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Let’s take care of the thirsty trees!

Trees are also the most expensive plant investment in our yards and consequently, the most expensive to replace. Proper watering is one critical thing you can do to help maintain that investment. They contribute to our health, and they can increase property values as much as 20% by some estimates. Their value increases as they mature, offering beauty, shade and more.

During these times of drought, we need to conserve water. But don’t turn off the water entirely. It’s easy to replace some dead lawn, but you can’t go to the nursery to buy a 30 ft maple tree if the one in your backyard dies. And it will take a long time to regrow the thousands of dollars in property value that tree represents. Trees planted in the lawn areas will get water each time you water the lawn, but trees not in the turf will need supplemental water.

Why trees need consistent water

While most Colorado lawns go dormant under drought stress, trees are not so resilient. Any combination of three weather events can mean death for a tree. For example, drought stress and insects/disease problems followed by winter storm damage can kill this valuable landscape feature.

Since we have little control over insects and disease and none over the weather, providing water is thing we can manage. Keeping a tree healthy by watering it regularly will also help it fight off pests and disease. Fertilization and proper pruning at the right time of year also bolster its viability.

Give them a drink

So be sure to water your trees—especially those that don’t get watered by your irrigation system, like street trees—during these stressful times of drought. It’s in investment into not only their health, but yours.

Click “DO IT FOR ME” to request a FREE quote.

Source: customer-service@bestyard.com in collaboration with Associated Landscape Contractors of Colorado

In this post, we will discuss why hot days don’t always grow the best veggies.

This growing season has had more than its share of heat-filled days. Super-hot days don’t always grow the best veggies.

Tomatoes, in particular, suffer during hot days combined with warm evenings. At 85 degrees, pollination and fruit set will be affected. At 95 degrees when nighttime temps are at 75 or above, flowers may fall off the plants. Prolonged days with high temperatures, as we have seen this year above 90 degrees, can slow ripening.

Cucumbers in heat stress can drop their blossoms, develop deformed fruit and have a bitter flavor.

For squash, peppers, melons, pumpkins and beans, successive days in the 90s may cause them to drop their blossoms and temporarily shut down.

Cool season crops such as broccoli, cabbage, lettuce and spinach will bolt in the heat. Wait to replant when cooler days are here to stay.

TLC for heat-stressed plants

• Check soil moisture often and water so soil remains uniformly moist.
• If your plants wilt during the hottest part of the day, know that this is their way of coping with the heat. You should see them perk up in the evening as temps cool.

Apply mulch around plants to keep the soil cool and to retain moisture.

Click “DO IT FOR ME” to request a FREE quote.

Source: customer-service@bestyard.com in collaboration with Associated Landscape Contractors of Colorado

In this post let us discuss about how to save our plant from Japanese beetles.

Japanese beetles have descended upon many Front Range communities. These exotic pests love many of our favorite plants, including roses, Virginia creeper, sunflowers, and green bean plants. But before the adult beetles wreak havoc on plants, leaving behind a lacy skeleton of leaves, their white grubs are busy at work chewing on our turf roots.

If your lawn is looking damaged, it could be due to any number of causes including heat stress. But if you are seeing Japanese beetles in your yard, they could be laying eggs in your turf and affecting its health. Luckily, some of the same techniques can help with either cause. Mow your grass higher—it promotes deeper root growth and helps turf manage the heat. Healthier roots can better withstand the grubs’ destructive behavior, so any practices that promote turf health make your lawn less susceptible to damage.

As for the adults in your plants, the best control is handpicking them and dumping them in soapy water. If you can’t control them this way, you can speak with a landscape professional about insecticides that might help. Traps are not recommended, as they have not been shown to reduce beetle damage. In fact, the lure that attracts the beetles to the traps is likely to invite even more beetles into your landscape than they capture, according to USDA, thus increasing the damage to plants.

Experts say that the simplest way to avoid losing plants to these pests is to look for plants that don’t attract them, like lilacs, hydrangea, and pines. Your local garden center or landscape professionals can help you find the right plants for your conditions that won’t bring more beetles around.

Click “DO IT FOR ME” to request a FREE quote.

Source: customer-service@bestyard.com in collaboration with Associated Landscape Contractors of Colorado

Let us discuss about lawn makeover in summer.

Now is a good time to refresh garden areas, as some annuals have likely begun to fade. Choose some perennials that will tolerate the hot days still ahead and bring color to your garden for the rest of the growing season.

Gardens are where plant science and art come together. Start by selecting plants that will grow in Colorado’s harsh hot and cold climate and that need very little water. Then select the ones you will plant based on their aesthetic value-color, texture, size, shape.

