Summer has arrived and many homeowners are dreading the kind of work it takes to keep a lawn happy and healthy. Simply mowing every week isn’t enough and getting up to water at 5:00 am isn’t very fun either. Sometimes, the lawn care goes sideways and you need to call in the professionals. And even if your lawn is thriving, you may have reached the point where you just want your weekends back. Here’s a guide at finding a lawn service near me: how to achieve a luscious landscape this summer in Woodhaven and New Boston, MI.
Related: 6 SIGNS THAT IT'S TIME TO SEEK LAWN CARE NEAR ME IN THE TRENTON AND GROSSE ILE, MI, AREAS
A Site Visit and Testing
A site visit involves a careful analysis of your lawn, looking for spots of stunted growth, overgrowth, “fairy rings,” dead spots, diseased areas, and weeds. These will each present specific challenges. The lawn care company’s representative will also perform a soil test which will indicate the levels of acidity and nitrogen which are crucial to helping grass grow in a healthy way. This is the first critical step to restoring or maintaining a healthy lawn. Don’t work with a lawn care company that doesn’t test your soil: it’s one of the hallmarks of a true professional.
Getting Started
Dead or damaged areas need to be addressed immediately, so choose a lawn care company that is able to fit you into their schedule quickly, so that these areas can be repaired before the heat of summer takes an even greater toll. Depending on the damage, your lawn professionals may simply add the right fertilizer, or in severe cases, cut out the dead and damaged grass and replace it with new sod, which is the most efficient and effective way to restore a healthy lawn in troubled areas.
Aeration, and Dethatching
You may see some lawn care companies advertising a “mow and blow” program: mowing, and periodic leaf blowing to remove debris that can suffocate the lawn. Unfortunately, grass needs better care than that. Grass should be dethatched regularly; and compacted soil needs to be aerated. These more painstaking procedures are a great opportunity for a professional to spot emerging problems before they become widespread.
For example, “Fairy rings” (areas of fungal growth that appear as small circles of dead grass surrounded by small mushrooms) can easily be overlooked by a lawn care company that arrives with a crew and blasts through your lawn doing only the bare minimum to keep the grass short. A company that cares, will notice… and will set up a session to apply fungicide to resolve the issue and if necessary, replace the damaged lawn.
Crucially, your lawn care professionals will also keep a close eye on weeds - again, easily missed by the “mow and blow” guys. Weeds grow much faster than grass and take advantage of dry or disturbed soil. Removing existing weeds and preventing new weed growth will allow healthy grass to flourish.
Year-Round Maintenance
Work with a company that offers year-round lawn care. Lawn work should occur in planned seasonal stages. Throughout the summer and fall, your lawn care professionals will mow and fertilize as needed with a slow-releasing fertilizer that will help the grass keep nutrients during both the heat of summer and in winter. In late winter, a seasonal cleanup will remove any debris that could stunt growth or damage mowers. In spring, your lawn care professionals will do another thorough seasonal assessment and will apply a fast-acting fertilizer to encourage fast and robust growth. With the right scheduled seasonal maintenance and care, your lawn will be looking great year after year.
Related: LAWN CARE DOS AND DON'TS FOR HOMES IN THE BROWNSTOWN CHARTER TOWNSHIP, MI, AREA
