Time for One More Fertilization Before Winter!

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As we get closer to winter, it’s a good time to think about fertilizing your plants and lawns one last time before the cold sets in. While it appears that plants go dormant or die in the winter, there’s actually a lot of activity going on under the soil. The roots are in growth mode and giving plants one last infusion of nutrients will help them build a stronger root system and thus help them better thrive next season. Plants need a whopping nineteen elements to grow, with the primary three being nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. To ensure that your plants have ample access to all of the necessary nutrients, it’s best to regularly apply plant food. Fertilizers are labeled with three numbers, which designate the ratio of those nutrients. The first number represents the amount of nitrogen, which promotes foliage or grass blade growth. The second number is the amount of phosphorus, which helps root growth. The final numbers is the amount of potassium, which helps cell functioning and also helps plants absorb trace elements.

For late fall lawn fertilization, it’s best to use a formula that’s higher in phosphorus to stimulate root growth before winter sets in. This will help your lawn be more winter-hardy and green up more quickly in the spring.

Perennials will benefit from a fertilizer with high phosphorus as well, and fertilizing them will help them be stronger plants and produce more flowers next spring. Trees and shrubs will also appreciate fertilization before the cold sets in because over the cold months, their roots are taking in nutrients from the soil and applying them to health-promoting functions, like root development and disease resistance. The roots will store any extra nutrients so that they are readily available for new growth in the springtime.

Read the directions on fertilizers and follow them to make sure they are applied properly for maximum effect.

Come by and see us and we can help you figure out which fertilizers will work best to ensure that your plants build their strength up over the winter and come back strong in the spring!

Fescue Lawn Care for August

Hello everyone and happy Thursday to you! I'm sure most of you have noticed the slight dip in temperatures we've been enjoying these past few days. Looks like we've rounded the corner from 90+ degree hot summer days and can look forward to beautiful cooler weather instead. What a welcome relief! Could it be that fall is in the air?

Fall is the perfect time to be in the garden. It's sunny and warm, yet cool enough to work. And best of all, there's no bugs! Even though we're still a few weeks away from the true fall season, there's plenty we can be doing in the yard right now to get our gardens in top shape for next year. Now is a great time to start tackling lawn care and re-seeding projects. As soon as the night-time lows drop into the 60's, like they already have, it's time to get started. But before we talk about seed, we may need to tackle some nasty weed issues.

I don't know about you, but the weeds have really taken over my lawn this past month. Things were in pretty good shape, and suddenly the weeds have just exploded. That's because they just thrive in our hot and humid summers. I've got crab grass and chickweed as well as Bermuda grass, infiltrating my fescue sod. So if your lawn is anything like mine, you'll want to tackle those weeds before turning your thoughts towards reseeding.

If your grass is less than 50% weeds, we recommend treating the area with Weed Out with Q by Fertilome. This ready-to-spray treatment kills crabgrass, dandelion, clover, plus 200 other listed weeds. It kills even tough weeds-roots and all.

Fertilome Weed Out with Q spray contains three proven weed killers that target lawn weeds and crabgrass. This product enters the lawn weeds through their leaves and moves throughout the plant to provide control. Recommended for cool season turf-grass such as Kentucky bluegrass, rye-grass, tall fescue, and mixtures of cool season grasses containing fine fescues. Also for warm season turf-grasses such as bermuda, zoysia, and buffalo grass. Application to bermuda grass may cause temporary yellowing or discoloration, but full recovery can be expected.

Note that this product should be used only when daytime temperatures drop below 90 degrees (85 for bermuda grass). And since we're in the 80's now, go ahead and give your lawns an application or two of this. Once treated, let your lawn sit about 2 weeks before re-seeding. Be careful not to over-apply which may cause burning to the grass.

If your lawn area is more than 50% weeds, you'll need to go ahead and apply Round-Up to the entire area. And if you're like me and have bermuda grass coming up in your fescue lawn, you'll need to use Round-up on that, as well.

