Although it will still be cold and wintry outside, your lawn care service knows that there are tasks that should be accomplished in your Mokena and Frankfort, IL, properties landscape to prepare for a thriving spring season. Here is what you need to know about February lawn care.
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Tree Inspection
Near the end of the month can be an excellent time for your landscape specialist to assess the health of your trees. Checking for broken limbs and leftover jagged edges can be critical to keeping the pests and disease and fungus out of the tree since this can be the perfect spot for entry. Trimming the broken edges can remove the access point for anything that can cause the tree to die and it makes the overall appearance much prettier.
This inspection should extend to your shrubs, too, as they can suffer during the harsh winter weather—broken branches, bending under the heavy snow, and other things that can change the shape. Your landscaper can identify the ones that need attention or replacement and earmark them for service when the early spring arrives.
Grass Inspection
While the grass might look dull and be in a dormant stage, it is getting ready to burst forth at the sign of warmer weather. The roots will begin to reach further into the soil and the new grass, as well as the old grass, will be ready to grow lush and green.
Your landscape specialist knows that this is the ideal time to apply a pre-emergent herbicide to prevent weeds from sprouting along with the grass. Working to keep the weeds underneath the ground, a pre-emergent herbicide targets just the weeds that you don’t want while protecting the new grass growth that you do want. Controlling crabgrass, dandelions, and chickweed among others can be a key to a healthy stand of grass as the weeds can crowd out the grass and take over your lawn quickly.
Once the temperatures reach the mid-50s, they will apply fertilizer to boost the wake up of the grass by providing this as food. Composed of primary nutrients such as nitrogen, potassium, and phosphorus as well as secondary nutrients like copper and magnesium, fertilizer acts as a trigger for your grass to green up and start growing vigorously. Your landscaper knows that timing and the correct ratio of nutrients can be critical to a thriving lawn so they pay careful attention to the health of the soil and the type of grass that makes up your landscape.
Plan for Planting
Late February can be an excellent time to discuss with your landscaper which types of annuals you want to incorporate into your landscape. Would you love a cutting garden for fresh flowers Do you want a cutting flower garden that can fill your indoor containers all spring and summer? Are you interested in planting a garden for vegetables and herbs to produce fresh ingredients for your cooking? Is your interest in perennial plants and flowers that will return year after year to bring new beauty to your landscape? Would you like to begin shifting your landscape to more native plants that require minimal care? February is the time to let them know of your preferences so that they can include those in their spring planning strategy.
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