Skip to main content
Over 50 5-Star Reviews
Mon – Fri: 7:30am – 4:30pm

How Should I Be Mowing in the Spring?

It’s springtime once again, and with spring, comes lawn work to keep your yard looking beautiful. Likely, you’ll want to begin with mowing, so you can keep your lawn healthy, lush, and disease-free. However, you’ll only be able to do this if you mow your yard at the proper height. What height should you mow your lawn at? It ultimately comes down to the type of grass you’re growing, and what your lawn’s condition is. For each one, you’ll obviously want to use a sharp mower blade, since a dull blade weakens the health of your grass. The only way to keep your lawn looking its best is to understand the importance of proper mowing in the spring.

Mowing Warm Season Grass

Mowing warm season grass will require a different approach than mowing cold season grass. You will need to understand the differences in mowing each of these to ensure your lawn will be healthy in the spring.

Mowing warm season grasses requires you to mow regularly and often. You want to make sure that, at most, you remove 1/3 of the length of the grass.

The following are some specific guidelines for certain kinds of grass:

Bermuda Grass

Bermuda grass needs to stay between a length of 3/4ths of an inch and 1½ inches. While in most cases you want to avoid scalping your lawn, Bermuda grass is the exception to this rule. To do this, you’ll need to put your lawnmower on its lowest setting. If you follow these guidelines for mowing Bermuda grass, then you will have an easier time maintaining its appropriate height, and it will become green faster.

Zoysia Grass

Maintaining Zoysia is similar to maintaining Bermuda. You’ll want to keep it between the same lengths you do for Bermuda grass, but bear in mind that certain varieties of Zoysia will bill taller and wider. In this case, you will not have to cut it as short. Zoysia tends to grow in dense and is particularly vulnerable to fungus, though, so make sure your mower blade is sharp.

St. Augustine Grass

In springtime and summertime, keep this kind of grass between two and three inches high.

Understandably, keeping up with the grass can be difficult with a busy schedule. If you don’t have time to mow your lawn, contact a Tahlequah weed & Fertilization company.

Mowing Cool Season Grass

Starting in spring, you need to keep your Fescue grass no shorter than 3 inches, but once the weather warms up you need to keep it shorter than 3 inches. Otherwise you will risk the grass developing diseases or suffering from heat stress. Unless new grass has recently been laid out, you should try mowing weekly. Also, be sure not to remove too much from the grass blade when mowing. Take no more than 1/3 of the blade off at once, or it’s energy reserves will deplete faster.

If you have any questions or concerns involving your grass, contact a Tahlequah lawn company near you for more information.

Mosquito Control for Your Yard

Mosquito bites are an irritation we all have to put up with during the summer. These pests can be more than just annoying, they can potentially be vectors for disease. The West Nile Virus and, more recently, the Zika Virus are serious diseases, and put you, your loved ones, and your pets at risk. A wet springtime leads to the right conditions in warm weather that mosquitos need to flourish. You need to control the mosquitoes so they don’t infest your yard.

When Do Mosquitoes Appear?

Winter doesn’t kill mosquitoes. Instead, they lay eggs in preparation for spring and go into hibernation. Generally, once the weather warms up to over 50 degrees Fahrenheit mosquitoes come out of hibernation. Here in Oklahoma, it means they can even begin appearing in February. Once the mosquitoes arrive, however, you need to develop a strategy for removing them as soon as you can.

Easy Ways to Repel Mosquitoes

Standing water attracts mosquitoes, so your first order of business should be to eliminate as much standing water on your property as you can. Otherwise, they will have the perfect breeding ground in your yard, even if there is only a minuscule amount of liquid. Check any empty flowerpots, buckets, and any other debris which can hold water, and remove the water from them. Unclog your gutters, too. If you use outdoor lights, try using bulbs which emit yellow light instead of white light. Yellow light attracts fewer mosquitoes since they cannot see it very well. Use bug spray and mosquito repellents if possible whenever you are outdoors. Finally, if all else fails, contact a Tahlequah lawn care company for assistance.

Mosquito Reproduction Rate is Fast – Act Quickly

The warmer the weather becomes, the more the mosquitoes will reproduce. They breed and multiply quickly, and any ones which are left unchecked will lay eggs in preparation of the following year. If you only start taking measures once they begin bothering you, then you’re going to have to fight an uphill battle against them. You’ll want to not put it off, or you might need to take more drastic measures when they begin to appear.

