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Tag: lawn care services

Start Planning Lawn Care Services Today

Posted on March 20, 2020 - 2:13 pm by

Your lawn is part of a complex urban ecosystem. The particulars of each individual system varies, but it may be made up of any number of interconnected processes and organisms, including your trees, turf, soil, and everything in between. Through symbiotic support, each level of the system interconnects and sustains the others. In particular, the soil in your lawn functions to redirect and absorb runoff, sustain plant life, and to harbor animals, insects, and microorganisms essential to a healthy lawn and healthy shrubs and trees. Maier Tree and Lawn takes a unique approach to lawn care services that considers the entire urban ecosystem, and for Rochester, MN, residents, this can mean excellent lawn health that lasts a lifetime.

Remember that every part of your lawn’s ecosystem is vital when administering effective lawn care services. Too often in lawn maintenance, factors like turf roots are addressed without also considering the roots of shrubs and trees as well. Without attending to all aspects of your turf, you may be neglecting areas that need attention or missing opportunities for better comprehensive lawn health. An ecosystem that promotes great lawn health does so by treating all components as equal contributors to a healthy whole.

Our first consideration when it comes to tree, turf, and lawn health is soil building. Maier Tree and Lawn’s lawn care services utilize green techniques to build the soil beneath your lawn and improve the growing conditions for your grass, trees, and shrubs. Our recommendations and lawn care services are proven to improve the soil that all vegetative roots need to thrive. Through proper nutrition, the right seed, green practices, and education, we can help create the right conditions for optimum growth of your lawn.

Promoting the healthy and beautiful growth of your Rochester, MN, turf, lawn, trees, and shrubs is our ultimate goal at Maier Tree and Lawn. If you’re interested in improving lawn health or are looking into other lawn care services, contact us today at (507) 286-8733.

Is Your Lawn Mower Blade Sharp or Dull?

Posted on June 24, 2013 - 4:27 pm by

Have you ever had your mower blade checked to ensure it is sharp enough to cut your grass correctly? Did you know that a dull mower blade can cause damage to grass which can lead to greater turf maintenance costs and requirements? Hopefully you’ve answered “Yes!” to the above questions, but if not (or even if you did…), please, read on!

Regardless of how sharp you keep your mower blade, every time you mow the turfgrass is put through a period of “shock” from the cutting. When a blade of grass is severed the remaining grass plant must go through a period of healing to seal the cut. A sharp blade cuts cleanly through the grass blade and leaves a nice, straight slice which minimizes the shock to the plant and the time required for healing. On the other hand, a dull blade will not cut so sharply. Even though the grass is “cut,” the blades are shredded, ripped, and torn which causes the grass plant to endure an extended period of healing and water loss. A grass plant that endures a nice, clean slice is far less likely to suffer prolonged damage or disease, while a blade that is badly torn can take days to recover, experience tremendous water loss, and may become infected or infested with microbes or unwanted insects.

If you’re handy with tools and know your way around a mower, sharpening your own blade isn’t that difficult. Many retail locations sell a blade sharpening grinding stone designed specifically for mower blades. You can also purchase a tool that will hold the blade in place when you are removing the bolt which secures the blade to the engine shaft.

Your owner’s manual should have instruction on proper maintenance, and even if you can’t find your manual, a quick check of the internet with make and model of your mower in hand will get you to a manufacturer’s website. If you don’t feel comfortable with sharpening your own blade that’s quite alright – the dealer where you purchased your mower may provide this type of service, and there are many professional companies in our area that will perform this work for you. Regardless of which works best for you, a sharp blade always works best for your lawn! By maintaining a sharp blade, your blades of grass will benefit tremendously!

Is Your Yard Ready for Spring?

Posted on April 12, 2013 - 5:08 pm by

It’s that time of year again – springtime is upon us, and in Rochester, MN, it’s almost a full month early! If you haven’t already done so, it’s time to pull the lawn mower out of the shed, unearth the gardening tools from the dark depths of the garage, and uncover the grill.

As you’re enjoying the warmth of the sun, the heady fragrance of blooms and the char-broiled scent of grilled food, take a look around you and take stock of your yard.  How did your trees and decorative bushes fare over the winter?  Do the bushes look a bit misshapen or on the verge of taking over more than their allotted space?  Do the trees hang low and have dangerous limbs?

While puttering in the yard can be a soothing and rewarding task, the big stuff can be time consuming, physically demanding, and sometime just plain dangerous for the untrained or unskilled homeowner.  And it should not be taken lightly!  There are precautions to take when firing up a chainsaw, or standing on a ladder (but never do both).

If the do-it-yourself stuff is getting out of hand, or diminishing the pleasure you get from gardening, give Maier Tree & Lawn a call!  We specialize in maintaining the overall health and beauty of your trees and lawn, and will gladly give you a free estimate on how to enhance your great outdoors!

Help Your Lawn Survive the Salt Assault

Posted on March 18, 2013 - 4:52 pm by

What a winter it has been! We’ve seen almost every type of winter weather possible, from sub zero nights to above freezing days, and storms that threw the entire gamut of possible winter precipitation at us – snow, hail, sleet, rain, freezing rain, and that could all fall in just a 10 minute period! Along with the previous winter, we’ve seen more icing situations than usual, and where there’s ice, there’s salt. Salt is the economical choice for melting and clearing ice from roadways and sidewalks. There are different types of ice melting products available, but most contain sodium chloride (NaCl), which is simple salt. When the plow truck goes by it is treating the road with a combination of sand and rock salt. If you buy a bag of deicer to toss on your driveway and sidewalks it may be regular rock salt or a product that combines sodium chloride with calcium chloride or magnesium chloride. Salt is a necessary evil when battling icy winter conditions, but an unwelcomed evil when we get into the grass growing season.

The good news is that most grass varieties sown and grown in Minnesota are generally resilient against the effects of salt. So what is the bad news? Salt and other chlorides can accumulate in the soil over the years. Although these nasty substances can be leached from the soil by adequate rain and watering, we entered the winter in a drought condition with a serious moisture deficit. Currently, we are still in a drought and over 7 inches below the usual moisture we should have received since January 1st. As the snow along the streets and sidewalks melt, the salts and sands applied will settle onto and into the ground. How many times have you put down salt only to find yourself shoveling or snow blowing a few hours or days later? Depending on where you live, the plow truck may have thrown a fair amount of snow, sand and salt into your yard many, many times. If you use a snow blower, you’ve probably distributed salt products across your yard as well. The grass may be resilient, but the continuing dry weather and constant assault of these salt items doesn’t help your lawn or your urban ecosystem. However, there are solutions to this problem which can save your lawn and help preserve and enhance the ability of the grass to survive.

Maier Tree & Lawn can help you with this challenging problem. With our expert green care services we can test your soil, determine what your lawn requires to regain and retain a optimal level of support, and help your lawn by applying the required products and nutrients to help your lawn recover quickly and remain adequately nourished. Our green care services provide many stand alone options which are also available in our Multi-step Lawn Care Packages. Give us a call and we’ll be happy to discuss your concerns and help you set-up the best lawn care service to benefit your yard. Don’t wait until the last of winter’s white has melted away – contact Maier Tree & Lawn today so we can give your yard the boost it needs to become the lush and luxurious lawn you desire!