It’s summertime which brings road trips pool-time fun and family picnics. This season also brings warmer temperatures and a fast growing landscapes.
It’s summertime, which brings road trips, pool-time fun and family picnics. This season also brings warmer temperatures and a fast growing landscape. Here are a few tips to help make your landscape look its best for your summertime outdoor festivities.
Continue with Weekly Mowings
Make sure to continue to mow your lawn weekly. Now that the temperatures are very hot, the turf is rapidly growing. Weekly mowings ensure that no more than 1/3rd of the leaf blade is being cut off at one time. When too much of the blade is cut off, then it can cause stress to the turf. (Check out our proper mowing practices guide for an illustrated overview on how proper mowing promotes healthy turf).
Prune Palms
Now is the best time to prune your palms. When pruning, remove the seed pods. Also, remove only the fronds that are more than 75 percent brown. Do not “hurricane cut” your palms for the season. A hurricane cut is when too many fronds are pruned from the palm. This type of cut compromises the strength and health of the palm. It also weakens the palm, which negatively affects the palm in high winds.
Perform Regular Irrigation Checks
With the extremely warm temperatures and current water restrictions, it’s important to ensure
that your irrigation is working properly. Watch your irrigation while it is running and check to see if there are areas of your lawn that aren’t getting the proper amount of water. Adjust the irrigation heads accordingly and/or clean your irrigation heads. It’s important to be sure your turf doesn’t become too dry. Dry turf attracts Chinch Bugs and other pests. (Watch our video on how to incorporate proper irrigation practices)
Prepare the Landscape for Hurricane Season
While many of us prepare our homes for the hurricane season by securing gallons of water, generators, non-perishable food items, batteries, flashlights and radios, it is also important to prepare the landscape for hurricane season. Now that hurricane season has arrived, make sure to regularly prune decaying branches that could possibly become flying debris during a hurricane. Also, by shaping a plant properly through pruning, it can help the tree or plant become more wind resistant during the storm. (Read more on preparing landscapes for hurricane season)
By taking these simple steps, your landscape will be summertime ready!
