Author Archives: Kagen Knudsen

Lawn Care Draper UT – VIRIDIS LAWNS

Posted by Kagen Knudsen on February 25, 2015 in Lawn Care Tips. 0 Comments

Do you live in Draper Utah and/or do you want your lawn to be the pride of the neighbor?

VIRIDIS Lawn Care of Draper UT knows how much pride a beautiful landscape can bring you. Enjoying your lush lawn and beautiful gardens can make the time, money, and effort you put in, worth it. For some, even after all that effort, your hard work can be thwarted by a neighbor’s negligence. While you may keep your landscape weeded, mowed, and cared for, nearby neighbors may not, and that can quickly become your problem.

Do Your Neighbors in Draper UT let their weeds get out of control?

Are you dealing with neighbors weeds in your lawn in draper?

Neighbors allowing weeds to grow unattended can spread the problem rapidly. Birds and wind can scatter weed seeds into your property where they can take root and spread. Other weeds spread through root systems, which get stronger and harder to kill when neglected. These weeds may show up near your property lines or can end up 20 feet away. So what do you do? While nothing will guarantee you remain weed free, here are some things that can help deter those weeds.

Keep your lawn thick and healthy. The denser your grass, the less chance for a weed plant to crop up. Seeds usually need a bare spot to fall into in order to sprout. Reseed with grass seed any time your lawn looks sparse or has bare areas. Fertilize your lawn appropriately to help encourage strong root growth and healthy plants.
Mulching gardens and beds can do the same thing as growing a dense lawn – remove bare spots for seeds to get a start. Laying down a layer of mulch can also help your gardens grow healthier and use less water, a win-win situation.
Consider trenches, shrubs, fences, rock walls, or ground cover along the property line. You may want to discuss this with your neighbor and, it could be a great way to courteously bring up the problem their weeds are causing. Weeds have a hard time growing through rocks or in very shady areas. Fencing, such as a wooden privacy fence, can help block weeds that travel through seeds blown on a breeze. Trenching allows you to pull the weeds that creep into the trench and mow right up to its edge. Erecting these suggestions can help prevent their weeds from sneaking across the border into your lawn.
Stay on top of the weeds! Don’t get discouraged and ignore them for weeks. The more diligent you are in removing them, the better off your lawn and gardens will be. Using weed sprays, pulling or hoeing, or hiring a professional lawn care service such as VIRIDIS Lawn Care Draper UT to help with weed control are the best options. Ignoring them will only allow them to go to seed in your property which will cause way more problems later on.

Lastly, but possibly most importantly, try talking to your neighbor about the effect their weeds are having on your landscape. They may not realize the harm they are causing you or perhaps don’t know what to do about the problem. Offer suggestions and your help. A little neighborliness from you can do wonders.

Affordable Lawn Care Salt Lake City, Great Rates!

Posted by Kagen Knudsen on February 6, 2015 in Affordable Lawn Care. 0 Comments

There is nothing better than hiring a lawn care company to maintain your lush green lawn when you simply don’t have the time or the desire to do so. How do you find an affordable lawn care in Salt Lake City… without reducing the quality of your lawn care?

You have 2 options: Option One is to try it yourself and get nowhere fast, or Option Two is to get yourself a good Lawn Care company in Salt Lake City to do the job. Mind you, the trick is to work out who is a good Lawn Care company, and who is not!

Salt Lake City Lawn care company

Basically, a good affordable Lawn Care in Salt Lake City Company can achieve results that you would not think possible as professional Lawn Care Specialists; they have access to a range of professional turf and lawn care products that are not available to the DIY home owner. The reason why these professional Lawn Care products are not available to the homeowner is that they are simply not registered for home owner use.

Cost is a tricky concept when it comes to lawn care because of the variety of factors that must be considered. Some people simply look at the cost of hiring a lawn care company in Utah as unnecessary because they can do it themselves for free. However, this isn’t really the case. If you decide to do everything yourself, here are some of the costs that you will incur. You will spend several hours working on your lawn. You will need to figure out the right fertilizer combination for you lawn type. Not all lawns in Salt Lake City are the same. Therefore they shouldn’t be “treated” the same.

