Lawn Ranger Newsletter

2011-09-22T14:15:00.002-04:00

PEST CONTROL NEWS LETTER OCTOBER 2011

September

In September we applied a granular fertilizer (24-0-11), it is an important application for several reasons. #1. The obvious reason is to make the grass green. #2. The last number (8) will help with root growth & make the grass handle the winter stress better. #3. It is also important to make sure the grass is healthy before we apply our herbicide. If the grass in not healthy the herbicide may effect the grass in an adverse way.

October

In October we will be able to apply a complete herbicide to all lawns. Please be patient, normally in October you will see more weeds than any other time of the year due to the rainy season, high humidity, & hot temperatures (this year was above normal temperatures). We were not able to spot treat for weeds in the summer due to such hot temperatures, but fear not we should get good control in October. It usually takes 2-3 weeks to see results after you receive your herbicide application.

Also in October we will add an insecticide to the mix. This will help finish off the chinch bugs and help with sod web worms. I have been receiving calls on sob web worms, but I have only seen the little brownish moth which will leave eggs. The eggs will hatch into larva, and the larva is what causes the damage. They are hard to find because they are nocturnal feeders the damaged areas will look like the grass was mowed to short. Remember the moths are not causing the damage; the larva is what eats the grass. Our October treatment should take care of most sob web worm problems.

IRRIGATION

Normally for October you should run your irrigation 1-2 days per week. Although usually in October mother nature helps out with rain, so irrigation may not be necessary. Remember day light saving ends November 6Th and watering restrictions require watering only one day a week.

SCHEDULE FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE YEAR WILL BE AS FOLLOWS:

October ~ Herbicide Treatment

November ~ Inspection December ~ Inspection

2011-08-01T11:08:00.000-04:00

PEST CONTROL NEWSLETTER AUGUST 2011

CHINCH BUGS

Chinch bugs are the #1 pest problem in the summer months. If you see brown patches in the grass starting from your driveway or sidewalk please call us immediately. Chinch bugs can cause a lot of damage in a short amount of time. They like it hot and dry, if you have a problem with your irrigation, they will migrate to that dry area. Now is the time to get your irrigation working properly.

BARKLICE

I am seeing a lot of bark lice in the oak trees. Bark Lice form webs on the trunks of oak trees, only on the bark not on the leaves. If you see the webs on the leaves this might be tent caterpillars or web worms, a more serious problem. Bark Lice are beneficial they are scavengers. They perform a valuable function in consuming excess accumulations of fungi, algae, dead bark and other materials that occur on tree trunks and limbs in-effect, they function as “barmaids” to help clean the bark of undesirable inhabitants. Bark Lice do not eat leaves or the bark of the tree, nor do they damage the tree by boring into the bark.

WATERING

July was pretty good month in terms of rain fall. We are coming into our rainy season. Make sure you are not over watering. Make sure your rain sensors are working. To check your rain sensor just try to turn your irrigation on manually during or just after a rain fall it should not turn on unless you by pass your rain sensor. Remember watering is the most important job you have to insure a beautiful lawn.

II. SCHEDULE FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE YEAR WILL BE AS FOLLOWS:

August October ~ Herbicide Treatment Insect spray on turf and shrubs

September ~ Fertilizer applied November ~ Inspection

December ~ Inspection

2011-06-01T15:33:00.004-04:00

PEST CONTROL NEWS LETTER JUNE 2011

April and May are traditionally our dry months and this year is no exception, you need to be sure your grass is getting enough water. Your watering schedule should now be set at 2 days a week. With the spray heads set at 30 minutes (per zone) and rotor heads set at 60 minutes (per zone). If you notice gray spots in your lawn or an area not growing as well as another, chances are you need to increase your water. All my service calls have been due to lack of water please check your irrigation thoroughly. Rotors may not be turning correctly, spray heads may be interfered with by the turf and or shrubs. Also rotor zones set for to little time.

Chinch bugs

We are starting to see some chinch bugs in areas where the irrigation is inadaquet (dry areas). Water these dry areas to help prevent chinch bugs from infesting your lawn, because chinch bugs will gravitate to dry areas in lawns.