Some plants have colorful blooms while others offer interesting texture or foliage. Because they grow to different heights, taller plants will be best as a backdrop to other plants while short ones should be placed along borders and mid-sized ones should be placed between the two extremes. Consult a landscape professional or local garden center for recommendations for your landscape conditions.

Here are a few recommendations, including some from Plant Select^®, which offers low-maintenance plants that are well-suited to Colorado’s unique climates:

• Purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea) – This low-maintenance, drought-tolerant flower features colorful blooms that pollinators love.
• VERMILION BLUFFS® Mexican sage (Salvia darcyi ‘Pscarl’) – This North American native features red flowers that attract humming birds.
• Engelmann’s Daisy (Engelmannia peristenia) – These bright yellow daisies are tough perennials that can adapt to most conditions—just don’t put them in a very shady spot.

Enjoy perennials for the variety they offer in phases throughout the growing season.

Click “DO IT FOR ME” to request a FREE quote.

Source: customer-service@bestyard.com in collaboration with Associated Landscape Contractors of Colorado

July is a peak month during which your lawn and garden demand a lot of water. The outdoor water usage increases and this is the time when we all should use water efficiently. Governor Jared Polis has pronounced July as the month of Smart Irrigation. The aim of taking this initiative is to promote efficient usage of water and thereby helping save water and money in return.

BestYard.com is also supporting this campaign and help to improve the irrigation system over time with sprinklers. This practice not only saves water but your money and time involved watering your garden and lawn. Unlike Traditional common fixed head nozzles that throw a large amount of water than the soil can absorb, modern sprinklers send out water at a slow rate so that the soil can absorb properly.

The uneven spread of the water with this traditional nozzle can harm the lawn creating brown spots to the landscape due to uneven coverage of the water. The modern rotary nozzle sprinkler heads can be one of the best equipment to spray water in the entire garden. It also helps from wasting a large amount of water and protects community water supplies. These smart irrigation techniques like high-efficiency sprinklers rotate and spray streams of water.

Let us take a brief at the benefits of high-efficiency rotary nozzles.

• Can be installed very easily
• Increased range of water spray
• Less water wastage and an appropriate amount of water flow per minute
• More efficient in wind
• Reduces runoff in the sloppy area and clay soil

Smart controllers

The smart controllers are very much in need. It is said that for more than 9 billion gallons of water is used for outdoor mainly for irrigation. Around 50% of water is wasted by traditional irrigation systems. However, with the evolution of smart irrigation control technologies, the water is only applied when plants need it. The overuse or unnecessary use of water is controlled considerably with this smart technique.

Water Sense, an irrigation controller, acts as a thermostat for sprinkling water. This system tells when to turn on and off. This control system uses local weather and landscape conditions to schedule the flow of water. By using a controller with a clock and present schedule, you don’t have to worry about watering the plants.

This Water Sense labeled controller system allows the watering schedule to match the needs of the plants. This controller system can be properly installed, maintained, and programmed so that homeowners and businesses can use this device instead of a standard clock timer to control the water wasted. This system also has wifi or Bluetooth to connect to the mobile device and this way, you can easily have control.

The Water Sense controlling system controls the landscape irrigation system and meets the watering needs of a landscape without overwatering the lawn/garden. This certified device ensures to meet the criteria of efficiency and performance.

Cycle and Soak Method for your landscape

In case your lawn or garden is in the sloppy area and tightly packed clay soil, you might have noticed water pooling or running off your site. At this time, you should use the “cycle and soak” method that allows water to soak in the soil. The controller system named WaterSense supports this method.

Let us take a brief look at what cycle and soak method means:

Water momentarily and let it soak in

The cycle-and-soak method is pretty simple. You just need to put some water on the plants and the soil and wait till the soil absorbs the water before adding more to it. The cycle is created when you water other areas and wait for the already watered area to soak.

Timer cycles

You can also program the irrigation system to cycle through each zone for some time and then go back to the first again. This way the cycle will continue and excess of watering the plants will be reduced. This process will prevent water from pooling on the surface and allow the soil and plants to absorb the water.

Bonus Rebates

As per Tejral, the cost of the highly productive and efficient rotary sprinkler heads has come down over the years. The price of per nozzles ranges from $5 to $7 and the typically fixed head ranges from $1.50 to $3per nozzle. You can get nozzles from Denver Water and they offer rebates on selected models of highly efficient rotary sprinkler heads. These highly efficient sprinklers are used to water grass and other parts of the garden.

You can also get rebates from Aurora Water, Parker Water, Centennial Water, and Castle Rock Water.

BestYard.com has a team of Sprinkler technicians to do the work from you. You just have to seek our help.

Source: Denver Water. Determine the type of sprinkler head or nozzle you have to get recommended watering times.

A sample water-saving calculation is on the left column.  Use the right column to estimate your potential water savings.