VIRIDIS Lawn Care Salt Lake City rates are very affordable. Starting as low as $ 42.00 for lawn treatment, here is a breakdown of exactly what you will get.

Lawn Assessment
Fertilization
Weed Control
Surface Insect Control
Lawn disease prevention/treatment

A lawn care professional is trained to know exactly what to put on your lawn and what time of year to do it. If you are still asking yourself, “Why should I hire a lawn care company”, then you should look at these three factors and see how they affect you. If you are a person who honestly enjoys taking care of your own lawn, then by all means, keep doing it yourself. However, if you are doing it yourself for purely economical, time, or quality related reasons, then you may want to reconsider whether or not it would be better to hire a lawn care company for your lawn.

When it comes to beautiful green lush lawn; at affordable rates VIRIDIS is your answer to lawn care. If you want to really ensure that your front lawn will look good, you can hire the best lawn care service in Utah. We have the ample experience and expertise when it comes to lawn concerns. Some folks fail to create a breathtaking lawn because they don’t have the proper knowledge. Handing the task to professionals will secure you a great looking front yard.

VIRIDIS Lawns team of professionals promise that they will work really hard to greatly reduce the amount of weeds in your yard, and they will also get your grass to look it is greenest! I think you will be very pleasantly surprised by just how wonderful lawn care Salt Lake City team can get your yard to look! You will be amazed by the transformation! Best of luck to you, and I hope that you have a great experience with whatever Salt Lake City lawn care company that you choose to hire!

Phosphorus is essential for your lawn

Posted by Kagen Knudsen on February 4, 2015 in Lawn Care Tips. 0 Comments

Some nutrients are essential for a healthy lawn. Understanding these nutrients can help you make decisions on types and amounts of fertilizer to apply to your grass. Let VIRIDIS Lawn Care of Sandy Utah, explain how and why phosphorus is important to have available to your lawn.

Phosphorus is one of the essential nutrients required for lawn health and growth. This is the second number on fertilizer bags following nitrogen and followed by potassium. Phosphorus helps new lawns get a great start by encouraging strong root growth which allows the grass to withstand more stressful environments and use the nutrients in the ground more fully. It also helps plants to mature more rapidly. Applying a fertilizer containing phosphorus can also strengthen already established lawns when the soil doesn’t contain adequate amounts.

While some phosphorus is good for root, leaf and flower growth, too much phosphorus can run off into water causing pollution and algae buildup which can damage waterways and kill fish. It moves through the soil slowly and plants require small amounts so over applying is common. Some states encourage fertilizing without phosphorus to reduce the runoff risk. Soil testing every few years can help insure you aren’t over applying phosphorus to your ground. Also, apply fertilizers containing phosphorus when the soil is dry or moist rather than saturated with water to help decrease runoff. Avoid overwatering to the point of water running down your sidewalk or driveway any time phosphorus has been applied to your lawn. This is also a healthy lawn practice regardless of fertilizers applied.

This nutrient is often available in the soil in adequate amounts but a lack of phosphorus can cause stunted growth, especially in young, recently planted grass. Hiring a professional to analyze and apply fertilizer can help you prevent over applying this essential but potentially harmful nutrient to your lawn. Let VIRIDIS Lawn Care take care of your lawn’s nutrient needs and fertilizer requirements.

Some nutrients are essential for a healthy lawn

Posted by Kagen Knudsen on February 4, 2015 in Lawn Care Tips. 0 Comments

Some nutrients are essential for a healthy lawn. Understanding these nutrients can help you make decisions on types and amounts of fertilizer to apply to your grass. Let VIRIDIS Lawn Care of Salt Lake explain how and why nitrogen is important to have available to your lawn.

Nitrogen is one of the most important nutrients for a lawn. Grass uses more nitrogen to grow than any other nutrient. When lacking in nitrogen, grass takes on a yellowed appearance, can thin or begin to die, and have stunted growth. Fertilizing with nitrogen can help to remedy these issues and is one of the quickest ways to help green up a lackluster lawn.

