You want a place that’s centrally located but it must be away from the house and it should not have any low hanging limbs over it. Just like placing a candle in an open space with no shelves or other obstacles over it, your fire pit needs room for the flames to flare up.
Tip Two
Lay out pavers in a circle the size of the pit you want to build. Dig out the area in that circle. Be sure to dig down at least 12 inches so you’ll have room for rocks or gravel in the bottom of the pit. The bottom of your fire pit can consist of fire bricks, regular rocks or any type of gravel. It should have a slight bowl shape.
Tip Three
When choosing the stones that will make up the walls of your fire pit, try to match or complement your home. If you have a light gray brick home, then try to find pavers or fire bricks in a color that blends well. Your fire pit should blend into its surroundings instead of sticking out like a sore thumb. You want it to look as if it were part of the original landscape design.
Tip Four
Be sure to build the walls of the pit at least 12 inches above the ground. This can keep embers from jumping out and burning one of your guests.
Tip Five
Use Unique Patterns & Designs. It’s really not necessary to lay the bricks or pavers in a uniform manner. Before mortaring everything together, try various patterns where bricks are standing up on end instead of lying down. Searching through home and garden magazines or websites may give you some ideas for a unique design.
Tip Six
Be sure your mortar mixture is according the recommendations for fire pit use. Mixing it too thin could result in the structure falling apart within a few years. Give the mortar plenty of time to cure and never do this type of job in rainy or damp weather.
A beautiful fire pit is just one of the things that can transform your yard from ordinary to superb. Each improvement you make to your home is a great investment too. Your home should be a cozy retreat from the stress and worry that often comes at us from every direction. With just a few changes, your home can become a real showplace both inside and out.
Landscape Supply of Utah sells decorative rock and gravel that is perfect for flower beds, walkways, fire pits, or any number of outdoor projects. They also offer boulders, flagstone and Utah pavers that can be used to create many interesting focal points for your yard.
For a wide range of affordable landscaping supplies Utah, Landscape Supply of Utah is the place to go. You’ll find an excellent selection of shrubs, perennials, grasses and trees there also. They even have gloves, tools and irrigation supplies so you don’t really need to go anywhere else.
It’s finally the time of year when everyone wants to be outdoors and there’s no better way to make that happen than start a garden. There are as many styles of garden to consider as there are reasons to plant a garden. Here are just a few that are popular at the moment along with some suggested landscaping supplies Utah.
1. Edible Garden
This is the most important type of garden, because it yields nutrient packed produce. For this reason, an edible garden is an effective use of the time and resources spent on it. Edible plants can be both perennials and annuals. Some examples:
- Apple Trees
- Salad Greens
- Lemon Grass
- Ornamental Peppers
2. Flower Garden
This is a versatile category of garden that can incorporate greenery as well as flowers. It’s best to plant native species for lower upkeep and longer lifespan. Creating a diverse garden can capture more attention. Some easier to care for plants:
- Bishop’s Weed
- Dahlias
- Lily of the Valley
- Cosmos
3. Water Garden
The sounds of water features Utah in a water garden are soothing to the senses. They can also dampen unwanted sounds like traffic. Some popular features of a water garden:
- Fountains
- Water Lily
- Miniature Waterfalls
- Koi Fish
4. Desert Garden
This type of garden is created specifically to survive the continuous dryness of the desert. To help plants retain moisture, cover the topsoil with a layer of mulch Salt Lake City. Some attributes desert gardens can be based around:
- Succulents
- Gravel
- Trees
- Patio
5. Energy Efficient Garden
This type of garden is a very efficient use of resources. The strategic planting of trees and other flora can provide shade to lower cooling costs in the summer and provide insulation to lower heating costs in the winter. Some aspects to an energy efficient garden:
- Native Plants
- Shade Trees
- Window Vines
- Drought Tolerant Plants
There are endless supplies to customize a landscaping project, from all natural Utah compost to decorative boulders. Whether the reason for landscaping is to raise a home’s value or just for something to do outdoors, these gardens are a great place to start.
