Its January!!!! Check Your Trees and Plants!!!!

Since we have had this horrible summer of drought(2011), we need to do some maintenance on trees and shrubs. This a good time to do as follows:

1.Fertilization on Trees and Shrubs!---I feel it is important especially to fertilize trees during this time since sap goes dormant in the winter time. Special fertilizers are used to help our trees transition during the past drought and to get ready for future harsh weather. Aeration on tree are important at least every two years to help give oxygen,water, and fertilization down to the core of the feeder roots. Shrubs need a quick spread of triple 14. Ask us about applying these chemicals @ arborlifedesigns@gmail.com or 281-914-7788.

2.Pruning Deadwood and Looking for dead trees-It is important to be aware of dead limbs or dead trees for they can be a liability on your property and could harm you.

3.Wrap Back flows and other outdoor pipes for possible freeze! Since our cold season has started a little late this year that would be advised to be done since we might have a couple of freezes coming up.

4.Drainage-Look at possible issues in your drainage that could be affecting your sod and plants!

All these steps are important to get us ready for the spring coming up! Hope all had a great break!

Arbor Life
281-914-7788
arborlifedesigns@gmail.com

Fall and Autumn Landscaping

I am soo glad the temperatures have come down! It was a hot summer and this a good time to re look at your outdoor environment! Here are some tips this Fall 2011:

1.Plants Alive??Check your existing plants and see if they are going to be replaced. There are many plants that are durable going into the winter that we can replace and will help get you ready for the holidays.

2. New Movement of older material-If you would still like to enjoy some of you most favorite summer flowers, you could transplant them in containers and bring them in every night. Or if you are not that ambitious you can cover you plants up at night to avoid the frost. Either way you are prolonging you enjoyment.

3.Specialty Color...Mums!!!Also in late summer there are a variety of mums that can be planted. These are one of the most hardy when dealing with the cold weather of October.

4.Suggestion for Color: is trees that you plant in your yard. You can go from bright yellows to fiery red. Some of the best choices are sugar maples, birch, ash ginkgo, red bud,beech, hickory, butternut, honey locust and the tulip tree just to name a few out there. Do some searching on the net. It seems like they are coming up with new hybrids every year, and you could possibly be the first on to have the new breed of tree and having the neighbors asking what kind of tree is that? Where did you get it?

5.Check Sprinklers and Dead limbs and trees: Make sure during this season you walk around your property for possible issues with your trees and turn your sprinkler on to see if zones are working property.

If you have any further questions feel free to email us at: arborlife@arborlife.com

Regards,

Arbor Life

Advantages of having a Mosquito System

The mosquito product market is jam packed with effective, and not-so-effective, products. From body sprays to lantern repellents to citronella candles, there are lots of choices. But if you’re committed to comprehensive mosquito control, mosquito misting systems is hard to pass up. Here’s why:

• Systems cover the perimeter of your yard, not just parts of it (depending on your installation).
• Mosquito misting devices provide automatic spraying so you don’t have to worry with daily maintenance.
• The cost for effective mosquito control is most economical long term.
• Mosquito misting is set up by licensed pest management professionals, ensuring that your solution is set up correctly with the best chance for success.
• Call Arbor Life for more information on our systems: arborlife@arborlife.com
  

Your Lawn

1. Pick Up a Rake and Make Those Dead Leaves Covering Your Lawn Disappear. Leaves left on your lawn will lock out the light and air. A thick layer of leaves can actually smother your lawn.
2. Give Your Lawn a Good Last Mow. Once your grass becomes dormant, you can lower your cutting height to one inch for warm-season grasses and two inches for cool-season grasses. Leaving your lawn longer than two inches may trap moisture, setting the stage for diseases to develop in the spring.
3. For Your Final Mowing of the Season, It's Okay to Leave a Little Mulch. Leave clippings and leaves on your lawn; not a blanket, just a sprinkling. Mulch can return nitrogen back into the soil over the winter and spring.
4. Give Your Lawn Some Breathing Room. Your lawn may have become impacted over the summer with heavy use. This can restrict movement of air and water, and any lawn fertilizer you apply won't be able to penetrate the soil if it's compacted. Aerating your lawn in late fall will give it a chance to breathe. You can rent a good aerating tool for about $100.00, or you can pay a lawn maintenance service to do it for you for about the same price, without the hard work (still hard work, but for someone else).
5. If You Still Have Sparse Patches by Winter, Seed Bare Areas. Cooler weather will allow the seeds to germinate without weeds encroaching. Aeration will improve germination. Your lawn should fill in before the ground freezes.
6. Your Lawn Has Had a Summer and Fall to Accumulate Dead Grass, Roots, and Other Debris Known As Thatch. This stuff usually accumulates between the blades and sod, and can keep air and water from reaching the soil. There are good de- thatching tools available for this task, or you can have a lawn maintenance service do this for you, as well.
7. To Strengthen Your Lawn and Prepare it for its Debut in Spring, Apply a Sustained-Release Nitrogen Lawn Fertilizer by Mid-to-late November. Just because your lawn is asleep, doesn't mean it should be starved. With cooler soil, nutrients break down slower. You want to use a sustained-release product to be sure your lawn gets the nitrogen it needs as well as the phosphorous, potassium, and partially blended sulfate required for quicker green-up in the spring. There is a Scotts fertilizer made especially for winterizing. Use a fertilizer spreader for even results.
8. Give Your Lawn One Last Good Dose of Water. This will help activate the lawn fertilizer.
9. Drain Your Sprinkler Lines and Close Down Your System. This will avoid the heartache of a frozen, and therefore broken, water pipe. In the event of a dry winter, use your garden hose to give a light sprinkling to your lawn every three weeks or so, just enough to keep it moist.
10. While Your Lawn Becomes Dormant, Weeds Still Have a Funny Way of Cropping Up. If this is a problem, apply a broad leaf weed control product to your lawn. Grab weeds as they crop up whenever possible throughout the winter.

Fertilizing Plants in the Winter Time

On Plants: It's a good idea to use a fertilizers with a higher potassium level because that is what plants seem to favor and protect plant cells from freeze injuries. Secondly, water your plants in the fall as needed. Give your plants a thorough watering before the first freeze. It is just as important to water your plants to protect them from dehydrating in the winter as it is to protect them from the cold.

Mulch: Make sure to add more mulch during the winter for this will help protect the roots of plants and help preserve moisture in the flower bed areas.

Deadwood Removal and Dead leaves:Break off dead leaves and any remaining fruit from stems. Late fall is the perfect time to do this. Follow the same rule as fertilization and stop pruning within six weeks of the first frost. It is also a good idea to remove any dead leaves on the ground around your plants. This will help prevent any fungal spores from taking root and growing on the dead leaves.

Christmas Lights Installed

Christmas Light Installation

This is our fifth year installing Christmas lights for our clients. We offer light installation on trees, houses,shrubs, and other items that need to be lit up. Let us know if you are interested in needing our services. We service the west, loop, and mid town areas of Houston on this service. Call us at 281-914-7788 or email us at : arborlife@arborlife.com

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Take All Root Rot

Here is a link on this problem that we have been having in the Houston and Beaumont area with St. Augustine.  It disquishes itself as chinch bugs. Please call if you need more application answers on this problem.

http://www.aces.edu/pubs/docs/A/ANR-0823/ANR-0823.pdf