Fortunately, nitrogen can be found in more than just commercial fertilizers. Grass’ own clippings can provide much of the nitrogen it requires to grow. Always leave clipping on a lawn after mowing to help supply nitrogen in a safe way to your lawn. These clippings also provides a slower release, longer lasting source of nitrogen than an application of fertilizer but won’t have as drastic or immediate results and sometimes simply can’t keep up with a lawn’s needs.

Over application of nitrogen fertilizer can be detrimental to your lawn’s health and appearance. Over fertilizing can, at the least, cause grass to have too much top growth rather than developing a strong root system. At worst, it can burn and kill a lawn and leach into groundwater. Knowing the correct amount to apply can be complicated as different grass varieties as well as weather conditions and soil types can all affect the rate of absorption and required amount of nitrogen. Hiring a professional can insure that the correct application occurs to prevent your lawn from harm and encourage optimal growth. Let VIRIDIS Lawn Care take care of your lawn’s nutrient needs and fertilizer requirements.

Boxelder Bugs and your lawn

Posted by Kagen Knudsen on January 22, 2015 in Lawn Care Tips, Pest Control. 0 Comments

Among the many threats to your home, some of the worst can be insects. The variety of bugs that become a nuisance is amazing. VIRIDIS Lawn Care of Salt Lake City Utah can help with pest control so you can keep your lawn lush and beautiful throughout the summer months and your home protected from an invasion of unwanted insects.

Being informed is critical to identifying, controlling, and preventing insect infestations. Following is information on a familiar lawn pest – boxelder bugs.

These red lined black bugs are about ½ inch in length and stink when squished, leaving a purplish stain. Generally, their smell is the greatest threat they pose, feeding on a variety of trees but rarely causing damage to any landscaping.

The worst time of year for boxelder bugs to become a nuisance is late summer and early fall. They begin seeking shelter for the upcoming winter which will often drive them indoors. Once inside, they can cause a variety of small problems. They stain fabrics although they won’t eat holes. They can also bite but are not poisonous.

They are difficult to kill with typical insect sprays although these can be helpful in deterring them from entering the home. Vacuuming any found indoors proves to be more effective than insecticides. Closing up any cracks or holes in windows, around doors or walls or in the foundation can help keep them outside. Insecticides or homemade repellants such as dish soap mixed in water can help outdoors to keep boxelder bug numbers down.

As always, when in doubt, contact a professional at VIRIDIS Lawn Care to assess and assist in your specific situation. Our perimeter pest control can help you insure these pesky creatures never bother you or your family by overwintering in your home. Call us for all your pest control needs.

Ants are nightmare pests!

Posted by Kagen Knudsen on January 22, 2015 in Lawn Care Tips, Pest Control. 0 Comments

Among the many threats to your lawn, some of the worst can be insects. The variety of bugs that can cause damage to your lawn is amazing. VIRIDIS Lawn Care of Salt Lake City Utah can help with pest control so you can keep your lawn lush and beautiful throughout the summer months.

Being informed is critical to identifying, controlling, and preventing insect infestations. Following is information on a common lawn pest – ants.

In small numbers, ants are harmless although perhaps still unwanted. They can even be helpful in aerating the soil and aiding in decomposition which are both beneficial to grass health. Large numbers of ants are where problems arise.

Large infestations can cause bare areas or thinning grass. Often, large dirt mounds can crop up in these areas. Besides being unsightly, this can expose grass roots and kill grass that becomes covered with the excavated dirt. Partial to pathway areas, ants can eventually cause enough soil erosion that pavers and sidewalks can collapse, becoming uneven or unsafe.

Controlling ants is often easier than removing them once they’ve settled. Insure that food and water is not easily available to them. This could be a leaky hose, pet food and water, or compost piles or garden areas. Enriching sandy soils will also help control the ant population. They prefer building their homes in loose, bare, sandy soil. Thick, lush lawns are more difficult for ants to begin building a nest in. The healthier your lawn, the less likely ants will encroach.

