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6 Ways to Winterize your Lawn and Brave the Cold

October 14, 2022/in Blog, Fruits & Vegetables - None, Lawn

Winter is coming, and while we’re bundling up in our cozy sweaters, lawns need to winterize too! As the temperature drops and the leaves fall, there are plenty of ways to protect and prepare your lawn for future growth. Not sure how to get started? Check out these six tips to help your lawn brave the cold weather! Your spring-gardening-self is sure to thank you for it.

1) Say Bye to Weeds

If you don’t take care of weeds before the winter, they’ll be competing for nutrients with your precious plants in the spring! Now is the time get them out using a spot spray, pulling them, or applying a preemergent. Espoma Organic Weed Preventer is a long-lasting solution for established lawns, but do not apply a preemergent if you plan on overseeding or have recently seeded.

2) Rake it Up

Breaking up thatch material is a great way to show your lawn some TLC, especially if you plan to overseed. Thatch—that organic layer of dead roots, shoots, and stems—can block water movement and create unhealthy grass discoloration. Dethatching your lawn with a dethatching rake allows for better oxygen circulation, deeper root growth, and insect prevention.

3) Pull out the Plugs

Speaking of foot traffic, if your lawn has dealt with a LOT this summer, it might benefit from core aeration. Core aeration machines evenly remove plugs or “cores” of soil from your lawn to relieve compaction, promote root growth, and improve the flow of water and oxygen. There are some manual alternatives to core aeration, but the machines are the most effective. After a busy summer, core aeration is a great way to bring fluffy and healthy green grass back to your lawn.

4) The Gift of Nutrients

Lawns get a lot of traffic in the summer, so it’s important to help your lawn recover and prepare for winter by feeding it nutrients! Make the most of the fallen leaves by mulching your leaf debris and use Espoma Organic’s Fall Winterizer fertilizer for easy, natural replenishment. Packed with potassium and slow-releasing nitrogen, our winterizer is formulated to promote spring greening and provide the long-lasting nutrition your lawn needs.

5) Get the Lime-ing Right

After the stress of summer, your soil pH may need some specific attention. Our Espoma Organic Lightning Lime is an ultra-fast, strong solution that allows your lawn to better intake water and nutrients. As long as the ground isn’t frozen, Lightning Lime is your lawn’s best friend and a great addition to your winterizing checklist.

6) Grass Goals

To overseed or not to overseed, that is the question! While your decision should depend on your lawn’s goals and state of being, overseeding can improve turf quality, help repair weak spots, and control weeds. It’s a great way to make the most of the last of these warm temperatures and get some growth started before winter settles in!

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Make this coming spring season easier and greener by winterizing your landscape! Have a winterizing tip of your own to share?

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Seven Steps for a Fantastic Fall Garden

September 20, 2022/in Blog, Fruits & Vegetables - None

Fall: it’s the season of transition. The weather is cooling down, the leaves are changing colors, and the air is getting crisp and breezy. While you might be thinking it’s time to pack up the gardening supplies until Spring, there’s no reason the growing has to stop yet! With this seasonal shift comes perfect weather for establishing new plants, great deals at garden stores, and a decrease in pests. In fact, this special season offers plenty of opportunities for preserving, planting, and preparing. Make the most of this time with these seven tips, and get back in the garden!

1. Don’t Forget Your Veggies

Don’t let the cooler weather fool you, there’s still time for growth. Broccoli, carrots, lettuce, and kale… fall is the season to plant these beloved vegetables. If your vegetable garden needs a boost, use our famous Organic Garden-tone or Grow!

2. Success with Succession

Maximize your harvest all throughout fall with succession planting. Harvest one crop, then replant one with a shorter maturity date, plant companion crops, stagger your seeding so harvest arrives in intervals, or plant a crop with varying maturity dates (broccoli, for example). Try out one of these methods and keep growing with our Garden-tone!

3. Bring in the Big Guys

Looking for a bigger way to upgrade your garden this fall? Plant trees and shrubs while the soil is still warm, use our Organic Tree-tone to nurture their development, and give them a chance to lay roots before winter settles in. Just be sure to keep them well-watered and protect those roots with mulch!

4. Free Fertilizer

Have you tried using those fall leaves to your advantage? Thick piles of leaves can be a lot for your lawn to tolerate, but mowing over what’s fallen creates smaller pieces that break down in the soil easier. Time to tackle that leaf pile and get your lawn some natural nutrients!

5. Allium On the Way

Patience is a virtue… and so is planting ahead! Give your garlic, onions, and shallots a jump-start by planting them after the fall equinox. With full sun, rich soil, and crisp fall weather, your allium vegetables have plenty of time to get rooted before weathering the frost. Check out this article here for more tips on allium planting!

6. Take Cover

Mustard, peas, and clover are great cover crops to plant in the fall. Not only do cover crops prevent erosion, they can create better, richer soil for gardening. Let them grow throughout the fall and winter, then turn into the soil in the spring to enjoy the nutritious benefits of your labor.

