Lawn Care Tips

Environmental Benefits of a Healthy Lawn

Grass Reduces Greenhouse Gas - Grass absorbs greenhouse gas and converts it into life-giving oxygen.   A 2,500 square foot lawn converts enough carbon dioxide into oxygen to sustain a family of four!

Grass Is Nature's Air Conditioner - On a hot summer day, lawns will typically be 30 degrees cooler than asphalt and 14 degrees cooler than bare soil.   Aside from just creating a comfortable setting, grass also reduces energy demand by lowering the ambient temperature around a home.

Grass Purifies Water - Turf (grass) roots act as a natural environmental filter, and in combination with soil biology make lawn root zones an ideal medium for the biodegradation of contaminants that are carried in runoff water.

Grass Purifies the Air - Grass absorbs and purifies some of the worst atmospheric pollutants such as sulfur dioxide and ozone.                      

Aerating

Aerating is one of the most beneficial, but most forgotten tools in creating a healthy lawn. Over time, soil naturally becomes compacted and thatch begins to build up. This chokes your lawn’s roots and blocks fertilizers and nutrients from reaching the soil.  Aerating your lawn provides the following benefits:

• Improves the oxygen exchange between
  the soil and air

• Enhances the soils water absorption

• Improves the effectiveness of fertilizers
  and nutrients

• Encourage deep root growth

• Breaks up thatch

 

Fungus

If you begin to see brown spots in your lawn in July, it may be a lawn fungus. Some funguses are short-lived and do little damage, while others can cause long term damage or kill your grass. If needed, treatments are available to kill the fungus. If you think you may have a fungus in your lawn, please call us.

Grubs

White grubs are the most destructive insect pests of turf grasses in Kentucky. Turf is damaged when the grubs (the larval or immature stages of certain beetles) chew off the grass roots just below the soil surface killing the grass. Unfortunately, your lawn will not recover from grub damage.

Preventative treatments are applied in early June. If you would like more information about grub control, please call us at (502) 243-1600.

 

Mowing Tips

The length your lawn is mowed greatly affects its performance.  During the summer months, Eagle recommends maintaining bluegrass and fescue lawns at a length of 3½” to 4”.

Why mow at this height?

• Longer grass discourages crab grass development and helps suppress dandelions.

• Longer grass requires less water to stay green.

• Longer grass is more stress tolerant and will perform better during the hot summer months.

Additional Tips…

• Mow when the grass is dry. This will help prevent the spread of turf disease.

• Leave the clippings. Bagging your clippings actually removes valuable nutrients from your lawn.

• Don’t let your grass grow too high. You should only cut a maximum of 1/3 of its length at any time.  

• Alternate the direction you mow to prevent your grass from laying over.

• Keep your blades sharp to help reduce turf disease.

 

Is it time to Overseed?

Due to a number of natural conditions (heat, drought, insects, turf diseases, compacted soil, etc.), even the best maintained turf grass will thin out over time. As the seasons pass, your lawn will become increasingly susceptible to crabgrass and other unwanted weeds.

The best way to maintain a thick and healthy lawn is to overseed in the fall. In fact, Eagle recommends overseeding every two to four years.

Not only will overseeding improve the appearance of your lawn, but a thick and healthy lawn helps choke out crabgrass and dandelions (along with a host of other weeds). In addition, a thick fescue lawn requires less water to stay green.

 

How to Use Pre-Emergents

Pre-emergents help control and prevent the growth of over 30 unwanted weeds and grasses. The primary target of our treatment is crabgrass; however, the pre-emergent application will control a number of weeds and grasses, including chickweed, foxtail, and knotweed. Many of these weeds begin to germinate four to six weeks prior to crabgrass. 

In Kentucky, crabgrass typically germinates during the month of April. However, crabgrass can continue to germinate through August.  

Please Do Not Disturb The Soil after the pre-emergent is applied.  De-thatching, aerating, and other activities will destroy the barrier created by the pre-emergent and greatly reduce its effectiveness.

 

Watering Tips

Spring- Generally, irrigation is not needed in the spring. Mother Nature should provide all the water your lawn will need to grow and stay healthy. 

Summer-We recommend watering your lawn only as necessary to stay green and healthy. Depending on the amount of rainfall, watering once or twice per week in June and two to three times per week in July and August should be sufficient. The best time to water is between 5:00 a.m. and 8:00 a.m. Water each area of your lawn for 30-40 minutes.  Bluegrass lawns will require more water than fescue lawns. 

It is best to water longer and less often. Frequent, light watering will weaken a lawn and increase the risk of turf disease and fungus. 

Fall - Unless we are seeding your lawn, watering once or twice per week in early September should be sufficient.