News and Notes

7/3/09: Mowing & More has added the following service areas in 2009: Bowie, MD 20721 20720, Glenn Dale, MD, and Lanham, MD

11/23/07: We are once again in the midst of leaf removal season.  Although the leaves started dropping late this year they are currently dropping in full force.  With the weather cooling off the foliage of many perennials is starting to die-back.  Now is a good time to start cutting back the foliage of ornamental grasses, hostas, cedum, lillies, foamflowers, etc.  Liriope should be left alone until the early spring as it will stay green throughout the winter.

5/15/07: Mowing & More has expanded its service area for 2007.  We will now be servicing the areas of Garret Park MD (20896), Kensington MD (20895), and University Park in Hyattsville MD (20782).

4/1/07: The grass is starting to grow and as lawn mowing season starts it is important to remember several details:

1.  The grass in this region (tall fescue) is designed to be mowed at roughly 3" in height.  A 3" mowing height helps shade out any weeds in the lawn, protect the grass roots from the sun, and provides enough leaf surface for the grass to photosynthesize light.  Cutting the lawn at a shorter height will make the lawn look sharper but a low cutting height on a fescue lawn will cause damage to the lawn over the long-term.   During April and May the grass tends to grow at an accelerated pace.  It is NOT a good idea to cut the grass extremely short so that the mowing 'lasts longer': doing so is bad for the lawn and will be detrimental for its health over the long term.  The lawn can either be mowed every 5 days to keep up with the growth, or the lawn can be mowed on a weekly schedule with the grass clippings being collected.

2.  Now is a the right time of year to start thinking about pre-emergent crabgrass control for the lawn.  Once the temperatures start to warm up the crabgrass seed will start to germinate.  Once the crabgrass is growing in the lawn is is somewhat difficult to control.

3.  If fall aeration and over-seeding of the lawn was not possible last year the early spring is an alternative time to aerate and over-seed the lawn.  Although not the ideal time for aeration and over-seeding, spring temperatures are facilitate the growth of new grass seed and allow it to establish roots before the weather warms up.     

2/6/07: During the winter months it is very important to properly manage any snow or ice that accumulates on paved surfaces.  We recommend using magnesium chloride as an ice melter as opposed to regular rock salt.  Magnesium chloride is much less harmful to plants and is not as damaging to concrete surfaces as rock salt.

11/10/06: We are currently in the middle of the fall leaf season and it is important to properly cleanup the fallen leaves.  On turf areas, fallen leaves can kill grass if they are not cleared off frequently enough.  Leaves are very slippery when wet so it is important to frequently clear all areas where there is pedestrian traffic. 

9/25/06: With the severe heat conditions we have experienced this year, all lawns have been under an enormous amount of stress, and with the compacted clay soil, the lawns’ root system may be declining.  Additionally, aeration and over seeding must be done to re-establish the development of the turf.  Core aeration is the fastest way to reduce soil compaction and improve overall soil conditions.  Core aeration improves the infiltration and percolation of water through the soil and allows nutrients to better reach the roots of the grass.  The small holes in the soil left by the aerator are a perfect place for grass seed to grow and establish roots and the aeration also helps to reduce thatch buildup.

8/3/06:  At this time of year grub worms begin to destroy lawns in the region.  During the summer months the grub worms begin eating away at the roots of grass and eventually kill the grass.  If you notice brown patches in your lawn it may be the result of grub worms.  If it is because of grub worms you should be able to easily pull up the dead turf and find grub worms crawling around the first couple inches of the soil.  A product produced by Bayer called Merit is one pesticide that controls grubs in turf. The link below provides more information about the subject. - http://www.landscape-america.com/problems/insects/merit.html

3/8/06:  Many e-mails have been circulating around warning about the contamination of our nations mulch supply with termites from wood taken from New Orleans.  Like most urban legends this one is meant to elicit a strong emotional response, but does not make sense when thought through.  The hoax neglects to mention that a quarantine has been placed on all wood materials in areas where the termites are a problem.  The Maryland Department of Agriculture has posted a link on their website which addresses the issue. - http://nationalplantboard.org/la_mulch.html

3/1/06: Mowing & More is currently scheduling spring cleanups and mulch installation.  We still have room available for additional clients for the 2006 season.