Posts Tagged ‘Beautiful gardens’
Garden Pests Moles
If there was a horror film for gardeners, maybe a mole should play the lead role. Many gardeners hate garden pests moles and hold them responsible for all bad things that happen to their gardens. The truth is that this is not quite true. Moles can have both positive and negative effects on gardens.
Why do so many believe that garden pests moles are intent on destroying their beautiful gardens? Moles dig underground tunnels causing disturbances to the soil. This harms young plants and improves the likelihood of weeds growing all over your garden. In addition to this all the drainage systems that are made so carefully could be destroyed by moles. You can see why garden pests moles are hated by some dedicated gardeners.
Most people however, are not aware that these so called garden pests moles also help their gardening activities in certain ways. Some of the insects that are harmful to plants are eaten by moles. Grubs which are harmful to plants are eaten by moles but unfortunately, these grubs live in the roots of plants. That is why people blame garden pests moles for damage caused to the roots of their plants because the roots of the plants are damaged while the grubs are being eaten.
Earthworms generally have a positive effect on the soil but these worms make up a significant part of the diet of garden pests moles. You must take care not to harm your garden and the environment when you are attempting to get rid of garden pests moles. Keep in mind that even if you get rid of all your moles you might be haunted by them in the form of voles! People who succeed in eliminating the threat of garden pests moles are sometimes unfortunate to find that the tunnels left vacant by moles are in turn occupied by voles. These creatures tend to be more destructive than their predecessors.
You might need to relax after fighting the moles…
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It is probably true from the viewpoint of many homeowners that garden pests moles are more of a bane than a boon. This does not mean that killing moles can be justified by any means. You should try and discourage moles from visiting your garden but should not take steps to eliminate all of them. You can discourage garden pests moles by making sure that you keep the insects in your garden under control. Many people use a lot of insecticides to kill insects and to discourage moles but you can find more environmentally-friendly methods to reduce the number of insects in your garden.
Using traps to get rid of garden pests moles might not be as easy as you imagine. You must find and place such traps in ?active tunnels? used by moles. If you have no experience in identifying such a tunnel you should first get the necessary information from a book about gardening or from the internet. Keep the garden pests moles numbers under control in order to maintain your garden.
Rye Grass- Get green grass throughout the year
Keeping your grass green all winter long can be a challenge. Most home owners would love to have a green lawn throughout the fall and winter, but how do you make this a reality? Rye grass is what you need to keep your lawn beautiful all year long. You have to over seed your regular grass with Rye grass preferably in the summer heat. Rye grass is also considered cool grass which also helps to prevent the invasion of aggressive winter weeds. Burton on trent gardener
Perennial ryegrass is the preferred cool season grass for over seeding regular Burmuda grass lawns. Many new types of perennial ryegrass are available. These new types are fine textured and form a dense, attractive lawn. They are also frost tolerant and will persist longer in the spring, allowing time for the Burmuda grass to green up.
Carefully preparation of the lawn prior to over seeding is the key to success. In order to germinate and grow, the seed must come in contact with the soil. A dense Burmuda grass lawn will need to be lightly verticut or power-raked to remove the mat of dead grass plants, called thatch, which accumulates in the lawn. This work is best left to a professional lawn or landscape maintenance service. If you have a small lawn area you can remove some of the thatch by hand-raking with a steel-tined lawn rake.
After raking, scalp the Burmuda grass by cutting it as low as possible. Then remove the thatch and clippings. With some space opened up in the lawn, the seed that is spread will be able to drop through to the soil surface.
You can apply the seed by hand, but for better uniformity use a drop spreader or cyclone spreader. Seeding the lawn in a cris-cross pattern will also help provide a more uniform stand of grass. Whether you’re using perennial or annual ryegrass, apply 12 to 15 lbs. of seed for an area of 1,000 square feet. After spreading the seed, use a strong spray of water to help wash the seed down to the soil surface. To help retain moisture and encourage seed sprouting, fine compost or steer manure can be lightly spread over the area. A leaf rake or broom can be used to evenly distribute this top dressing and work it down through the Burmuda grass.
Keep seeds moist until they germinate and become established. This may require watering several times daily, with just enough water to keep the top 2 inch of soil wet. When the grass becomes established, watering should be reduced gradually to about once a week. During the coldest part of the winter the grass may not need water more than once every two weeks. When the grass reaches a height of 2 inches, mow the turf to 1.5 inches. Gradually increase the height of cut to maintain the grass at a height of 2.5 inches. A rotary type mower can be used, making sure to keep the blades sharp.
Begin fertilizing 2 weeks after seedlings sprout. Apply 4 lbs. of a lawn fertilizer such as 16-4-8 or similar analysis for every 1,000 square feet of lawn. After the initial fertilization, apply 1 to 2 lbs of lawn fertilizer per 1,000 square feet, every 3 or 4 weeks. If the lawn is green at the time of a scheduled fertilization, skip that fertilization.
By following these steps of over seeding now, you will be creating a beautiful cool season lawn that will last well into spring. Landscaper Burton
After the second mowing, apply one-half pound of nitrogen per 1000 square feet using a complete fertilizer, such as 16-4-8, 10-10-10 or others. Apply complete, quick-release nitrogen in late winter or early spring. Pythium blight disease can be a problem on over watered, over fertilized ryegrass, especially during warm, humid weather.
An established winter lawn requires the same maintenance as a permanent lawn. Mow when the grass is tall enough to cut, about 1 to 2 inches. Mow to 1 to 1½ inches thereafter whenever the grass reaches 2 to 2½ inches. Make sure the mower blade is sharp to prevent ripping of the ryegrass. If ryegrass is properly fertilized, weekly mowing may be necessary. So if you want to keep up a summer time routine in the winter add ryegrass to your lawn. You will be mowing all year round but your yard will look wonderful. You will have nice green color all year long.