Controlling Mosquitoes Early is a Good Idea

Getting rid of mosquitoes earlier rather than later will benefit you greatly. It will save you money, time, and hassle dealing with them as the summer progresses, and you can enjoy your lawn in peace. Lowering their population early and removing their breeding grounds before they can reach them, the mosquitoes will move on to more ideal grounds. In addition, driving them away earlier will mean fewer eggs, which means fewer mosquitoes the following year.

Think About Your Mosquito Control Strategy

While you won’t be able to prevent every mosquito from getting into your yard, if you have a good strategy prepared, it can make a massive difference. Even doing something as simple as flipping over empty containers so they won’t catch water, or wearing clothes with light colors can help.

If you need help controlling pests in your yard, contact a Tulsa lawn service today.

Oklahoma Ticks

Deer Ticks (also known as “Blacklegged”) are a common issue all across the United States, and Oklahoma is no exception. These blood-sucking pests are guilty of causing itching, irritating bites, as well as nasty infections like Lyme disease (AKA Lyme borreliosis) and Anaplasmosis.

If you want to keep your family safe, you need to know about what causes ticks to come out, and the dangers they pose for you and your family.

What Brings Ticks Out?

The process which brings ticks out begins with oak trees. Oaks produce acorns, which in turn attract mice. When oak trees produce acorns in abundance, the mice have a larger food source, which usually causes a population increase during the next summer. Ticks use these mice as hosts for food, and have a population boom of their own the following year. Unfortunately, the mice don’t remove the ticks, since the ticks don’t cause the mice to become sick. In addition, the mice are themselves vectors for disease, which infects the ticks when they feed off the mice, turning the ticks into disease carriers. Mice are capable of carrying 100 ticks, and studies show mice can infect as many as 95% of the them.

Dangers of Ticks and What They Mean for You and Your Family

The heat and humidity of Oklahoma summers make Oklahoma a hot spot for ticks, and the disease they spread. Within the past fifty years, the types of disease ticks carry have been growing in number. There’s more than just Lyme disease to worry about these days. One such new one here in the Midwest is called Southern tick-associated rash illness, sometimes called Masters’ disease or STARI. With the dangers of ticks growing year by year, it’s important to contact a Tahlequah lawn service near you to help you remove ticks from your property. Find: Texas Gunite Installer>

 

Is Lyme Disease a Serious Health Concern?

With every passing year, the tick population keeps rising, leading to more and more cases of Lyme disease. In fact, the EPA estimates since 1991, the number of cases has doubled. Even worse, there’s no sign of those numbers decreasing. Fortunately, in Oklahoma, Lyme disease cases are rarer than other parts of the country, but you certainly don’t want to risk contracting it. If you, a pet, or a loved one contracts Lyme disease, you can experience symptoms such as arthritis, tiredness, aching joints, migraines, fever, and even neurological complications. There is no known vaccine for Lyme disease in existence.

What Diseases Are Common to Oklahoma?

One of the more common of Oklahoma tick borne disease is Rocky Mountain spotted fever, or blue disease, transmitted by the American dog tick. While treatable, Rocky Mountain spotted fever has the potential to be lethal if not caught early enough. Some of the symptoms include muscle aches, vomiting, crusted skin, high fever, confusion, headaches, and nausea.

If you want to stay safe from ticks this summer, then contact a Tahlequah yard company, and see if they have a tick treatment available.

Working in the Heat: How to Stay Safe

Whether you are working a lawn mowing business, or just taking care of necessary yard work around the house, thousands of Oklahomans work outdoors during the week. As every Tahlequah lawn worker can attest to, Oklahoma’s summer heat is brutal. It’s more than physically taxing, though; it’s very dangerous. If you aren’t careful, you might end up needing a trip to the hospital. The question is, how do you stay safe working in the heat?

Working During the Summer – Safety Factors

Your personal safety while working heat is highly affected by two factors: what state your health is in and what kind of activity is being performed. Overweight or obese people tend to have a harder time in hot weather, and even collapse easier than people who weigh less. Illness, too can affect your performance. All of this depends, though, on what lawn work you’re doing. While problems can still easily arise from less strenuous activity, more physically intensive ultimately will take a much harder toll on your body in extreme heat. If you don’t think you’re in good condition to perform strenuous lawn maintenance, contact a Tahlequah lawn company to take care of it.

