With Spring upon us and the Summer on the horizon, our lawns and gardens are getting buggy! We have many customers ask us about ground bees, also knows as solitary bees, which nest in the ground of lawns and gardens. Ground Bees create small mounds of excavated soil with a nest opening. With multiple nests it creates a “city-like” community. Damage to lawns and turf is usually minimal and control is often sought because the bees are perceived as a danger or annoyance.

As a recommendation from our team, we say ground bees are friends more than foes! Unless you are having a severe issue with ground bees we say leave them alone because they pollinate plants which help your lawn! If you feel they are becoming more of a pain we can treat the lawn with an insecticide which usually takes two treatments to control the bees. Call us if you need us to come out and help you!

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Happy Spring! With warmer weather on the horizon and sun shining through our windows, we are excited about spring! Today’s tip of the month, start scalping your lawn. Not sure what scalping your lawn entails? Scalping your lawn is the removal of dormant and dry turf. If you start scalping your lawn now it will help prevent weed problems during the coming months and get your grass growing greener and faster.

Before you begin scalping, make sure that all frost is gone and that you are working with warm season grass – Bermuda or Zoysia. Do not scalp cool season grasses – fescue or bluegrass. Once you assess your lawn, you can get started now as it’s the best time to begin getting your lawn in shape. To begin, make sure your mower blades are at the shortest setting. Depending on your mower and lawn, mowing more than once might be needed.

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It’s March and you know what that means? Winter Pruning! If you are getting spring fever like many of us and are ready for spring to get here already, it’s time to make sure you have your lawn and garden prepared for spring! If you start pruning now it will promote faster regrowth in the spring. Many plants are dormant during the chilly months so it makes pruning easier because you can see the shape of the plant with the foliage gone.

Here are a few pruning tips from the Simply Green team:

• Prune on a dry day, makes it easier to cut the branches.
• When pruning, start by pruning out dead and diseased branches.
• After pruning dead branches, remove the overgrown and smaller branches to increase light and air to the base of the plant.
• Your goal is to keep the branches that develop or maintain the structure of the tree.
• Cut branches at the node, the point at which one branch or twig attaches to another.

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Join us and learn a little more about the mission, services and company behind the Simply Green Lawncare. Since we began in 2004, our objective has remained the same: We strive to exceed your expectations at every opportunity. 

Ready to learn more?

• From the sale to the service, throughout the year, we aim to provide only the best quality lawn care, and tree and shrub care services in Atlanta, Georgia.
• We are locally owned and operated, keeping us accessible and attentive to your needs.
• Smaller company, bigger service – we are the answer to corporate lawn care.
• We come when you call. Our well-trained team is easy to work with and determined to exceed your expectations.
• We simply use the finest products and procedures for homeowners who want their landscapes to stand out.
• All our turf, tree and shrub specialists are Georgia Department of Agriculture Certified  and maintain their Category 24 applicators license.

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With winter storms hitting Atlanta, snow brings chilly days and even colder nights and as you stay cozy in your homes our feathered friends are busy working hard to find food and water. Many birds have to change their eating habits due to shorter supply of assessable insects. Many start eating berries or other forms of wild fruits and veggies that they find. You will start seeing birds flocking together to help find food and to protect.

So what can we all do to help our feathered friends you ask? Here are a few ideas for feed options for your feeders and yards.

• Suet attracts birds that cling to vertical surfaces: nuthatches, titmice, chickadees and woodpeckers.

• Thistle seed is a favorite of finches. Use a tube feeder with small holes to dispense the seed.

• Coles* Blue Ribbon, Special Blend, Hot Meats and Blazing Hot are also favorites.

Inexpensive bird food mixes often contain wheat, millet and hemp seed. These are not bird favorites and the birds will simply pick through what they don’t want while looking for the food they desire.  The Family Tree Premium Bird Feed and Coles* Bird Feed are good options and don’t have any additives that aren’t healthy for the birds!

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Due to the record setting cold temperatures we experienced on January 7, 2014,  we are starting to see wide spread case of cold damage to our evergreen ornamental plants.  Cold injury can occur to all parts of plants including flower buds, leaves, stems, trunks and even roots.

Typically, we first notice cold damage on the leaves of our ornamental evergreen plants. The damaged plant’s leaves discolor and turn brown to a grayish black color (see image). You may notice your broadleaf evergreen plants such as Azaleas, Gardenia, Indian Hawthorn and Loropetalum leaves turning brown along with light to heavy leaf drop.

We may experience cold damage to flower buds on Azaleas, Camellias, Loropetalum and other flowering woody ornamentals. Cold damage to flower buds can reduce flowering in the spring or in some cases, we can have a total loss of blooms. You can check flower buds for cold damage by removing several buds and cutting the buds open to inspect the condition. If the tissue inside the flower bud is green your flower buds are safe. If the tissue is a brown color or darken, the buds have cold damage.

Another problem which may occur is stem damage or bark splitting.  We will not know if we have stem damage or bark splitting until spring.

What to do?

Our recommendation for now is to wait and see. Wait until spring to see what damage may have occurred.  If the foliage is brown and unsightly you can take a rake and shake the damaged leaves off the plants for now. No reason to start pruning away what you think is damaged because it still may be alive.  Once spring growth begins, you will be able to determine if you have stem damage or bark damage. Heavy pruning should be delayed until new growth appears in the spring. Waiting ensures you are not removing healthy wood.

If we can be of service, or if you have questions please contact us at 770-923-0387.

Thank you,

Simply Green Lawn Care PLUS Team

Due to the chilly weather conditions, there isn’t much to do this time of year related to your landscape other than test your soil. This is a great time to test your soils pH and monitor nutrients in the soil. Soil testing is a very important part of growing healthy lush green lawn. Soil testing is the only way to determine the available nutrients in your soil, your soil pH and your soils cation exchange capacity (CEC).

By testing your soil now, we can customized you lawn care program to meet the needs of your lawn. In some cases, if your pH is very acidic (pH below 5.8) we can apply additional limestone to help raise the pH or if you have low phosphorus (P) or low potassium (K) we can apply additional P or K depending on your soil analysis results. Soil testing takes the guess work out of growing lush green lawns! More on soil testing here.

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Warmest Wishes for a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from the Simply Green team! We would like to express our greatest appreciation for all of the love and support you have given to us and are excited for 2014.

We wish you a Merry Christmas and all the best in the upcoming year!

Best,

The Simply Green Team

Simply Green provides the following residential turf care programs in Atlanta to provide year round beauty for your lawn. Our specialists will visit your property every 4-8 weeks depending on the time of year to maintain turf care. We use the finest products and procedures to ensure your lawn looks its best and we guarantee great results. If you ever have a concern between visits, we will be happy to come back and retreat at no extra charge. Here is a breakdown of winter lawncare:

Bermuda, Zoysia Lawn Program

Winter: 2^nd Pre-emergence to help continue to prevent winter weeds, spot treat any existing weeds if needed. . Root zone fertilization to build strong roots for winter. .

Late Winter: 2^nd Pre-emergence to help continue to prevent winter weeds, spot treat any existing weeds if needed. . Root zone fertilization to build strong roots for winter.

Fescue Lawn Program

Winter: Fertilization to prepare your lawn for winter and treat for any existing weeds. Fertilization to provide early spring green-up. Pre- and post-emergent weed control to prevent weed problems in the future.

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