A New Year = New Resolutions
This year I’m going to do something different. I resolve to spend more time reading, traveling more with my beautiful wife, and trying to squeeze in more fishing. We’re hashing out the details for a fishing trip already.
What’s on your New Year’s resolution list? Here are a few common resolutions for your lawn and landscape.
Lose Weight
- Trimming unhealthy and dead branches from your shrubs, ornamentals, and shade trees will not only lighten their load, it can encourage new growth to help invigorate your older plants. Pay attention to limbs that could pose a hazard in the future and prune them away as needed.
- You should also remove fallen limbs, twigs, leaves and other debris from the lawn to make room for the turf to “green up” this coming spring.
- Taking a few hundred pounds off of your trees can increase air flow, sunlight
penetration and if done properly, can improve the trees’ structure. The lawn below will benefit as well
Get Organized
- Work on your to-do list now. Look around your lawn and landscape and start to plan for those spring, summer and fall projects. If you’re not sure where to start, contact Atkins and we can help with ideas, troubleshooting issues, and creating a plan of attack. An extra set of experienced eyes can be very helpful.
- Get rid of all that old lawn care material tucked in the back of your garage or shed. Do you really need that spreader that you haven’t used in 10 years? We tend to collect things and forget about them. Unload some of that clutter. If you have something potentially hazardous, be sure to check in with the Household Hazardous Waste Collection Facility in Columbia as to how to get rid of that material safely.
Reduce Stress
- High winds, heavy snow and ice loads, drought and extremely low temperatures can all add stress upon your trees and landscape plants. And don’t forget last summer’s drought! That stress damaged a lot of grass which was easy to see, but the damage to your trees can linger for several years and symptoms may not even appear until next summer or even the summer after that. Supplemental watering during drought periods, proper pruning practices, and the dormant feeding of your trees and shrubs can really head-off a lot of problems.
- With proper fertilization in the fall your grass will continue to develop roots and strengthen cell walls. Keep that in mind for next October, November and December.
- Also, remember to stay off your lawn while there is frost. You can kill the grass just by walking over it!
Eat Better
- Sound fertility practices can have profound effects on your lawn’s color, growth, stress tolerance and overall health and performance.
- Dormant feeding of your ornamental trees and shrubs will make them healthier and in better shape for the next growing season.
- When you go back to mowing the lawn again, don’t forget to let the clippings fall. This will help to recycle the nutrients in the grass blades back into the soil.
Find More “Me Time”
- Our busy lives pull us in all sorts of directions and it’s often hard to make time
for ourselves. Although working out in the lawn can be a healthy hobby and good exercise, shedding some of your lawn and landscape maintenance duties may be your key to spending time elsewhere and doing other things. Atkins is here for ya!
The lawn and landscaped areas around your home is part of your living space. Making plans for the growing season, taking proper care of your plants, and managing your turf to keep it all in good order will make this extended living area more enjoyable and more relaxing.
No matter what’s on your New Year’s resolution List, we hope that you meet all of them and that you have a wonderful year!
A Columbia native, Shaun Henry found a home at Atkins in 2000 when he started his career as a turf technician. Shaun holds a commercial applicator’s license through the Missouri Department of Agriculture and is a member of the National Association of Landscape Professionals, the Mid-America Green Industry Council, and the Missouri Green Industry Alliance. Shaun strongly believes in the importance of a great customer experience where the Atkins staff knows their clients and anticipates
their needs accordingly. Shaun is an MU alumnus and has a degree in plant science.
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