Even in extreme heat, however, your body will fight to keep you at a normal temperature of 98.6 degrees. It becomes far more difficult for your body to cool itself off, however, when the outdoor temperature is hotter than optimal body temperature. Sweating releases heat and lowers temperature, but only with low humidity. Otherwise, your sweat can’t evaporate to cool you down. Your body needs liquid to sweat, and if you lose more water than you drink, you become dehydrated.

Signs of Dehydration

  • Dry mouth
  • Lack of tears
  • Exhaustion
  • Drowsiness
  • Excessive thirst
  • Dark urine
  • Little urine output
  • No urine output
  • Headache
  • Confusion
  • Lightheadedness
  • Dizziness

How Do I Stay Safe Working in Extreme Heat?

Stay hydrated. Sometimes the simplest advice is the best. Drink water before you begin working, keep a water supply available during your lawn work, and be sure to rehydrate after you’re finished. The general rule of thumb is to drink four cups of water during hour you work. Your body requires water to even function. Remember, use water, and avoid alcohol or soft drinks. When hungry, choose hydrating foods like watermelon, cucumbers, carrots, or citrus fruits. In addition to hydration, wear loose clothing so your sweat evaporates easier. Find: Tires Wichita>

Take breaks in the shade occasionally, so you can cool down before returning to your work. If you are unable to take these precautions, then don’t risk it. Wait for a more temperate day, because it isn’t worth your health or life to do lawn work.

Physical labor in the heat of an Oklahoma summer is hard work. If you follow this advice and watch for signs of dehydration, then you’ll be all right working in the heat.

If you want to remain safe this summer and keep out of the heat, contact a Tahlequah lawn service near you.

How to Not Scalp Grass

Mowing the lawn is essential to keeping your lawn healthy and free of disease and weeds. In addition, you want to have your grass at a reasonable level so it can receive its needed nutrients and sunlight. At some point, however, all of us have scalped our grass (cut it too low). While it might not seem like a big deal at the time, it can cause some major problems for your yard. In fact, it can keep the grass from receiving its vital nutrients, allow weeds a chance to grow, or even kill your grass.

The Problem with Mowing Grass Too Low

Grass requires the sun to make its food with photosynthesis. Whenever you mow your lawn too short, you are reducing the energy storage capabilities of the blades of grass. This keeps it from creating the energy it needs, and chokes it. If you are having trouble determining if you’ve scalped your yard, look at your grass and see if the stem is exposed. If you can see the stem (which will look brown) then you are scalping your lawn. Try keeping at least an inch on your warm-weather grass, and if you need to mow during cooler weather, keep 2.5 inches. Another general rule of thumb is to avoid regularly mowing on the lowest setting.

What Makes Scalping Grass Worse?

Dull mower blades only make scalping worse, but how can you tell if your blades are dull? After you finish mowing, examine your grass and see how it was cut. Frayed grass is a sign your lawn mower blade is dull. Use a blade sharpener to give the blade back its proper edge. If you can, don’t cut too short during summer, since the summer heat makes recovery difficult for the grass.

How to Mow Lawns Better

Remember, it’s better to have grass that’s slightly too tall than for it to be too short and dying. In addition, don’t bag your grass clippings, because leaving them on the ground allows them to add nutrients back into your lawn’s soil. This is known as grass-cycling. If you use this technique, however, try to mow when the grass is dry, since wet clippings will bunch together and keep your grass from getting any sunlight. Also, try overlapping your mowing path. Two inches should do the trick, and it keeps your lawn evenly and consistently cut.

How to Restore a Scalped Lawn

If you scalp your lawn, don’t worry. Just allow the grass to return to the height it was before, and always take off less than 1/3 of an inch each time you cut it. Be sure to deeply water the patch once per week. Maybe large swaths of your lawn are scalped and dead. If it is, then contact a lawn company to restore it. We can fertilize your grass to return it to its proper condition.

Additionally, if you’re having trouble with your mower, don’t own one, or are unable to mow, contact a Pro lawn service near you.

