Saturday, April 30, 2011

More Compliments

A very kind customer friend, Cindy sent an email with some encouraging words.


"I’m also emailing to pass some kind, complimentary words that were spoken about you yesterday.  I had a gentleman to the door who was in the area from “Curb Appeal”.  I don’t know his name, but he was asking if I wanted the lawn aerated.  Explaining that although his price was good, I didn’t have that kind of cash on hand at the moment and that times are a little tough and as much as I’d like to be able to always do everything necessary when looking after all the needs we have in life, I just can't and that sometimes we have to pick and choose the services we spend our money on and that besides, I have a company that I have had a long time partnership with and I mentioned your name and Turf King.  That’s when the high praise began for you as a person, you knowledge, your experience, your company etc and he backed off and said I was in good hands and that he admires your tremendously and would never infringe on one  your customers.  He mentioned you’ve taught him a lot.  I think it’s the highest of a compliment when you receive unsolicited praises especially from someone in the same business, so I wanted to be sure I shared this with you."


Thanks to both of you. Turf King always appreciates kind words.

Monday, April 25, 2011

Is My Crabgrass Up Already in April?

If you are seeing some wider bladed grasses at this time of year, it is not crabgrass. Crabgrass is an annual grass. It dies in the fall and comes up from seed in the late spring. It usually is not visible until the end of June. So what you are seeing now is definitely not crabgrass.
Quack grass is another wide bladed grass. It however is a perennial grass and will be starting to grow this early. 
Crabgrass is normally treated by putting on products that reduce its germination from seed.
Because quack grass is already alive and growing, putting on something to reduce germination rarely of benefit.
See the following articles on Quack Grass
quackgrass or crabgrass

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

KEEPING OUR GRASS GREEN AND HEALTHY

Turf King is truly THE KING OF GREEN. This excellent company has been keeping our grass green and healthy for numerous years. They do NOT use aggressive and annoyingly-so call center approaches which is highly appreciated. This AMAZING company offers personalized customer service that is always filled with friendly, expert advice. Our lawn ecolgogist, Andy, is most welcoming and filled with valuable information which is very helpful! Andy is very much appreciated and trusted by us. Over the years, Turf King has provided our lawn with a customized program to suit our needs. Every spring we request, to have our lawn fertilized and aerated by Turf King. These are just some of the many excellent services which we select, from this amazing company. With each lawn service rendered, there is a detailed report, placed into our mail box which indicates specifically which service was performed; applicable instructions are outlined, on demand, if necessary. This is like getting a 'report card' for our lawn which evaluates the shape of our grass with lots of valuable feedback and advice. Also within this 'report' there is an evaluation concerning the colour of our lawn which is: currently GREEN, the density of it, is currently THICK and the stautus of weeds is indicated as FEW. TURF KING provides valuable diagnostic feedback to make us aware of any conerns that can NATURALLY crop up with our lawn such as Broadleaf Weeds. Once the feedback is given to us, we are aware of anything that may need tending to with regards to our lawn, and then we call the company to schedule the applicable services,which gets to the heart of the matter. Grass is part of NATURE and TURF KING is not only the KING OF GREEN but they sure know leaps and bounds about how MOTHER NATURE and GRASS go hand in hand. They know about 'bugs and grubs' and to prevent them or to get rid of them. They have a wealth of knowledge and have answered many of my lawn questions, over the years. Turf King provides a very informative and enjoyable newsletter called TURF NOTES which offers a wealth of information about grass tips and gardening tips. I love this newsletter; I learn so much from it! Gerry personalizes the newsletter which is printed in GREEN text and throughout the grass season, he tells his customers, little stories about his family. Being part of TURF KING, is like being part of one big happy family with all the same goals in mind; keeping one's grass healthy and looking its best, year after year! It is such a warm hearted newsletter with all around reading that is truly one that I lookk forward to receiving; HIGHLY EDUCATIONAL. Over the years, through these newsletters, I have learned so many grass and gardening tips, including the benefits of Aeration, information about the new natural treatments that Turf King offers to keep one's grass healthy and beyond! In TURF KING'S most recent newsletter there is advice which reads: A few weeds won't detract from the beauty of a healthy , thick green lawn. This is so true...we have a few weeds and our lawn is certainly beautiful (WE HAVE A GORGEOUS LAWN) and it is remarkably healthy, healthy, healthy! A healthy lawn is indeed a green lawn. Our lawn is a 'green carpet' of beauty, thanks to Turf King. This professional company with its intelligent knowledge, ALWAYS pampers our lawn with tender, loving care and we have one of the nicest lawns in the neighbourhood! Yes, I am bragging about our lawn because many neighbours have commented on how great it looks and I always reply, THIS IS BECAUSE OF TURF KING! Most of all, my husband and I love our lawn...it is a TURF KING creation! Our GREEN CARPET of health and beauty.... THANKS-THANKS-THANKS TO TURF KING... welcomes song birds and families of playful squirrels, which I love to watch in our outdoor world! Turf King ALWAYS welcomes feedback through e-mail communication, telephone communication or written communication. They value customer feedback and suggestions. Turf King is a very open minded company, which really aims to provide EXCELLENT customer satisfaction, which they constantly do for us. TURF KING is a company that we will always be loyal to! TURF KING truly is THE KING OF GREEN and I am sure that they have connections with MOTHER NATURE!!!!! I could go on and on about TURF KING because the proof is in the pudding, their actions speak loudly by all that they have done for our lawn and all that they continue to do for our lawn. WOW! When we moved into our house, six years ago, our lawn was a sad state but TURF KING changed that for us, QUICKLY AND EFFECTIVELY! THANK YOU TURF KING FOR BEING SUCH A COMPETENT COMPANY, WHOM WE APPRECIATE LOTS AND LOTS.