OF COURSE we would love to care for your yard.
BUT, whether we provide for your yard or not, we want it to be the best it can be.
THEREFORE, we want to provide you the best professional advice for your lawn care in this guide.
THIS IMPROVES our neighborhoods, community, and environment. 

P. S.  Beat the Summer Heat!  Let us upgrade your sprinklers, or install Moisture Manager and Mulch.

You enjoy your weekend.
If this sounds good to you, CALL 720-851-7550 or click the Do It For Me button below to discuss your lawn care needs or request your FREE quote and claim your Gift Certificate.   

BestYard.com provides mulch, sprinkler, and Moisture Manager services in Aurora, Parker, The Pinery, Pradera, Castle Rock, Castle Pines, Lone Tree, and Highlands Ranch, Colorado.

Source: customer-service@bestyard.com in collaboration with Associated Landscape Contractors of Colorado

Distress your lawn by professional watering techniques,

Is your lawn overcome by the heat? Some lawns are showing signs of stress and some are turning brown. But resist the urge to simply water more.

First, check what’s going on with the lawn. There are fungus problems that can turn your lawn brown — almost overnight. And if you crank up the water, you’ll only make it worse.

Before you increase watering times, do the screwdriver test to make sure the soil really is dry. Push a screwdriver into the soil and if it goes easily into the soil, don’t water more now. Let the soil dry out a little and water again. Water-logged soil can damage the lawn more than letting it get too dry.

If you have patches of brown or stressed lawn, again begin with the screwdriver test to make sure soil is dry. If it is, you may have a sprinkler problem that’s keeping water from reaching that area. Don’t make your whole sprinkler system run longer just for a few brown spots. Run the sprinkler and watch it to see if a sprinkler head is damaged or pointing in the wrong direction.

Practice cycle-and-soak watering. If you usually water an area of lawn about 15 minutes, for example, then don’t apply all the water within one 15-minute timeframe. Watering all at once creates run-off and wasted water your plants won’t get to use.

Instead, break the watering time into three intervals so that the water runs for about 5 minutes, and then take a break. This break gives the water time to soak into the soil. It is easy to schedule these cycle-and-soak intervals with the timer on your sprinkler system. Check the manual, look for a video online that walks you through the steps, or consult a landscape professional to help you troubleshoot your turf issues and properly schedule your sprinkler.

Finally, mow high and leave the clippings during a heat wave. The clippings help keep the moisture in the lawn, which will help your lawn survive the summer heat.

Click “DO IT FOR ME” to request a FREE quote.

Source: customer-service@bestyard.com in collaboration with Associated Landscape Contractors of Colorado

In this weeks post, we will discuss about Native/Non-native plants.

Colorado’s wild temperature swings, hard freezes, and dry conditions make it a challenge to grow plants, especially non-natives that many people expect to see in a beautiful landscape. But as drought spreads throughout the state, it might be time to adjust expectations and consider more native plants.

Native plants, which occur naturally in our region, have a healthy relationship with our ecosystem and wildlife. These plants support native birds, bees and other pollinators and are suited to growing in our state’s unique conditions. Some species like Monarch butterflies deposit their eggs on only one kind of plant—milkweed. Others aren’t quite so picky, but still prefer certain plants for their eggs. Without the plants they need to lay their eggs, we won’t have the food source of those emerging caterpillars and insects that feed 96% of our songbirds.

Non-native plants can be beautiful, but they can also require more resources to thrive. As you add new plants to your landscape, consider natives like Rocky Mountain Columbine. It looks delicate, but this beautiful bloom is well-suited to our climate. Yarrow is another flowering native perennial that adds color to your landscape and also can be used as a cut flower indoors.

When you add more natives in our yards, you’re supporting the native ecosystem, saving water, and saving work with these lower maintenance “locals.”

Click “DO IT FOR ME” to request a FREE quote.

Source: customer-service@bestyard.com in collaboration with Associated Landscape Contractors of Colorado

In this week post, lets discuss about Mid-summer garden check-up.

At this point in the summer, your gardening to-do list should be mostly about maintenance. Keep weeding and deadheading flowers like dahlias, marigolds, and salvia. Keep an eye out for emerging pests and fungus like aphids or powdery mildew and be proactive before they can wreak havoc on your garden plants.

If you’ve got bearded irises in your landscape, now is the time to divide them. Overcrowding can result in fewer blooms or no blooms at all, so it’s a good idea to divide and replant them every few years.

To divide your irises:

• Trim the leaves, leaving a fan of leaves that is about a third of their height. (If you divided your irises last year, you should still do this step each summer.)
• Gently dig the rhizomes, shaking off excess dirt.
• Separate the rhizomes, making sure that each one has a healthy fan of leaves. You may need a sharp blade for this task. If the rhizomes are clumped together, run them under a hose to get rid of clay-like soil so you can more easily separate them.
• Plant the rhizomes, properly spaced about a foot or two apart. Don’t plant too deeply. While you should be sure that the roots are planted and spread out in the dirt to give them room to grow, rhizomes should be visible at the soil surface. PlantTalk Colorado^TMrecommends that you plant them so that the fans all face the same direction so that the plants don’t grow into each other.