Drought Stress vs. Drought Damage

Anyone who has lived in Oklahoma for a significant amount of time knows that Oklahoma can have intense, brutal heat during summer. During this time, you’ve probably seen their lawn suffering from drought damage and stress. Most of us comfort ourselves with the thought that when it begins raining again, the lawn will look just like it did before. Unfortunately, drought damage can cause lasting problems for your lawn.

What is Drought Stress and Drought Damage?

To preserve your lawn, it’s important to know the difference between drought stress and drought damage.

Drought Stress

Drought stress is the result of your grass losing water faster than it can absorb it, interfering with its processes. Your grass continues to grow, even though it lacks the rainfall it needs to survive, leading it to enter a dormant state to lower its water usage. There are several elemental factors which drastically increase the rate of moisture loss in the grass. If the soil’s moisture is low, the wind speed is high, and there’s little humidity, the plant will only lose more water. During this time, you will notice the grass beginning to thin, wilt, and take on a blue-green appearance.

Drought Damage

Drought damage is the consequence of your yard suffering from drought stress. In addition to thinning grass, the grass will not green up as fast in during spring. In addition, some of your grass might not return from dormancy. Some of it will just die, and you’ll be stuck with bare patches in your yard. In some cases, the damaged grass won’t recover, and you’ll need to replant it.

How to Protect Your Lawn from Drought

When a drought hits, many people decide to let their grass go dormant, and hope it returns later when rain arrives. Since, however, some damaged areas cannot be saved by rain and temperate weather, you need to take preventative measures. The following are a few ways you can ensure your lawn stays green during a drought.

Water Your Lawn

One day every week you need to water your lawn, preferably between 5 and 10 in the morning. Make sure you give your lawn around 1.5 inches of water. Test using a 6-inch screwdriver, and see if you can push the entire shaft into the yard. If it doesn’t go all the way into the ground, then you need to use more water on your lawn.

Mowing Grass Properly

This step is simple. Avoid scalping your lawn, and avoid mowing when the grass goes dormant.

Aerate Your Lawn

Aeration is a process to help your lawn get more air, which will stimulate grass growth. If you grass suffers drought damage, core aeration should help. Contact a lawn company for more information, or to hire someone for aeration.

Fertilize Your Grass

Fertilization helps improve the nutrient levels of your grass. If you grass goes dormant during summer, wait until the end of September and fertilize your grass to help it recover.

If your lawn suffers from drought damage, contact a Pro lawn service near you for aeration services, lawn fertilization services, and over-seeding services.

Common Lawn Watering Mistakes

You’ve probably heard you need to water your lawn to keep it alive, especially during the summer months. Lawn watering consistently strengthens your grass, and protect your lawn from more than just drought. You’ll even protect it from disease and weeds. However, it is easy to make mistakes when watering which will cause damage to your lawn. There are factors you must consider when watering the lawn, from the soil you use to the weather. These are common watering mistakes you need to avoid.

Not Watering Your Lawn in the Morning

Make sure to water between 5 and 10 in the morning, so the water doesn’t evaporate due to the sunlight and wind. Above all else, don’t water in the evening, otherwise lawn fungus might grow in your yard. Find: Tahlequag Lawn Experts>

Under-watering Grass

It’s tempting to let the rain take care of watering your lawn for you, but, unfortunately, the rain cannot be relied upon to consistently water your grass. Trying this results in under-watering, which causes harm to your grass, making it unable to withstand droughts. You need to ensure your lawn receives regular irrigation if you want it to survive.

Over-watering Grass

While it’s obvious that not watering enough can cause damage to your grass, over-watering presents just as much of a problem. Watering too much makes the grass root systems shallow, making it easier for heat stress to harm your lawn. Furthermore, it will be difficult for your grass to recover from a drought. Waterlogging the lawn is a risk, too, which can spread disease in your grass and cause your lawn to look swampy. Disease might not even have a chance to kill your grass if you water too much. If you over-watered your lawn and your grass looks dead, that’s because the grass drowned. Find: Pest Control Expert>

Watering Your Grass and Shrubs with the Same Amount of Water

Avoid watering grass and shrubs equally. Shrubs have larger root systems than your lawn grass does, so it will not require as much water. Similarly to over-watered grass, you can drown the shrub with too much water.