AERATION

A lot of lawns we are serving are in need of aeration. The World Golf Village area and surrounding areas are just some of the neighborhoods in need of aeration. Aeration is necessary when the soil is compacted. The blades of grass will be small and close to the ground. Try to poke your finger in the soil, you should be able to do that with ease, if your only able to get one digit of your finger in the soil you need aeration. Simply call the office, we will be more than glad to come out and evaluate this for you. The process is simple we have a machine that pokes holes in your lawn, then we fertilize. After you water, you should see great results in a week or two. This will allow your lawn to weather drought stress and cold winters better. Please call the office for a free estimate. You will be glad you did it, the results are outstanding.

SCHEDULE FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE YEAR WILL BE AS FOLLOWS:

June ~ Insecticide ,Liquid Fertilizer October ~ Pre Emergent Herbicide July ~ Insecticide & Liquid Fertilizer November ~ Inspection

August ~ Insecticide, Liquid Fertilizer December ~ Inspection

September ~ Granular Fertilizer applied

2011-06-01T15:24:00.002-04:00

PEST CONTROL NEWSLETTER MAY 2011

WATERING

The St. Johns water management district would like all of us to water 2 times a week (think two). I think we should all try to water 2 times per week. But please keep an eye out for dryness. Make sure you are watering 3/4 of and inch to 1 inch every time you water. Deep watering 2 times a week is much better for the lawn than shallow watering 4-5 times per week.

TIPS ON WATERING

Spray heads zones should water 20-30 minutes, rotor heads 45 minutes to 1 hour. If you see dry areas take care of them right away. Chinch bugs will gravitate to dry areas. The grass will die after a couple of weeks with no water.

Please check your irrigation before calling us, 99% of all brown spots in the month of April were due to lack of water. Don’t forget about the tuna fish or cat food can test. Put the cans all over your yard, in the dry areas and the green areas. If there is a difference in how much water is in the cans you need more water in that area. Also check the dryness of the soil under the grass if the soil is real dry (sandy no moisture) you need more water in that area.

INSECTS

May is when insects will start attacking the lawns. Mole crickets & chinch bugs being our biggest concern. Mole crickets are attracted to light and swarm in April and May. So if possible try to run your outdoor lighting only when necessary. Chinch bugs like it hot & dry so please water your dry areas.

MAY SERVICE

We will be treating your lawn with an insecticide & liquid fertilization.

SCHEDULE FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE YEAR

WILL BE AS FOLLOWS:

May ~ thru August~ Insecticide October ~ Herbicide Treatment

application on turf November ~ Inspection

September ~ Granular Fertilizer December ~ Inspection

2011-02-01T14:34:00.002-05:00

PEST CONTROL NEWS LETTER FEBRUARY 2011

FEBRUARY

For the customers that participate in the granular fertilization of the shrub

program, we will be applying a granular fertilizer to the shrubs this month.

MARCH

Time to go back to work, we will apply a 16-0-8 granular fertilizer.

WATERING SCHEDULES

1 time per week is plenty, make sure your rain sensor is working. This will help prevent over watering. This is a good time to get your irrigation system checked. Reason being the irrigation company’s are not busy right now. We recommend Water Works 824-0465.

WINTER CUT BACK

Late February & early march is the time to cut back any winter kill on your plant material. Check your 10 day forecast around the 20th of February to make sure no freezes are in the forecast. Then you can trim back hibiscus, crape myrtles, lantana, Aztec grass, pentas, ect.

You can also fertilize your plant material @ this time but wait on azaleas until after they bloom the fertilizer will make these blooms fall off quicker.

Be sure and mow lawn if needed, to cut down on weeds in the lawn.

SCHEDULE FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE YEAR WILL BE AS FOLLOWS:

March ~ Granular Fertilizer September ~ Granular Fertilizer

April ~ Herbicide treatment October ~ Herbicide treatment

May~ thru August~ Insecticide November ~ Inspection

& liquid fertilizer application on turf December ~ Inspection

2010-08-30T16:14:00.000-04:00

PEST CONTROL NEWS LETTER SEPTEMBER 2010

Fall is almost here. I can’t wait to say good bye to this heat!