7. Winterize, Winterize, Winterize

Think of it as a gift to your future self. Keep up with weeding, winterize your watering system, and give your lawn a much-needed refresh with our Organic Fall Winterizer. These little chores make all the difference when getting your garden through upcoming winter frosts.

There’s so much in store this season, and with these tips, you can fall in love with fall gardening. Have your own must-do or want to share a photo of autumn in action?

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Kid & Pet Friendly Lawns

July 8, 2021/in Gardening Projects

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Your lawn may be doing more harm than good.

The quest for greener grass on your side of the fence could be harming the environment. By EPA estimates, Americans apply 90 million pounds of pesticides to their lawn and gardens every year, creating a potential hazard for adults, children and pets. In addition, synthetic fertilizers can burn your lawn and leach away into nearby waterways. And odds are your lawn products contain both of these ingredients.

Why go organic?

Organic lawn care is a great way to a safe and healthy lawn. A healthy lawn is the best defense against weeds, insects and diseases. For a healthy lawn, you need healthy soil, alive with earthworms and loaded with beneficial microbes. Healthy soils let grass roots grow deep, making them more resistant to drought and stress. To have a safe & healthy soil, you need to avoid using pesticides and synthetic fertilizers and follow the tips at right.

4 Tips for a Chemical Free Lawn

1. Go on an organic diet. Choose an organic lawn program like the new one from Espoma. Benefits include:

No pesticides or synthetic ingredients
Product lasts 2.5x longer than typical lawn foods
Won’t burn your lawn or leach away
Each bag covers 5,000 sq. ft.
Safe to use around kids & pets

2. Water When the Rooster Crows

Water early in the morning to avoid evaporation loss.
Start watering at the first signs of stress in the Spring.
Water deeper & less frequently in the Spring to encourage deeper rooting.
During the summer, watering should be lighter & more frequent.

4. Sweeten the Soil (if necessary)

Lawns require a pH range of 6 – 7 to utilize nutrients.
If the pH is too low (acidic), sweeten it with lime.
If the pH is too high (alkaline), acidify it with sulfur.
You can check the pH with a simple home test kit.

How to Mow Stripes in your Lawn

May 17, 2018/in Lawn

Have you ever admired the uniform stripes on the field at a baseball game? It’ll take some practice, but with some work you can create your own striped lawn.

The striped effect is achieved when light reflects off of the blades of grass bent in different directions, creating the dark and light patterns. It’s the same effect you’ll notice after running your hand back and forth across a suede jacket or a thick carpet. This is often the result of grass being bent down by the pressure applied by rollers attached to the back of a lawn mower. The pros use reel mowers with multiple rollers.

Mowing stripes into your lawn actually benefits your yard and encourages healthy grass growth. Mowing too often in the same direction can cause taller grass to bend over, shielding other blades from the sun and killing you lawn over time. Not to mention, you could create ugly tire marks from repeatedly mowing in the same pattern.

To get a landscape design worthy of its own baseball league, you’ll need to start with proper care. Green lawns start with proper care. Always use an organic lawn fertilizer or all season lawn food. Harsher, chemical lawn products can be eaten, ingested or passed on to your dog. This exposure has been linked with a higher risk of canine cancer.

Whether you’re mowing stripes or not, a good cut begins with a sharp mower blade. A dull mower blade tears grass and can cause brown spots. So, sharpen your mower blades every fall and spring. Keep the mower blades high (3” or higher) to encourage healthy roots. If your mower blades are too low, you’re scalping the lawn.

Not all grass types will stripe equally. Choose cool-season grasses, such as fescue, for the best stripes.

5 Steps to a Striped Lawn

1. Get the right materials. Check with your local garden center to see if they sell striping kits or purchase one online. Or, use brooms and squeegees to achieve the stripe effect you desire.

2. Plan your pattern. With a little skill and a big vision, you can put your mower to work. The first time you do this, sketch a pattern of what you want your yard to look like to help you visualize it.

3. Keep your mower straight. It’ll help you to mow if you start parallel to a sidewalk to begin with. To continue mowing in a straight pattern, keep your eyes looking 10 feet in front of you while you mow.

4. Make clean turns. At the end of a row, make a Y-shaped turn to reduce the chance of damaging your lawn. Then mow in the opposite direction alongside your previous pass.

5. Take it to the next level. Make your stripes look professional with a lawn roller. Using the lawn roller, roll it across the grass in the same direction you previously mowed.

TIP: Create a checkerboard by mowing your lawn a second time at a 90 degree angle.

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Grass is always Greener: Different Types of Grass You Should Consider

April 18, 2017/in Lawn

Guest Post by Brian Rees of Bradley Mowers

Do you ever drive through a neighborhood and check out all the fellow homeowner’s grass? If a lawn is the perfect color and neatly manicured, you can’t help but take notice.

