Category: How to Landscaping
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Grass Edging Tool for Tree Rings
Yesterday, I cut a fresh edge around a couple of sugar maples with my favorite grass edging tool. We had rain and fog in the morning and the soil was soft. Perfect for edging! Spade for Grass Edging Tool Sometimes, I prefer to use a sharp spade to edge the lawn. I don’t always use…
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Spring Seeding Tips
A couple of weeks ago I performed a spring seeding of my lawn and would like to share some spring seeding tips. My goal was to fill bare spots and overseed my dog’s run. Overseeding the run is most likely a waste of time but I had to give it a try. I live in…
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3 Landscaping Pet Peeves
Some landscaping practices should be avoided. Below are my top three landscaping pet peeves. Tags left on Plants Why would anyone leave plant tags fluttering in the wind? Leaving tags on plants takes a beautiful landscape and makes it look like the side of the highway. Please remove all tags before leaving the job. I…
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Spread Less Mulch For a More Healthy Landscape
This spring I visited a home that had recently been mulched and was shocked at how deep the mulch was and how little preparation went into the job. Weeds that had been covered in mulch poked through and the mulch was easily four to five inches deep. I recommend carrying a soil knife and removing…
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How to Mulch a Tree Incorrectly
Every spring I cringe when I see freshly mulched landscapes. The more is better principle gets beaten silly and mulch spread with reckless abandon. This isn’t the first time I’ve discussed how to mulch and it won’t be the last. How to mulch correctly is a topic worth repeating. Volcano mulching is when a mound…
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Weeding Tools Recommendations
Today I used several weeding tools to maintain a garden overgrown with weeds. Truth be told it was my fault. Last fall I overseeded the lawn and some seed found its way into the beds. The gardens were a mix of grass, dandelions and chickweed. I spent the afternoon ‘hacking’ away at the weeds with my weeding tools. I’d…
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Tips for Getting Work Done
After three days of hard work I’m almost finished preparing a garden bed. It was a hard-fought victory that taught me tips for getting work done. We’ve had a mild winter and I looked forward to working with the temperature in the 50’s and 60’s. Last week the weather changed. It’s been in the low 40’s…
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Prune Lawn Trees High
I just returned from an evening walk with Theo and my forehead burns from a fresh scratch. Theo walked around a tree four feet from the road. As I went around the back a branch caught me 3 inches above the eyes. I did have a flashlight. I was looking at the ground for footing and suddenly smack! This is a…
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How Close to House to Plant Shrubs
The short answer. As far as possible. Plants are constantly growing taller and spreading wider. When planting small to medium shrubs my goal is 1-2 feet of air between the edge of a shrub and the home. Not just when I plant. For the life of the landscape. You can prune the back of a shrub, where…