September’s Service: In September we will be fertilizing the lawns with a 16-0-8 granular fertilizer. Insects become less of a problem when the temperatures start to drop, However, this has been one of the hottest summers on record so we will also be checking for insects and spot treating if necessary.

Watering: We have seen many dry spots in the lawns this year due to lack of irrigation, no rain and the temperatures being so high. Mid- September through October is a good time to replace sod that has died due to lack of water. Just be sure to check the irrigation in these damaged areas first to be sure they are working properly.

We are just starting to get our afternoon rains. Check your rain sensors to make sure they are working properly. I only recommend watering as needed for people who have time to keep an eye on their lawn, everyone else should water two times per week and let the rain gauge help decrease you’re watering.

Weeds: Remember fertilizer will also make the weeds grow, so please be patient. September and October is when your weeds will be the most prevalent. The good news is we are treating for weeds in October. You should start to see the results 2-3 weeks after the weed application has been applied.

Our Web Site: Our monthly news letter will now be on our web site. You can set up to have it automatically sent to you via email. Sign up on our web site @ www.lawnrangerofstaugustine.com

SCHEDULE FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE YEAR WILL BE AS FOLLOWS: September ~ Fertilizer Applied November ~ Inspection

October ~ Herbicide Treatment Applied December ~ Inspection

2010-07-27T10:34:00.003-04:00

PEST CONTROL NEWSLETTER AUGUST 2010

CHINCH BUGS

Chinch bugs are the #1 pest problem in the summer months. If you see brown patches in the grass starting from your driveway or sidewalk please call us immediately. Chinch bugs can cause a lot of damage in a short amount of time. They like it hot and dry, if you have a problem with your irrigation, they will migrate to that dry area. Now is the time to get your irrigation working properly.

WATERING

Over all July was a dry month, I am seeing a lot of dry areas hopefully August will bring more rain. But until then we need to make sure our irrigation is running properly. Watch your system run make sure your rotor heads are turning and that your spray heads are popping up over the grass. St. Augustine grass will talk to you, the first sign of a dry area is a grey tint we call it “ghosting of the lawn” at a closer look you will see that the grass blades are folded up or rolled up. When you see this water immediately the blades will open back up and the grey area will disappear.

WEB SITE

We are going to discontinue our paper news letter in October and go exclusively with an email news letter. Be sure and sign up for our news letter on line under www.lawnrangerofstaugustine.com so you don’t miss out on our monthly new letters.

II. SCHEDULE FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE YEAR WILL BE AS FOLLOWS:

August September ~ Fertilizer applied

Insect spray on turf and shrubs October ~ Herbicide Treatment November ~ Inspection

December ~ Inspection

2010-06-28T16:35:00.000-04:00

PEST CONTROL NEWS LETTER JULY 2010

This month we will be applying an insecticide & liquid fertilizer. Chinch bugs will start to come out in July and August, normally with chinch bugs you will see browning start from the driveway & side walks or in area’s not getting enough water (dry spots). We are applying an insecticide every month in the summer. This should contain any problems with chinch bugs. Also fungus will appear in the dry areas, if you notice any dry areas getting bigger please call the office to let us know.

WATERING

July, August, and September watering gets real tricky you should be watering 2- times per week. Mother Nature has not been helping out with much rain. You may need to run your zones for a longer period on your watering days.

If you see brown spots in your lawn you should put a hose on those areas and see if they look better the next day. Then you will know its water, I have been getting a lot of calls on brown spots, it will help me out if you can make sure they are not dry spots, before calling the office to have us come out and analyze it. There are very few irrigations systems that don’t have some deficiencies, you can also run your system & watch for rotors not turning, leaks from heads and make sure the heads are popping up correctly. Make sure all the zones are working, just because zone 1 runs good that does not mean they all do. Every zone has its own solenoid and if it’s not working that zone will not work at all. Don’t be afraid to let the rotors run on the sidewalk a little, the edge of the driveway or side walk are very hot and needs all the water it can get. If in doubt call one of our irrigations specialists. Be sure to tell them Lawn Ranger sent you. The three companies’ we use are:

Baker Company 797-7904

Water Works 824-0465

Florida Irrigation 827-9531

II. SCHEDULE FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE YEAR WILL BE AS FOLLOWS:

July and August September ~ Fertilizer applied

Insecticide and Fertilizer on turf October ~ Herbicide Treatment

November ~ Inspection

December ~ Inspection

2010-05-27T15:40:00.000-04:00

PEST CONTROL NEWS LETTER JUNE 2010

Irrigation

Inspect your irrigation this month. This is a dry time of year and you need to be sure your grass is getting enough water. Your watering schedule should now be set at 2 days a week. With the spray heads set at 30 minutes (per zone) and rotor heads set at 60 minutes (per zone). If you notice gray spots in your lawn or an area not growing as well as another, chances are you need to increase your water.

Chinch bugs

We are starting to see some chinch bugs, only where irrigation is failing (dry areas) water these dry areas to help prevent chinch bugs from infesting your lawn. Chinch bugs will gravitate to dry areas in lawns.

CHINCH BUG FACTS

Chinch bugs are tiny, hard to see insects that cause damage often confused with drought stress. They are red (when young) or black (when mature) with a white spot on the back in the shape of an “x”. As adults they grow to about 1/4” long. They can occur almost anywhere in a St. Augustine lawn, however they are usually found in hot, dry locations such as along sidewalks or driveways. You can often see them by examine the grass near the soil surface. Chinch bugs suck the juices from grass blades & inject toxins back into the leaf blade. Irregular patches of the lawn first look drought-stressed, gradually turn yellow and then brown. Unless they are eliminated, they will continue to spread throughout the lawn. Because chinch bugs are active during hot, dry weather we provide continuous coverage treatment from May through August.

Mowing higher encourages deeper rooting. Also, it will help the turf handle drought better.

Be sure and check out our web site: www.lawnrangerofstaugustine.com

SCHEDULE FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE YEAR WILL BE AS FOLLOWS:

June ~ Insecticide ,Liquid Fertilizer October ~ Pre Emergent Herbicide July ~ Insecticide & Liquid Fertilizer November ~ Inspection

August ~ Insecticide, Liquid Fertilizer December ~ Inspection

September ~ Granular Fertilizer applied

Newsletter for May 2010

2010-04-29T13:47:00.001-04:00

THE LAWN RANGER OF ST. AUGUSTINE PEST CONTROL INC.

1660 S. R. 16 • ST. AUGUSTINE, FL. 32084 • Telephone (904) 829-2824 • Fax (904) 829-2522

PEST CONTROL NEWSLETTER MAY 2010

WATERING

The St. Johns water management district would like all of us to water 2 times a week (think two). I think we should all try to water 2 times per week. But please keep an eye out for dryness. Make sure you are watering 3/4 of and inch to 1 inch every time you water. Deep watering 2 times a week is much better for the lawn than shallow watering 4-5 times per week.

TIPS ON WATERING

Spray heads zones should water 20-30 minutes, rotor heads 45 minutes to 1 hour. If you see dry areas take care of them right away. Chinch bugs will gravitate to dry areas. The grass will die after a couple of weeks with no water.

Winter Kill

Winter kill is a general term used to describe the loss of turf grass

during winter months. Loss of turf grass during the winter can be caused by factors such as: low temperature kill (freeze damage), desiccation ( drying out of plant material), disease activity and compacted soil. Compacted soil causes a shallow root system which in turn makes the turf grass more susceptible to drought and freeze conditions. I am seeing a good amount of winter kill. This year our recommendation is to wait until the end of May and what has not come back replace with plugs or sod. If you are having problems with your turf coming out of winter, please call the office so we can advise you what to do.

INSECTS

May is when insects will start attacking the lawns. Mole crickets & chinch bugs being our biggest concern. Mole crickets are attracted to light and swarm in April and May. So if possible try to run your outdoor lighting only when necessary. Chinch bugs like it hot & dry so please water your dry areas.

MAY SERVICE

We will be treating your lawn with an insecticide & liquid fertilization.