Now that we've talked about weeds, it's time to think re-seeding.  Fall is the best time for re-seeding, and actually should be the only time you re-seed. Planting fescue seed in the fall allows the seed to fully root in and get established before the heat and stress of the summer hit again. Once night time temps dip into the 60's, like now, you can get started. And you can safely seed until mid November.

For fescue lawns, we recommend Shady Nook lawn seed mixture from Wyatt-Quarles. Shady Nook is locally blended so it is perfect for our Piedmont growing conditions. And it is tested here at NC State to provide a better blend with fewer weed seeds. It is also perfectly suited for full sun into part shade, giving you a better mixture of drought tolerance and wet growing conditions.

We offer Shady Nook in 25 lb. bags, as well as  5 lb. bags for smaller areas.

If you have areas of full shade, we recommend mixing Creeping Red Fescue in with your Shady Nook blend. Creeping Red Fescue is shade tolerant, and it's dark green color and finely textured blades will mix in perfectly with the rest of your lawn.

I hope these helpful hints will get you on your way to beautiful looking grass in no time. Remember, our helpful experts are on hand 7 days a week to answer all your lawn care and gardening questions. Stop by and pay us a visit! We're always happy to see you down at Garden Supply!

July Fescue Lawn Care

Hello everyone and happy Monday to you!  I hope you all had a wonderful weekend and are ready to start a brand new week. We have just experienced a "new beginning" down at Garden Supply with the completion of a new roof in our garden Greenhouse. Not a pleasant job by far in the heat of July, but we are excited to have that task now out of the way.  Look for new items to start filtering into the Greenhouse soon, as our big buying trip is coming up next weekend. And in the meantime, there are still a few deals to be had on remaining pink tagged items. With this intense Piedmont summer heat, many lawns and gardens are starting to take a beating.  We recommend continued use of Drought Defense to aid in water absorption and retention in planting beds and sodded areas.

Simply attach this easy-to-use nozzle to your garden hose and spray as directed.  You'll notice a definite "greening" up after a couple of applications.

And for fescue lawn care in July, you can reduce stress on your lawn and enhance a dark green color with a little PH correction. PH refers to the acidity of your soil. Contact your agricultural extension to find out how to take a soil sample and retrieve the results. After determining your PH you can use pelletized lime to correct it.

Hope these tips get your lawns and gardens in tip-top shape in no time.  As always, our experts are standing by with answers to all your questions.

Thanks so much for stopping by!

June Bugs

Hello everyone and happy Tuesday to you! With the solstice yesterday, summer is finally officially here.  It's time to enjoy all the offerings of this wonderful season, from longer days and vacations, to a slower pace and plenty of fun in the sun. Yes, summer is a wonderful time of year, but along with the onset of this warmer period often comes an unwelcome slew of garden pests. From deer eating your precious flowering plants to mosquitoes driving you crazy, these pests may have you abandoning your yards for the relative peace of the indoors. But don't let these pests drive you inside.  We have some solutions for handling these pesky critters that will help you beat the bugs and enjoy your yards again. One of the most prevalent garden pests we have to contend with in our area this month has got to be the Japanese beetle. Japanese beetles were first found in this country in 1916, after being accidentally introduced into New Jersey. Until that time, this insect was known to occur only in Japan where it is not a major pest. Unfortunately, it has flourished in the Eastern United States where it has found vast areas of turf and grassland in which the grubs develop, hundreds of species of plants for the adults to feast on, and no effective natural enemies. It is probably the most devastating pest of the Eastern urban landscape.

Adults emerge from the ground and begin feeding on plants in June. Activity is most intense over a 4 to 6 week period, after which the beetles gradually die off. Individual beetles live about 30 to 45 days. Japanese beetles feed on about 300 species of plants, devouring leaves, flowers, and fruit. They usually feed in groups, starting at the top of a plant and working downward. The beetles are most active on warm, sunny days, and prefer plants that are in direct sunlight. Although a single beetle does not eat much, this group feeding by many beetles results in severe damage.