Once they have moved in, there are few things you can do to remove them. Insecticides have proven very effective but rarely kill all ants on the property. Doing this alone will likely result in lower numbers for a time but increasing your lawn’s overall health and removing available food and water sources will encourage the ants to relocate somewhere more hospitable.

VIRIDIS Lawn Care can help you with your pest control. Our professionals can diagnose and treat your lawn at the first sign of an ant infestation to help prevent unsightly mounds or paving damage from becoming a problem in your landscaping.

Do the math on your fertilizer

Posted by Kagen Knudsen on January 14, 2015 in Lawn Care Tips. 0 Comments

VIRIDIS Lawn Care of Salt Lake City wants you to have the most beautiful, healthy lawn possible. Fertilizing is an important part of lawn maintenance. Hiring a professional to fertilize for you is an easy option that insures it will be done correctly but doing it yourself is often more cost effective and some people enjoy being more involved in their lawn’s care. Here are some tips to help you understand fertilizer so you can apply it correctly should you chose to do it yourself.

Fertilizer made for lawn care will include three main ingredients, nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. Three large numbers will appear on the package which represent the percentage of each of these components. They are always listed in this order. The remaining percentage is made up of fillers to help disperse the fertilizer more evenly.

Nitrogen helps grass with above ground growth and greenery. This is often a higher number or percentage on fertilizer specifically made for lawns. Nitrogen leaches out of the soil quickly so the higher percentage helps replenish this important nutrient. However, over use of nitrogen or under watering a recently fertilized lawn can lead to stressed, burned grass. Also, with a new lawn, nitrogen should be a lower percentage than phosphorus because the young roots can’t support a lot of rapid green growth.

Phosphorus aids in growing strong root systems and producing fruits. In lawn fertilizers, this number is generally lower than nitrogen but can be high in lawn starting fertilizers. It typically stays in the soil well so doesn’t need to be high in application to a previously fertilized, established lawn.

Potassium builds strong plant tissue and cells which help the grass withstand temperature changes and other stressors. This number may be high in fertilizer applied in the fall to help the lawn handle the stress of winter better.

A typical bag of lawn fertilizer for a normal lawn should have the highest amount of nitrogen and low amounts of phosphorus and potassium but different situations call for different percentages of each nutrient. Using the correct blend can save you time, headache, expense in the long run.

Helping high traffic areas

Posted by Kagen Knudsen on January 14, 2015 in Lawn Care Tips. 0 Comments

VIRIDIS Lawn Care of Salt Lake City, Utah knows that landscaping isn’t just for beauty but for is also for fun. Children and pets love having a lush lawn to play on. Barbequing or just relaxing is always better surrounded by a soft, beautiful lawn. Unfortunately, all this activity wears on grass. Some high traffic areas can begin looking trampled and bare or even start dying. Here are some tips to help you maintain high traffic areas on your lawn or perhaps even set up landscaping to avoid them in the first place!

Here are two ways to help these overused areas. The first is to plant a variety of grass that is hardy and can withstand more traffic. Hardy grass types include Kentucky bluegrass, tall fescue and perennial ryegrass. Newly sodded lawns also seem to hold up better than newly seeded lawns with excessive use, once the roots are established. The lawn needs to be protected. Moving an animal on a tether from one area to another can give the grass a chance at growth and recovery. If the animal causing problems doesn’t belong to you, repellants can be applied to encourage it to stay away but should be used with caution.

The second way is to replace the grass with some other landscaping choice. Typically, this is the choice that will be easier in the long run and produce better results immediately. Trying to continue growing the grass can be a hard process of seeding, aerating, and tending. Replacing the area with pavers, mulch, gravel or some other choice that fits with your landscaping can be done once and will require little to no maintenance.

Making these small changes can have a big impact in your landscape’s overall appearance and health, not to mention, the amount of work for you!

Mammal Pests

Posted by Kagen Knudsen on January 13, 2015 in Lawn Care Tips, Pest Control. 0 Comments

Lawns and gardens can take a beating. Foot traffic, insects, climate, and even some other critters can wreak havoc on once beautiful landscaping. Many mammals can cause significant damage to plants as well as bring fleas and diseases to an area. A few of these mammals in the Salt Lake City area include deer, rabbits, gophers, skunks, mice, and raccoons.

