Spring 2020
Spring has sprung in North Carolina! This year has ushered in a challenging and different season, that’s for sure. We are extremely grateful to be spending extra time with our family in this gorgeous, spring air! To help you better prepare for the season, we’ve put together some information about what to expect this spring. Remember, landscapes behave differently in different climates, so this post is specific to the Piedmont of North Carolina.
We know many of you are spending more time at home than is the norm, and some of you may be itching to get some backyard projects started! We would love to help come by and get your lawn in order, keeping a safe distance while we do of course!
Time Frame: February - June (season time frame is weather dependent)
Turf Applications
Our Spring applications contain everything your lawn needs for green-up and growing! Slow release fertilizer provides long lasting plant “food” for the grass, and is also environmentally friendly. Additionally, we apply crabgrass and other weed preventers, as well as weed controls to take care of existing weeds. If you happen to be here while we are treating the turf, it’s best to keep people and pets off the lawn for 4 hours, or until the grass is dry. We’ll put a notice out to remind you.
2020 Application Adjustments
If you have a new warm season lawn (sod) or if you did not have TLG Turfcare last Fall, you may be encountering some grassy weeds. When we encounter these while treating your lawn, we always spot spray them as a courtesy and part of our normal application. However, this year has been a little different than normal. The product we use in cooler temperatures is not available, as the components are manufactured in China. We have switched to an alternative, which does a great job as well! The active ingredients in this alternative product really need average temperatures to be above 70 degrees to be effective. As you know, the cooler temps we have been having are a little out of place for the Triangle this time of year. Unfortunately, this means that the grassy weeds continue to grow, mostly unaffected by the spot treatment. There is good news! Many of the grassy weeds that are typical in new construction areas (like wheat straw and rye grass) will die, with or without chemicals, as soon as the temps warm up. For other perennial grassy weeds, we will continue to work on those at each visit. If there is a problem large enough that would require a completely different treatment or separate application, we will let you know. In a nutshell, warm air will fix a lot of problems, so please be patient (we know this is difficult)!
Grassy weeds
Aeration
June and July are the perfect months to aerate your warm season lawn. Whether you have a brand new sod lawn from your builder, or your yard has been thriving for years, aeration (at least every other year) is absolutely a must for the health of your lawn. For more information, see our Services page.
Fire Ant Control
If you are starting to see mounds of dirt around your lawn, it’s because fire ants love the Spring! They emerge from their hibernation deep under ground and start busily working. Unfortunately, fire ants inflict extremely painful bites to both people and pets. Although we love creatures, this one in particular doesn't play nice. We offer a treatment that will keep your lawn fire ant free. Guaranteed.
Fun Fact: Most of North Carolina is in a quarantined area for fire ants. It is highly encouraged to treat these ants and stop the spread. Click here to learn more.
Grub Control
Spring and early summer are a great time for grub treatments. Once late summer and fall roll around, a population of grubs too large will quickly do serious damage to your turf. Never fear! We can pre-treat, or worst case scenario take care of the problem when they become an obvious nuisance!