Valentines gift for the gardener in your life

Give the gift that keeps giving – give your valentine a plant this Valentines Day.  No gardener would be disappointed with a plant instead of cut flowers.

You could give a rose bush instead of a bouquet of roses.  It could be transplanted into their own garden or kept in a container on the patio.

Or you could give a flower houseplant that will keep blooming inside for Valentines Day and every day for years to come.

The Five Secrets to a Weed Free Lawn

Over the last few weeks, we have gone over in detail the five secrets to a weed free lawn.  In case you have missed any of the previous posts, I am going to do a quick summary and include the link to the post below.

The best defense against weeds in your lawn is to have a healthy lawn.  If you have a healthy, thick lawn, the weeds will have a tougher time taking root in your lawn.  So how do you make sure your lawn is healthy? The following are the five secrets we have unveiled to creating and maintaining a weed free lawn:


1.  Pre-Emergent Herbicide
http://preferredlandscape.blogspot.com/2014/01/secrets-to-weed-free-lawn.html
2.  Aeration
http://preferredlandscape.blogspot.com/2014/01/secrets-to-weed-free-lawn-aeration.html
3.  Fertilization
http://preferredlandscape.blogspot.com/2014/02/secrets-to-weed-free-lawn-feed-it.html
4.  Proper Mowing
http://preferredlandscape.blogspot.com/2014/02/secrets-to-weed-free-lawn.html
5.  Correct Watering
http://preferredlandscape.blogspot.com/2014/02/secrets-to-weed-free-lawn-watering.html

If you have any additional tips or thoughts on the subject, we would love to hear them!

Secrets to a weed free lawn - Watering

In our series, Secrets to a Weed Free lawn, we have established that the best way to do this is to have a healthy lawn.  One of the key components to a healthy lawn is the proper watering of your lawn.  Here are some tips on how to water your lawn in San Antonio:

1.  Inspect your irrigation system every year to make sure it is working properly.  You may have some broken heads that need replacing or to readjust the spray pattern. 

2.  If you are starting a new lawn, consider installing drip irrigation under your turf.  Just like in a landscape bed, drip irrigation is the most efficient way to water your lawn and creates a green, lush lawn even during periods of drought.

3.  During the season, water once a week in San Antonio (unless there are drought restrictions in effect which limit that).  This will help your lawn create deep roots

The Olympics start today!

The Winter Olympics start today and go for the next three weeks. Are you planning on watching?  What is your favorite sport to follow?

Secrets to a Weed Free Lawn

We have been discussing that the best way to a weed free lawn is to maintain a healthy lawn.  A key aspect of maintaining a healthy lawn is proper mowing techniques.

Here are the highlights:
1.  Don't cut off more than one-third of the leaf blade at a time.
2.  Mow often - usually once a week.
2.  Leave grass clippings on lawns to decompose; it returns nutrients to your soil.

For more detailed information, here are links to previous posts on the proper mowing techniques:
http://preferredlandscape.blogspot.com/2013/07/lawn-mowing-tips-for-san-antonio-lawns.html
http://preferredlandscape.blogspot.com/2011/06/make-your-lawn-happy-with-these-mowing.html

Secrets to a Weed Free Lawn - Feed It!

We have been discussing the best way to get a weed free lawn and creating a healthy lawn is the best way to do that.  We have discussed about the correct timing of a pre-emergent herbicide as well as the benefits of aerating your lawn.  Today we are going to discuss feeding your lawn.  Most of the nutrients required by a healthy lawn are supplied in the soil, but additional nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium may be needed to support healthy plants.

While most people realize that applying fertilizer is an important part of creating and maintaining a healthy lawn, many people don't know the right way to go about it.  The biggest mistake is the frequency of applying fertilizer.  Many folks like to fertilize once, right at the beginning of the season, to help with the green-up of the lawn in the spring.  While this will provide good short term results for your lawn, it is not the right long term solution.

Fertilizer should be applied several times during the year -anywhere from 3-5 depending on your lawns needs.  For most warm-season lawns,  you should generally fertilize in mid-April, early June (as may be needed to maintain a healthy green color), and early October.  Of the three fertilization times, the most important one is the fall fertilization because it helps the lawn grass over-winter better and enhances spring green-up in the spring.  

Another common mistake is not using the right type of fertilizer or the right ratio of nutrients. Fertilizers are labeled with three numbers that represent the percentage of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium in the product.    Use fertilizer with a N-P-K ratio of 3-1-2 unless you have your soil tested and it recommends otherwise.  

6 more weeks of Winter?

It has been a wild winter for most of the country including San Antonio with record setting low temperatures and ice/snow in cities that don't usually have any.  So are we in for 6 more weeks of winter weather or is spring just around the corner?

The groundhog,Phil, saw his shadow and predicted we are in for 6 more week of winter.  In the past, the groundhog has predicted a late winter 100 times and has only predicts an early spring 17 times.   Hmm...that doesn't seem quite fair! Bundle up and get ready for 6 more weeks of this cold weather.

Who are you rooting for tonight?  Enjoy the Super Bowl!