You may find that you need to find new places to plant all of the rhizomes. If you’ve run out of space in your own landscape, be a friendly neighbor and offer the extra rhizomes for others to enjoy.

We hope you enjoy some quality time in your landscape this Independence Day weekend.

Click “DO IT FOR ME” to request a FREE quote.

Source: customer-service@bestyard.com in collaboration with  Associated Landscape Contractors of Colorado

Governor Polis has declared July Smart Irrigation Month.

July is a peak month for outdoor water use and a good time to make sure you’re using irrigation efficiently.

In July, BestYard.com is sending a series of 5 Secrets to help you save water, money and time in caring for your lawn and garden landscape.

The 1st week was all about sprinkler system efficiency.

This week presents a New Lawn Chemistry Technology – That Saves up to 30 – 50% on your Watering Bill!

• Are you upset at the high costs of watering your yard
• Do you want to reduce your watering cost?
• Are you concerned that drought conditions will damage your yard?
• Do you still want to have a beautiful, lush green healthy lawn?

How Does It Work? 

Tiny granules of a new, patented wetting agent attract water molecules out of the air and surface areas to deliver moisture to your lawn’s root system for 3 months.

Results
Lawn Drought Stress Test in July

Left – treated with Moisture Manager                                 Right – not treated

Flowers with Moisture Manager                                Without Moisture Manager

Is it Expensive?

This treatment is comparable to the cost of a regular fertilizer application and is dependent on the square footage of your lawn. It lasts up to 3 months, is comparable in cost to a regular fertilizer application.

Is It Safe for My Family & Pets?

Yes.  They can be on the yard immediately after application.

• Lawn Benefits include:
• Increase water penetration in root zone.
• Reduce Water Bills 20% to 50% by increasing irrigation efficiency.
• Less Lawn Disease.
• Improved Lawn Color.
• Maximizes Your Fertilizer & Control absorption in the soil and roots.
• Reduces runoff on sloped areas so low areas aren’t wet and high areas aren’t dry.

Need More Proof?

Click SiteOne Landscape Supply – Moisture Manager to see a YouTube presentation of this new chemistry, how & why it works, more before and after pictures, and verified scientific studies by University of Florida, Clemson University, Ohio State University, and Penn State University of water saving up to 50%. (At 7:24 it is quite through, check it out.)

• OF COURSE, we would love to care for your yard.
• BUT, whether we provide for your yard or not, we want it to be the best it can be.
• THEREFORE, we want to provide you the best professional advice for your lawn care in this guide.
• THIS IMPROVES our neighborhoods, community, and environment.

P. S.  Let us save you money on your watering bill with BestYard.com’s Moisture Manager, or upgrading your sprinkler system to be more efficient.  You enjoy your weekend.  

If this sounds good to you, CALL: 720-851-7550 or click the: Do It For Me button below to discuss your sprinkler system needs or request your FREE quote.BestYard.com provides Moisture Manager and Sprinkler services in Aurora, Parker, The Pinery, Pradera, Castle Rock, Castle Pines, Lone Tree, and Highlands Ranch, Colorado.

Source: customer-service@bestyard.com in collaboration with  Associated Landscape Contractors of Colorado

In this post, Lets discuss about saving water with technology.

Much of Colorado is experiencing some form of drought right now. It’s a reminder that water is a valuable and limited resource, especially in our state. Since July is Smart Irrigation Month, consider how you can use technology to use water more efficiently, which saves money while protecting this critical resource. The Irrigation Association offers these tips in using tech to save water while keeping your landscape healthy:

• Don’t think twice about smart upgrades
  Take the guesswork out of irrigation by upgrading to a smart controller. Weather- and soil moisture- based controllers automatically adjust the watering schedule based on conditions at your location.
• Use drip irrigation
  Drip or “low pressure, low volume” irrigation applies water directly to the base or roots of plants. These systems are ideal for watering individual plants and smaller landscape areas slowly and precisely.
• Watch your sprinklers
  Inspect your sprinkler heads regularly to make sure they are not obstructed or watering onto pavement.
• Save on your next upgrade
  Many water utilities offer rebates for certain water-efficient products. Before upgrading to your new system, consult with your local water provider to see if they offer rebates in your area.

We hope you enjoy some quality time in your landscape this Independence Day weekend.

Click “DO IT FOR ME” to request a FREE quote.

Source: customer-service@bestyard.com in collaboration with  Associated Landscape Contractors of Colorado