The Importance of Picking the Right Grass
Grass is divided into three types, cool season, warm season and transitional. The success of your lawn will depend on numerous things. The most important thing is planting the right grass for your area or zone. Those that live in the north need cool season grasses, while those that live in the south need warm season varieties. Those that live in the middle can use a transitional grass. Randomly picking a grass based on its color and promises is not wise. You may be purchasing grass that won’t grow in your climate.

Cool Season Grasses
Cool season grasses are for areas that have cold winters and hot summers. They may experience a great deal of rain. These grasses can go for an extended period of time during drought periods. They do this by going dormant. These grasses include Kentucky Bluegrass, Rough Bluegrass, Perennial and Annual Ryegrass, Bentgrass and Red Fescue.

Transition Zone Grasses
Between the northern and southern turf regions, there is an area known as the “transition zone.” This area is in the lower elevations of North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, Kentucky, Missouri, Ohio, Kansas, and Arkansas. In these zones, neither the warm and cool grasses will be successful.

Keep in mind that some of the cool season areas, the Kentucky bluegrass will do well best. In Tennessee, North Carolina, Alabama, and Georgia, the Tall Fescue variety work well. Lower elevations do better with warm season grasses. For those that live in the transition zone, they should use Zoysiagrass, Tall Fescue, Perennial Ryegrass, Thermal Blue, and Kentucky Bluegrass.

Warm Season Grasses
Those that live in the south find that growing and maintaining a lawn is a bit more involved than what it is for northern homeowners. Grass selection is much trickier. There are many turfs that will do well when started from plugs or sod, but they don’t do well started from seed. The key element is the soil.

A low maintenance yard in this region must have good soil. When cold temperatures arrive, almost all warm season grasses will lose their color and turn brown. To prevent having a brown yard, some southerners will add Rye-grass to their existing laws to help keep a green hue during the winter. The technical term for this is called “winter overseeding.” Warm season grass varieties include St. Augustine Grass, Zoysiagrass, Centipede, Carpet Grass, Buffalo Grass, Bermuda Grass, and Bahia.

Lawn Care
Establishing new lawns from seed or sod doesn’t have to be difficult. For the lawn to take root, you need to make sure it has plenty of water. This is especially true in warmer climates where the sun will suck the moisture away.

The new lawn should be watered frequently until it has been cut at least two times. The ideal cutting height for a new lawn is roughly to about 3 inches tall. After those initial growing phases, regular water methods can resume.

Though it takes a little bit of work at first, having a gorgeous lawn isn’t going to happen overnight. It takes patience, dedication, and knowing the right products to help achieve your desired result.

AUTHOR BIO:

Brian Rees is a media relations representative for Bradley Mowers. In his spare time, he enjoys writing, music, and spending time outside.

The April Garden Checklist

April 6, 2017/in Blog, Spring Gardening

Spring is here! Shed off those winter blues and head outdoors to restore your lawn and garden. The days are getting longer and your soil is beginning to wake up. April is a great time to get out in your yard and begin again.

Wondering where to start? We’ve got 6 tasks you can accomplish this month in your own yard.

April Garden Checklist:

1. Start tomato seeds.

The best way to get a head start on growing tomatoes is to start seeds indoors 4-6 weeks before the last spring frost date in your region. See our Guide to Growing Tomatoes. Start your seeds with Espoma Organic Seed Starter and feed your tomatoes with Espoma Organic Tomato-tone.

2. Get planting.

Hydrangeas embody everything we love about gardening. They have billowy textures, come in bright colors, and are easy to care for. Plant some this month for the best blooms. Feed your Hydrangeas with Espoma Organic Holly-tone fertilizer.

3. Grow berries.

Did you know blackberries have almost as many antioxidants as blueberries? And raspberries make the perfect addition to jam, cobblers, and pies. Berries are just so delicious, scrumptious, and oh-so-juicy. Plus, many berries are easy to grow and care for. Find out when, where, and how to plant your favorite berries. Feed your berry-producing plants with Espoma Organic Berry-tone fertilizer.

4. Revitalize lawns.

Perform a soil test to find out what your lawn needs, then amend and choose organic. Organic lawns need less watering, fertilizing, and mowing all summer long. Yes — that means you get to spend more time enjoying your beautiful lawn and less time caring for it! Plus, as natural lawn foods break down, your soil becomes stronger on its own and needs less help. Feed your lawn with Espoma Organic All Season Lawn Food.

5. Plant blooms.

Azaleas and Rhododendrons are some of the most popular flowering shrubs. Blooming from late spring to early summer, these shrubs thrive in almost any garden. Plus, they come in virtually every color of the rainbow — from bold pinks, purples, and reds to soft, muted yellows and whites. Make sure you’re adding these bloomers to your garden this year. Feer your beautiful Azaleas and Rhododendrons with Espoma Organic Azalea-tone fertilizer.

6. Feed roses.

Your roses are waking up now, they’ve made it through a long winter and they are starving! Choose Espoma’s organic Rose-tone. It includes more nutrients than any other rose food. Most rose fertilizers contain three nutrients — nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium (N-P-K). Here’s how to feed with Rose-tone.