Here's a few of the pesky bugs now dining on my Crape Myrtles.  So what can you do when these devouring bugs hit your yard? There are solutions, but in order to attack the problem at hand, one must truly understand the life-cycle of the Japanese beetle.

Although the adult beetle is only present for about 30 days in the month of June, their life-cycle continues underground for most of the year. Egg laying begins soon after the adults emerge from the ground and mate. Females lay their eggs 2-3 inches down in grassy areas, and usually lay a total of 40 to 60 during their life. The developing beetles spend the next 10 months in the soil as white grubs. Grubs feed on the roots of turf-grasses and vegetable seedlings, doing best in good quality turf in home lawns. However, they can survive in almost any soil in which plants can live.

As Japanese beetle grubs chew off grass roots, they reduce the ability of grass to take up enough water to withstand the stresses of hot, dry weather. As a result, large dead patches develop in the grub-infested areas. If the damage is allowed to develop to this stage, it may be too late to save the turf. Early recognition of the problem can prevent this destruction.

In order to fully battle the Japanese beetle, it is best to take a multi-step approach. Put a stop to the egg laying cycle by treating your infected plants and adult insects with Sevin or Sevin Dust, in concentrate or ready-to-use formula. Fertilome Natural Carbaryl is equally effective.  Both treatments are natural and are safe to use on your fruit and vegetable plants. Know that although these beetles can travel and infect an area several miles wide, they tend to lay their eggs in close proximity.  So you can bet that if they are in your yard, they are laying eggs there.

Next stop the grub cycle with an application of Milky Spore Grub Control or Bayer Grub Killer Plus. This will rid your lawn of unsightly brown spots that may be caused by grub damage, and will control Japanese beetle grubs in the soil.  Use it on grass, in gardens, and in mulch beds.  It can be used at anytime.

Another complaint we often hear at the garden center is that deer are eating your tender blooming plants down to the ground.  And although it can be tricky to combat these beautiful yet pesky animals, here is an option for keeping them out of your yard.

I Must Garden is an earth-friendly, people and pet-friendly company out of Chapel Hill that offers a  line of repellents based on essential oils that provide a safe way to protect your plants without the stench of other repellents. Their deer repellent is easy to use, effective all year round, smells pleasant, and is even safe for the deer.  They also offer a full line of rabbit, snake, mole & vole, squirrel, cat & dog, mosquito, flea & tick, and insect repellents. We've got them all down at Garden Supply.

We are also proud to carry EcoSmart brand insect killer and repellents. Based on essential oils, EcoSmart offers a line of insecticides that are 100 % safe for use around children and pets.

Hopefully these tips will keep the nasties out of your yard so you can get back out there and relish these beautiful summer evenings.

Enjoy!

Lawn and Garden Care for June

Hello everyone, and happy Sunday!  All of us at Garden Supply would like to wish you dedicated, hard-working, fabulous dad's out there a wonderful Father's Day.

The greatest gift I ever had Came from God; I call him Dad! ~Author Unknown

We appreciate each and every one of you!

Also a big thank-you to everyone who attended our Annual Auction yesterday. We had a wonderful turn-out, lots of lovely garden items up for auction, and food and fun for everyone. A good time was had by all, and we couldn't have done it without you.

Today I would like to share with you a few care tips for your June lawn and gardens. For those with fescue grass, June is the month to treat and prevent brown patch which appears as a browning area in the lawn typically in the summer months when conditions are favorable. Brown patch is caused by a fungus, and if your lawn is showing signs, you will need to treat with a fungicide. We recommend that you apply Hi-Yield Lawn Fungicide to prevent brown patch.  Two applications may be necessary if rain has been heavy.