Be sure and visit our website www.lawnrangerofstaugustine.com

For news letters, contacts and blogs

SCHEDULE FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE YEAR

WILL BE AS FOLLOWS:

May ~ thru August~ Insecticide October ~ Herbicide Treatment

application on turf November ~ Inspection

September ~ Granular Fertilizer December ~ Inspection

2010-03-31T11:52:00.005-04:00

APRIL SERVICE

Weeds,Weeds,Weeds.

This year is a bad year for weeds. The cold weather put the St. Augustine turf into dormancy allowing more sunlight through to the dirt which allows the weeds to germinate. Then with the fertilizer we put down the weeds are thriving. The good news is most of what you are seeing is chick weed and will die easily. Dollar weed and most other broad leaf weeds will take 2-3 weeks to die off.

Weed treatments are underway and we are currently 3 days ahead of schedule. Kris, Jerimiah and Mike are working 6 days a week and late into the day to accomplish this task.

WATERING SCHEDULE

Residential irrigation systems at odd numbered or no address can be run on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

Even numbered addresses can irrigate on Thursdays and Sundays.

Non-residential landscape irrigation can be done on Tuesdays and Fridays during daylight saving time.

No irrigation is allowed on Mondays.

No irrigation is allowed between 10:00 am and 4:00 pm

For more information please go to this web site: http/www.srjwmd.com

We have a new web site @ wwwlawnrangerofstaugustine.com you can sign up for our news letter to be emailed to you monthly. We also have a blog with up dated information. So please check us out on our new web site.

SCHEDULE FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE YEAR WILL BE AS FOLLOWS:

May - Aug - Insecticide Treatment October ~ Herbicide Treatment

September ~ Granular Fertilizer November ~ Inspection December ~ Inspection

2010-03-09T12:28:00.001-05:00

MARCH

March is a transition month; your turf will begin to come out of dormancy. We did not do a blanket herbicide in February, because this slows down the grass from coming out of dormancy. In March we will fertilize the turf with a 16-0-8 slow release fertilizer. Keep in mind this will also help the weeds grow. March, April, September and October is when you will see the most weeds in your lawn. They will be actively growing and our herbicide works better at this time. Please be patient we will take care of the weeds as fast as we can in April. We will work late into the day and on Saturdays in April to accomplish this task as quickly as possible, thank you for your patients.

WINTER DEBRIS

This winter created a lot of brown dead foliage in most local landscapes. Since February 26 is the date of our last average freeze, it’s time for the clean up to begin!

In the lawn you may want to eliminate dead grass blades for cosmetic purposes. They can be left in place to decompose naturally, but removing them will give you a green lawn quicker.

To reduce the amount of brown blades, set your mower on a lower than normal setting. If you have a bagger or mulching attachment use it. If you do not have such an attachment, after mowing rake up the dead grass blades and add them to the compost pile or utilize them as mulch.

Once you have finished mowing set the mower blade back to its normal height, which for St. Augustine grass should be 3-4 inches. Since you have opened up the lawn it would be a good time to apply fertilizer.

For cold damaged shrubbery determine how far the plant froze back. Just because the leaves on a stem froze it does not mean the stem did. Starting at the top of the plant, scratch the bark with your thumbnail and see if there is green tissue under it. If no green is noticed start working downward until you find green tissue under the bark. At that point the plant is still alive and new growth will sprout in a few weeks.

Once you have determined how much of the plant is alive, cut out the dead areas. Some plants may have frozen to the ground level and then wait for new growth to sprout from the root.

Another thing you can do in the landscape this month is reset your sprinkler, if needed. With the beginning of Day Light Savings Time on Sunday March 14th you are allowed to run your irrigation system Two times a week. Odd numbered addresses can irrigate on Wednesday and Saturday and even on Thursday and Sunday. For business owners set your nonresidential irrigation systems to come on Tuesday and Sunday if needed. These are new water restriction rules set by the St. Johns River Water Management District and they go into effect on March 14th.

This is compiled from University of Florida IFAS Extension.

IV. SCHEDULE FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE YEAR WILL BE AS FOLLOWS:

March ~ Granular Fertilizer September ~ Granular Fertilizer

April ~ Herbicide treatment October ~ Herbicide treatment

May~ thru August~ Insecticide November ~ Inspection

application on turf December ~ Inspection