Misusing Lawn Sprinkler Heads

You should avoid using your sprinklers when it’s raining, or not long after it’s rained. If your area receives decent rainfall, then your lawn will not need to be watered for several days. Your sprinklers watering the grass during rainfall is too much watering, and can damage the grass.

Also, make sure all of your lawn is receiving an equal amount of water from your sprinklers. You don’t want to have only lush in some parts of your lawn and brown, dead grass in others. Keep in mind, too, that shaded spots don’t need as much water as sunny areas. Finally, make sure your sprinklers aren’t watering the street, either. It’s easy for this to happen if the sprinkler head isn’t adjusted properly, and results in wasted water.

Using Different Sprinkler Heads for the Same Area

Different sprinklers require different irrigation heads, and you need to make sure that you aren’t using different heads within the same hydro-zone. Some head, like rotor heads, provide a less water than a spray head, and if you used both in the same area, it would lead to inconsistent watering.

For other lawn care services, contact a lawn care company near you.

Spring Lawn Care Tips

Snow melts. The sun shines from behind the clouds, and every now and again, you hear the sound of thunder in the distance. Birds sing. Winter is over, and spring is finally here. Now that the weather is warm again in Oklahoma (for the most part), it’s time to spend for outdoor activities for some. For others, now is the time for lawn care.
Snow melts. The sun shines from behind the clouds, and every now and again, you hear the sound of thunder in the distance. Birds sing. Winter is over, and the time for Spring lawn care is finally here. Now that the weather is warm again in Oklahoma (for the most part), it’s time to spend for outdoor activities for some. For others, now is the time for lawn care.
If you want your lawn to be healthy this spring and ready for the brutal summer, you’ll need to be prepared. In this article, we’ll look at a few spring lawn care tips, including:
Let’s see what you can do for your lawn this spring.

Sharpen the Yard Tools

One of the first things you need to do to prepare for Spring lawn care is sharpen your tools. While you’re doing “spring cleaning” in the garage, you should get each of your tools out and sharpen them. Sharpen the lawnmower blades, the gardening tools, the hedge trimmers. To start your lawn care off right, you’ll need your tools to be in the best condition possible.

Clean Lawn Debris Carefully

After winter, your lawn will be littered in debris, and it’s tempting to go outside and clean it all up immediately. Unfortunately, you must resist this urge. The lawn’s soil is going to be wet and trampling around on it will damage grass shoots. Perform light cleaning but be careful and be patient.
Once the soil dries, you can begin more intensive cleaning. Remove the debris, the leaves, and anything else that doesn’t belong in your yard.

Use Crabgrass Preventer

Preventing crabgrass can be tricky, but it’s not impossible. It will grow back every year, but if you are ready for it, then you should be able to handle it with ease. Purchase some crabgrass preventer if you don’t own some already. Put it on your lawn before any crabgrass appears, which is usually when the temperature reaches 55 degrees Fahrenheit for two days in a row. Due to Oklahoma’s sporadic weather, timing can be difficult, but the sooner you get it down, the better.

Fertilize the Lawn

Fertilizing the lawn will ensure healthy, lush grass throughout spring. Do some research and find out what fertilizer is right for the type of grass in your lawn. Furthermore, when you shop for crabgrass preventer, try to find one that doubles as a fertilizer if you want to save money and time. Alternatively, contact a Tahlequah fertilizing service near you to take care of it for you.

Mow at the Correct Height

Different kinds of grass have different length requirements. In other words, you don’t want to cut off too much. It’s a good idea to mow on cooler days if you want to see better results. We’ve covered spring mowing in a previous topic if you want more details.
Prepare now and taking care of your lawn will be much easier throughout the rest of the year.

Basic Fall Lawn Care

Keeping a green, healthy lawn is a year-round endeavor. If you want your lawn to be ready for the following year, you need to still perform some basic lawn care during the fall. With Oklahoma’s sporadic weather, fall lawn care isn’t always easy. Fortunately, if you know what to do, it shouldn’t be too difficult. In this article, we’ll cover the following:

Topics:

  • Fertilizing the Yard in Fall
  • Watering the Yard in Fall
  • Planting Cool-Season Grass
  • Fall Lawn Maintenance

Fertilizing the Yard in Fall

Fertilizing your lawn is already beneficial, but many of us neglect using fertilizer in the fall. However, fertilizing your yard during fall is an indispensable step towards a healthy lawn next year. It keeps the grass roots healthy, which will help prevent weeds growing in your lawn. Additionally, it will help your grass grow in faster when spring comes around. Before you do this, make sure you have a lawn fertilizer designed for cold weather seasons. Furthermore, you want to have the fertilizer down while the grass is still growing.