While brown patch does cause patches of dead grass, other things can cause the same symptoms. If the area is poorly drained and water stands on a spot for more than 24 hours, the grass roots will rot, causing a dead patch. Also, in areas where the sod has rooted poorly, brown patches will develop as dry weather sets in. So what are the true symptoms of the disease? True brown patch spots are small to begin with but in warm weather they can enlarge rapidly. Seen from above, the patch will look like a doughnut - a ring of tan grass having a patch of green grass in the center. Individual grass blades will be brown down to the crown - where the blade emerges from the ground - but the crown will be green. Early in the morning during hot, damp weather you might see a white fungal web at the edge of the dead grass patch.

Never water in the evening. The best time to water is in early morning. Fescue is much more susceptible when it has lush, green growth plus warm nighttime temperatures.  The second step is to water at the right time. Since brown patch needs 14-16 hours of wet leaf surface to reproduce itself, water only after the dew has dried in the morning. An alternative is to water after nightfall. Since the grass is wet with dew anyway, watering in the dark does not unnecessarily extend the wet period.

So what if you have brown areas in your sod or planting beds due to poor rooting mixed with our hot summer temperatures? We have help for that, too.  Garden Supply owner,Keith Ramsey, recommends treating with Drought Defense by Soil Logic to reduce water consumption and enhance growth.

Drought Defense reduces the amount of water needed to irrigate lawns, groundcovers, trees, and other plants. This soil moisture management product helps prevent plant-available water from evaporating or draining past the root zone.  It is super-concentrated, long-lasting, helps lower watering bills and is safe for use on fruit and vegetable plants.  Drought Defense is environmentally friendly and is safe for use around children and pets.

This easy-to-use concentrate is ready to go.  Simply connect the sprayer to your hose and spray evenly over measured area.  Be sure to irrigate all treated areas after application to wash the product into the soil.  After two applications of the product, normal watering time and quantity can be reduced up to 50%!

For those of you with warm-season grasses like Bermuda, Centipede and Zoysia, June is the time for over-seeding your bare spots and laying down an application of fertilizer.

We have everything you need down at the Garden Center, and our experts are standing by with answers to all your lawn care questions.  Stop by and pay us a visit and get your June lawns and garden looking in tip-top shape in no time.

Thanks so much for stopping by!  I'll be back soon with more snippets from the garden.

Feed the Lawn & Kill the Weeds

Hello everyone!  Hope you are all having a wonderful weekend and are enjoying the burst of wonderful weather we've had to officially welcome in spring.  We've had a great time this weekend at Garden Supply as we wrapped up our big week-long Spring Garden Party yesterday.  Thank you to everyone who participated and to everyone who stopped by and helped make our annual party a huge success!  We couldn't have done it without you! Now that spring is truly here, it's time to turn your thoughts to a bit of yard prep and lawn care.  If you haven't yet done so, now is the time for fertilizing fescue grass.  Some lawn fertilizers contain pre-emergent crabgrass killers, which should go down within the next 10 days.  We recommend  you use Fertilome Crabgrass Preventer Plus Lawn Food.  Use Fertilome Classic Lawn Food if you have already applied crabgrass preventer.  We've got everything you need down at the garden center.

While over-seeding should wait until mid-September, you could work on seeding small, bare spots now.  This will require careful attention to watering in dry weeks, especially as we get into summer.

Cool weather weeds, especially chickweed, which blooms with a small white daisy, are gaining maturity now.  It's easy to get them by pulling the clumps by hand or by hoe.  It is blooming already, so it's a good time to get out as much as you can before the seeds go flying.  Come talk to our gardening experts for solutions.

With Easter being two weeks from today, now is the time to stop by the Greenhouse and check out our adorable holiday decor.  We have a huge selection of beautiful and unique items to spruce up your homes and decorate your tables for the season.

And look what else I discovered while strolling the Greenhouse yesterday afternoon.  A sale!  Always love a sale!

This lovely selection of pottery is now 30% off!  Just think of all the plant arrangements you could make for your decks and front porches with these.  Or thinking ahead, what wonderful Mother's Day presents these would make filled with flowering blossoms.

Thanks so much for stopping by!  We'll see you back here soon for more snippets from the garden!