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Your lawn is the highest maintenance part of your landscape. It requires regular feeding, watering, mowing etc.. It may also be the dominant or largest landscape feature on your property. Are the resources you invest in your lawn giving you a satisfactory return on your investment?

You should treat your landscape as you treat your home when it comes to property values.

A healthy green lawn is an asset to your property. Evaluate the appearance and function of your landscape. Consider what changes you might make. Would you reduce the lawn or improve it? Would you go organic? Why not?

Let us help you. As a Rye resident, I benefit as a homeowner from the substantial support offered by the Rye Sustainability Committee. We have a very caring supportive community when it comes to going organic!

Check out some of these excellent resources to aid you in transitioning from a less than healthy environment to one that benefits all life on Earth!

ryesustainability.com organic lawn care

grassrootsenvironmental.org organic lawn care

Harvard organics, bigblogofgardening.com organic lawn care

https://www.nwf.org/nationalwildlife organic lawn care

All landscapes large or small require maintenance. As human beings we require maintenance. That means regular watering, feeding, pruning (haircuts) etc.. Some of us are higher maintenance than others! I know because it has been pointed out to me that I’m a high maintenance guy! Well so be it. I like to eat well, maintain a certain physical condition, dress a certain way etc.. In a word, I’m rather particular.

When it comes to our landscape, home and property, the question is; what are our expectations?

I am a client too ! My natural, organic lawn is well cared for. My gardens represent how I feel and what I like. There is also a lot of room for change in my garden.

In one Scarsdale neighborhood we maintain several properties as I care for my own. That means we make sure the irrigation is functioning properly, adjust it as needed. We mow the lawn weekly at 3-4 inches with sharp blades to conserve water and avoid injury and disease. We feed the lawn, tress and shrubs regularly with organic fertilizers and bio-stimulants. We mulch and edge the garden beds. We weed once a month. We prune when needed. We basically care for each property as if it was my own. Different properties and landscapes have different requirements and as such need services on different schedules. For instance do you have deer and rabbits eating your perennials? We spray organic, natural source products/repellants monthly with excellent results.

If we think trees need trimming or something outside the scope of regular landscape care is needed we call or email our clients. Do you regularly clean the gutters, flush the leaders, check catch basins and drainage? Do you add bacteria to your septic tank if you have one? Do you regularly clean your air conditioner condenser? Have you had you driveway sealed in the last ten years? Are there weeds growing in your patio and walks.

Without a well thought out maintenance plan and schedule there is a lot that can fall through the cracks and not get taken care of. Good maintenance saves money, excellent maintenance leads to overall happiness and satisfaction with your landscape, home and property.

This has been the longest, hottest, driest summer on record! That’s saying a lot! We are going into the third month of ninety degree temps without a drop of rain! We should remember last winters lack of snow fall started off in a deficit of rainfall. In the last two weeks things have taken a turn for the worst in that we haven’t even received any rain from thunder showers. Combined with unrelenting humidity the conditions to grow cool season turf grass could hardly be worse!

We service clients from North Salem, Katonah, Bedford to Irvington, Dobbs Ferry and Hastings to White Plains, Scarsdale, Purchase, Rye etc.. It really doesn’t matter where you are, your lawns are stressed. While irrigation helps it does not take the place of natural rainfall. The soil temperatures are high, air is stagnant, water tables are low and the result is not green!

The good news is we are entering the ideal time to renovate your lawn. Removing dead grass and thatch layers from your lawn surface is critical to improving the appearance and performance of your lawn. Mechanical means include power rakes, hand tools and dethatching machines to remove dead grass while core aerators relieve compaction and create air spaces in the soil to promote root growth. Vertical slice seeders are the preferred choice for professional lawn care companies such as ours to create a seed base which will allow the seed to properly come in contact with the soil. Of course watering every day for thirty days is critical to insuring germination and best results.

As I have previously stated, seed quality is key to establishment of a high quality lawn. See my previous blogs for more info, call or email us at greenjaylandscaping@gmail.com

We are very often posed with the challenge of creating a level, usable space where there is a slope, depression or uneven grade. There are many creative solutions available to us as designers.

The first question is how great a slope or issue is presented. Is this area regulated by wetlands, building codes etc.? Is it steep enough to be considered a steep slope. If so it may fall under the NYSDEC steep slope permit. Will the project require engineering?

What about a budget? What is the actual value in improving the area in question? How will it be used and what function will it serve?