Watering the Yard in Fall

Naturally, since the summer is over, watering the lawn is no longer necessary right? Unfortunately, the relatively cooler temperatures don’t mean your grass doesn’t need water. You will need to continue watering the yard until the ground temperature reaches freezing temperatures. Admittedly, you won’t need to water as much as you do in the summer. Still, you should water the yard every two weeks.

Plant Cool-Season Grass

It’s important to plant the appropriate grass for the appropriate season. Warm-season grass thrives during the spring and summer months. Therefore, it makes sense you’d plant it during the spring. Likewise, cool-season grass thrives during the cold temperature months. So, you should plant it during the fall. If your lawn has any dead patches, this is a good time to repair them.

Fall Lawn Maintenance

People who live in Tahlequah already know that your grass keeps growing even during the fall. It might grow slower once the weather cools down, but it still needs maintenance. Be sure to trim the grass in preparation for the winter. You don’t want the grass to be too long, otherwise it will become matted under the snow. At the same time, it can’t be too short, or the grass won’t insulate during the winter. If you keep it 2 inches long, then it should be the perfect length.

Now that you’ve done all that, what should you do about the leaves littered all over your yard? We’ve discussed this in the past, so if you want more information, you can read it here.

We all lead busy lives, and if you don’t have the time to take care of this, look for a Tahlequah lawn service near you.

7 Ways to Make Use of the Leaves on the Lawn

Fall is a wonderful time of year, and with fall comes all the beautiful shades of autumn leaves. Unfortunately, many of these leaves end up on our lawns. Even if you rake these leaves up, more leaves will fall. What should you do with all of them once they’re all raked? Alternatively, what could you do instead of raking the leaves?  Obviously, children and pets love jumping in a pile of leaves, but there are many uses for fallen leaves we never take advantage of. In many cases, we can use them for nutrients for your yard. In fact, by the pound leaves are richer in minerals than even manure is. Leaves are full of minerals absorbed by tree roots deep in your lawn’s soil, and all you’re doing is returning those same mineral nutrients back to the lawn. Think of it as recycling.

To help you out, here are 7 ways to make use of the leaves in your lawn.

7. Donate the Bags of Leaves

Did you know you could donate your leaves to local schools? If you bag your leaves, be sure to ask to see if any schools in your area want them, since they could be put to use in student projects. Also, ask your neighbors, since they might use the old leaves in compost or for mulch. Consider using a lawn sweeper for piling your leaves, since it tends to be faster and more efficient than a rake.

6. Using Leaves for Mulch

If you use mulch, this trick will save you time and money. Using your leaves for mulch will protect your perennials from the harsh, wintery conditions. Furthermore, it will protect some of your other plants from becoming frozen and dying.

5. Using Leaves for Compost

If you make compost with your grass clippings every summer, you can supplement it with dead leaves. Your old leaves are rich with carbon, and compliment the clippings, which are rich in nitrogen. When you add the leaves to your compost, make sure to add one inch of clippings after every 3 inches of leaves.

4. Use the Leaves for a Weed Barrier

Your leaves can be used as weed barriers, which keep moisture in your soil and prevent more weeds from growing.

3. Use the Leaves as Animal Bedding

Leaves can supplement hay for your animal bedding.

2. Preserve Leaves for Crafts

Do you, your spouse, or your children enjoy crafts? Leaves are can be used for making artistic projects, too.

1. Mowing Over Leaves

Mowing your leaves chops them up into small pieces, which will decompose and enrich your lawn with their nutrients. As a bonus, this serves as a faster alternative to raking. The hassle is minimal and it will go much faster than digging your rake from your supply shed and manually raking the leaves into piles.

After you’ve found a use for your leaves, what do you do about the rest of the care your lawn needs? Contact a Tahlequah lawn service near you for assistance.