We have been providing lawn care services in Calgary for three generations now, and take no greater satisfaction than from a perfect expanse of freshly cut, bright green and lush grass. Fostering a yard or commercial property to be its most healthy and, thus, spectacular, is what we do, and we are very good at it. Unlike many other lawn care companies, we are fully invested in your commercial or residential property, and will do everything we can do ensure it looks its best. Inviting outdoor spaces help encourage time spent outdoors, which leads to a more active and enjoyable lifestyle. Plus, they improve the overall look and feel of our city, which encourages others to do the same and helps everyone maintain their property values.
Here are a few basic lawn care tips we are happy to pass along in the spirit of maintaining beautiful outdoor spaces for everyone to enjoy.
Length to Cut Your Grass
During the spring and fall when the weather is a bit cooler, grass should be kept at a height of about two-and-a-half inches. During the summer, grass should be allowed to grow a little bit higher, to three inches tall. This allows for sufficient shade for the roots and soil so that moisture doesn’t simply evaporate away. Without this protection, grass will “burn,” leaving expanses of dead, yellow lawns.
Proper mowing does help stimulate healthy growth, but it is imperative that you do not cut too much off each time you mow. The general rule of thumb is to trim off no more than one-third of the total length. So in order to keep your grass at the optimal height of two-and-a-half inches, you should mow when blades reach three-and-three-quarters inches high (or earlier).
Fixing Yellow Spots
It doesn’t matter if it’s the result of your pet doing their business, or just Calgary’s winters leaving grass patchy, yellow spots are annoying.
Here’s what to do. Rake out the dead grass until there is bare dirt, and then make sure to loosen up the top layer of soil with a little bit more raking. Then put down a shallow layer of topsoil, and spread grass seed generously. Add a little bit more topsoil, mix in the seed, then throw down a final layer of seed to finish it off.
Seed needs lots of water to grow, so it’s important to keep the area constantly moist until you can see a fair amount of new shoots. Target your seeded areas with hand-watering until the grass is fully mature.
Trimming
Trimming, done with what we call a weed whipper, isn’t easy. Dragging around a power cord for electric models is tricky. Gas models are heavy. Threading them properly is complicated.
They are very good at what they do, however, if used properly. Most trimmers rotate counter-clockwise, making a right to left swing the most practical motion to use. The guard is aligned with the intended swing direction, too, making it safer to operate it that way than the reverse. You want to keep the head off of the ground, and to feed your trimmer, just tap. Stay well away from shrubs and trees, as trimmers can badly damage bark and allow for pests and disease to get in.
Watering Your Lawn
We highly recommend underground irrigation systems for both residential and commercial properties. They save time, money, and water, and help greatly reduce the effort involved in lawn care. We can plan and install your irrigation system to specifically target your garden beds and lawns with directed sprinklers specially designed for those areas.
Underground irrigation systems also make it easy to water at the best time of the day, which is early morning. You can just set your timer and forget about it. In the morning the air is cooler, which means that less water will evaporate before it has a chance to seep into the soil. We recommend from 4 to 9 a.m. for watering.
It’s also better to water less often but more deeply. Water should reach down to the bottom of the root system, which is usually about 6 inches. When we set up your system we will test for the optimal watering length and program your timer accordingly.
Fertilizing and Aerating
Aerating and fertilizingare essential lawn care tasks. When we carry out your spring clean up we will aerate your lawn to give it its best start for the summer. Aerators basically use knives or punches to puncture the soil of your lawn and introduce air to the root system of the grass to promote new growth. Aerating also allows water to get directly to the roots of the grass. The deeper that water can penetrate the soil, the more deep root development in the grass is promoted and the less useless water run-off is produced. Watering becomes more efficient and grass becomes more drought resistant too, something that may come into play later on this summer.
Fertilizing introduces the essential nutrients of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium to your lawn. Fertilizing then watering is absolutely necessary, as fertilizer must combine with the water to work properly. As the nutrients dissolve into the soil, grass grows deeper roots in search of them. The end result is thick, lush, green, and gorgeous grass.
Contact Mirage for All of Your Southeast Calgary Landscaping Services
Mirage Landscaping is a family-owned company specializing in residential and commercial lawn care services for these southeast Calgary districts and communities:
Auburn Bay, Chaparral, Chaparral Valley, Copperfield, Cranston, Douglasdale, Heritage Pointe, Lake Bonavista, Mahogany, McKenzie Lake, Mackenzie Towne, Maple Ridge, New Brighton, Odgen/Lynwood/Millican, Parkland, Riverbend, Sundance, Walden, and Willow Park.
We are your outdoor ally all year round. Get started today by contacting Mirage for a fast, free project quote.