Deer can cause some of the most significant damage to your landscaping because they not only feed on a variety of plants but also rub their antlers against tree trunks and trample vegetation.

Rabbits are exceptionally damaging to vegetables and grasses as well as shrubs and berry bushes. They also gnaw on smooth barked branches and plastic irrigation lines. They feed mostly at night, making it difficult to catch them but leaving a trail of destruction to find the next morning.

Ground squirrels or gophers inflict much the same damage as rabbits but also create mounds when burrowing underground. These mounds can not only make a beautiful lawn look terrible but can cause root damage and problems when mowing.

Skunks can cause a lot more problems than just their terrible scent! They will roll back sod or dig small indentations looking for grubs. They also will eat berries or even pet food. They will often make their home under porches or decks. These animals carry some pretty nasty diseases as well, including rabies.

Mice in all their varieties can be a nuisance. Because of their small size, they can get into and out practically anywhere. They eat and store a variety of food. They also cause destruction to other materials such as paper, clothing, and upholstery that they find desirable for building a nest. Gardening can become difficult with a strong mouse population because they feed on both seeds and grown plants including grass and even trees.

Raccoons often destroy buildings to acquire shingles, insulation, or boards for building their home. Like skunks, they will also nest beneath porches or decks. They typically eat foods from the garden just before harvest time but will also roll up sod to find insects. They can carry many diseases which can be spread to humans.

There are different ways to help prevent these animals from causing problems in your home. Insure garbage is placed in a container that closes securely. Place bird feeders where only birds can get to. Water sources can attract pests, especially during drought conditions. Be mindful of fountains, ponds, and even pet water. Certain fences can keep out many of these animals but not all. Repellents are also an option but can cause problems with pets and often have an undesirable odor. Insure you choose the appropriate repellent and follow any instructions.

VIRIDIS Lawn Care in Salt Lake City, UT wants to insure that you have the very best landscaping you can have. Learning common pests and ways to control them can help you prevent much of the damage these animals can cause, leaving you with the beautiful lawn and garden you deserve.

Utah Lawn Care of Lawn Pests

Posted by Kagen Knudsen on January 13, 2015 in Lawn Care Tips. 0 Comments

Few things can ruin a beautiful lawn and garden faster than bugs. Many seemingly harmless insects feed on the beautiful plants you care for. VIRIDIS Lawn Care of Salt Lake City Utah wants to help you prevent destruction to your beautiful lawn from these harmful pests.

Aphids

Aphids come in many varieties and colors ranging from green to red to brown and black. They are less than ½ inch long. They can cause stress to plants as well as perpetuate the growth of mold with excessive feedings.

Armyworms, Cutworms, and Earworms

These larvae stay hidden just below the soil or near the bases of plants and in the thatch of lawns. They are particularly active at night. Allowed to mature, they become moths.

Longhorned/Roundheaded Wood Boring Beetles

The larvae of these beetles can cause damage to stressed trees. They feed from underneath the bark to deeper within the tree. Once matured, they leave the tree, leaving large holes in the bark, to reproduce in a new tree.

Clearwing Moth Borers

These wasp looking moths can cause serious damage to fruit and ornamental plants but are often overlooked as pests. They prefer young or stressed trees.

Thrips

These tiny bugs can do much more damage than their size would imply. Wilting plants, scarring on fuits, yellow spots and dropping of leaves are all symptoms of infestation. They are difficult to control because they feed from within curled leaves or petals.

Hard Scales

These common pests are difficult to control because of the hard shell they secrete. Spring is the best time for treatment because the eggs have hatched but haven’t yet formed a shell.

Flathead/Metallic Wood Boring Beetles (Buprestidae)

These beetles are similar to Longhorned beetles in that they lay eggs in bark which, when hatched, bore into the tree.

Prevention, of course, is the best treatment method. Good lawn and garden care can minimize or eliminate many pests, especially those who prefer stressed or damaged plants or trees. Once an infestation has begun, treatment is necessary to remove these pests in order to restore your plants to their healthiest, most beautiful state.

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