Lenna in Burlington
http://homestars.com/companies/228112-turf-king?show_review=81844

Monday, April 18, 2011

Spotty Lawn


This Kentucky bluegrass lawn had a lot of yellow spots on it. It was sodded late last fall. 
These appear to be a touch of some snow mold. A good raking will remove the dead grass and allow the new blades to push through and the lawn will soon look as good as new.




www.hamiltonturfking.ca

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Bad Case of the Thatch

Visited a lawn today.
On the front was a patch of exposed lawn.


This lawn was sodded in the past couple of years. But the thatch layer is very dense and thicker than it should be. Thatch is good and bad.

A little thatch does help to reduce moisture loss due to evaporation. A small amount can help to cushion the soil from excessive traffic and reduce the risk of compaction.

Too much thatch, however, can act more like a thatch roof. In this case, it prevents rain and water from reaching the root zone. Rain will wash off the lawn rather than seeping into the soil. Excessive thatch also reduces the amount of beneficial oxygen that can reach the roots. It can also impede the movement of fertilizers to the roots. A thick layer of thatch also is where insects like chinch bugs can reside and then cause extensive damage to the turf. And lastly, grubs, while we think of them as eating grass roots, do seem to enjoy feeding on thatch as well. This make "thatchy" lawns more likely to experience a grub attack.

Thatch as seen in the picture above is best removed by core aeration. A dethatching will only treat the symptoms. The real problem is a lack of oxygen to the microbial population that normally decomposes the thatch layer. By improving the soil structure with an aeration, the excess thatch will disappear.

Thursday, April 7, 2011

More Fiesta Results and Photos

More Fiesta Results Here

http://hamiltonturfking.ca/pdfs/Fiesta_EarlyAprilApps.pdf


Fiesta works even in cool temperatures.

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Lawn Care Challenge

This lawn is in more than rough shape. It appears to have been neglected for some time. Lawn care is certainly essential to maintaining a healthy green lawn.
The bare and thin spots did not yield any white grubs or leatherjacket larvae. The thin lawn is likely to have been caused or exasperated by chinch bug damage.
The thinned out turf coupled with a lack of nutrients has also permitted moss to get a toehold on the lawn.

Our recommendation would be to aerate and overseed heavily with a high quality lawn seed mixture that contains endophytic perennial rye, in order to restore a healthy population of grass plants in the lawn.

A program of regular applications of a high quality, slow release fertilizer will help to thicken the lawn and to increase its density.


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Friday, April 1, 2011