These are typically design questions. What are the views, how will the proposed changes affect property values etc?

Terracing is an ancient technique used to level a grade. Very often masonry retaining walls with subsurface drainage are constructed.

One method we employ is rip rap retaining features. This process uses natural stone to define and support grade changes. The natural appearance has advantages as well as the substantial cost savings involved in design and construction.

According to the Universities which we rely upon for our horticultural information and recommendations Cornell, Amherst UMass, Yukon, Connecticut, Rutgers, New Jersey, This has been the driest, hottest three month period in over one hundred years! Talk about stress… we have not even seen the beginning of the effect on our plants and landscapes.

Even if you have a highly functioning irrigation system and a decent amount of shade to help cool the soil surface and reduce evapotranspiration, your plants are being exposed to a prolonged period of weather which is in no way conducive to health and happiness. Aside from sun scalding, lack of water, diseases and insect pests…they have not gotten a break, a reprieve from the stress associated with prolonged drought and heat.

One of the problems is the root zone has not been allowed to cool. Most of our landscape plants, especially new plantings, have shallow root systems.

The water table in most places is very low. We desperately need a weeks worth of drenching rain! Doesn’t look like we are going to get it! Most of our landscapes are not designed for this kind of weather environment.

We are absolutely in emergency rescue and recovery mode ! Most evergreens, for instance, won’t show signs of stress until it’s to late to save them. Many of our lawns are in need of repair and/or renovation. Be proactive. Do something to help before it’s to late. Conserving resources starts with protecting what we already have.

What to do:

Water you landscape deeply.

Run irrigation or manual sprinklers or both for one hour per area every three to four days. Best time to do that and avoid feeding fungus during periods of high humidity is early morning between the hours of 5-9 am. Properly prune trees and shrubs, not in the heat of the day, reducing the surface areas and strengthening plants. Mulch if necessary to cool the soil and retain moisture. Do not cultivate the soil, or let your gardening or lawn service provider cultivate the soil around perennials, trees and shrubs. Exposing the fragile roots further stresses the plants. Remove excess thatch or dead grass layers from your lawn.

There is never a better time to Go Green… Sustainably Organic…

Mow your lawn high or skip it. Use bio-stimulants instead of high nitrogen, salt based, synthetic fertilizers. Use Yucca to make the water wetter ! Do soil test so you can adjust ph and correct deficiencies in the soil. Applying natural source organics or earth products now will help plants recover and strengthen their immune systems. This will lead to more beautiful, healthy plants and landscapes.

Take a break, enjoy life!

We will create a garden for all seasons featuring edible fruits, vegetables and aromatic herbs. In the fall you will enjoy flowering perennials and annuals as well as an assortment of fragrant herbs. For architectural interest, we will place one pink dogwood and three flowering Hawthorn, which will attract a wild variety of birds. Your layered garden will include tall perennials for cutting and flowering arrangements, annuals for continual bloom, ornamental vegetables (peppers, cabbage, etc.) as well as edible fruits and vegetables.

A handful of clethra and blueberries will extend and continue your theme from your berry garden. Flowering bulbs will be planted in the fall to increase and extend your joyous spring color. In addition to planting and cultivating your edible garden with companion plants selected for their capacity to attract beneficial insects and insure sustainable organic development, a spectacular dahlia display will be a highlight of your summer garden.

Your raised garden beds will be constructed of the finest premium compost topsoil, sand and peat blend to allow for maximum growth/production. You will easily be able to meander and wander through your lush edible garden. Although the outward appearance will be consistent with your reasonably formal landscape composition, all the beautiful natural elements will work together and speak as a symphony.

We will open up the hedge along the driveway and install a stepping stone pathway, which will lead into the yard to the platform to your new shed. We will repurpose one ilex stead from the opening of the hedge and add 3 additional ilex steads to block/shield the new shed. We will transplant and divide your existing hosta to make a curved hosta bed along the hedge to the right of the pathway to soften the lines and perimeter of your lawn.

The shade garden will be further expanded to create a dominant focal point to be viewed from the house and patio and will extend through the old vegetable garden area to meet with the generator, screening/wraparound and your new edible garden and landscape. This will complete your backyard composition and landscape improvement.

An option we really love for your garden is the inclusion of the four colorful containers to give variety, texture and height to allow for relocating both indoors and out. I especially like the idea of growing small lemon trees.

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