Spring Sprucing

Preparing for the Growing Season

By Jenn Diamond

Yard and garden upgrades are becoming as important to Americans as updating kitchens and baths, according to the American Nursery & Landscaping Association, or ANLA. And since landscaping can add between 7 and 15 percent to a home’s value,
it’s no wonder why there are so many green thumbs around.

In 1995, an estimated 20 million households used the services of landscape professionals, spending $14.2 billion to improve the area surrounding their homes. And landscaping can bring a recovery value of 100 to 200 percent at selling time – more than kitchen or bath remodeling, reports Money Magazine. But you don’t need to hire a professional to have great looking gardens.

“Early spring is a great time to begin working on your lawn,” said Bob Amberg of Amberg Perennial Farm in Union. Amberg is a third-generation greenhouse/ nursery/ perennial grower in Union County. “We’ve seen many changes in Union County and the rest of New Jersey. One area that has only changed for the better is the fact that more people than ever are putting their hands in soil and gardening. Maybe in today’s high
tech, high speed life, we all need gardening more than ever,” he said. And there’s no better time than spring to get down and dirty in your yard.

“In Union County, most lawns have grasses that are considered cool weather grasses such as bluegrass or ryegrass. These grasses grow best in spring and fall when weather is cool. They suffer in the heat of summer so it is important to build up their health now.”

Most important to your lawn’s health is feeding or fertilizing. “Rather than a high nitrogen fertilizer, I like using 10-6-4 fertilizer (50 or 60 percent organic). It’s safe, long lasting and greatly benefits the lawn,” Amberg says. “The only problem with it is, because of the organics used, it is a heavy, coarse granular that can be hard to apply with a spreader.”
He suggests filling it halfway, and refilling as needed. “It will reduce stress on the spreader and you.”

Lawns in our area tend to be slightly acidic, so Amberg recommends liming every few years. This could be done at any time, he said, but after the winter’s freezing and thawing, the ground tends to take in the lime very readily. A soil test can determine
your lawns needs for lime and fertilizer and the Union County Rutgers Cooperative Extension Office in Westfield (908-654-9852) can tell you how to take samples and how to send them in. In areas that drain poorly or have salt damage, Amberg recommends an application of gypsum. This soil corrective helps treat clay soils and make them more usable. It is slow acting so the sooner it is put on, the sooner it begins working.

Most insects that hit the lawns are not active now but can be more active as temperatures rise and summer approaches. A healthy well fertilized lawn now will better prepared for these pests and other stresses. Grubs may be present, but it is not the best time to kill them and most of their damage has already been done.

WEEDING OUT THE BAD SEEDS
According to Amberg, there are two types of weeds that you may encounter in your lawn – broadleaf weeds and grasses. “The broadleaf weeds, which include dandelions, plantain, chickweed, and many others, are best controlled with a lawn weed killer when they are actively growing from late April to late September,” he said. “Unless there is a great number of weeds, it is best to use a liquid spot treatment on individual plants. This limits the amount of weed killer used. This type of chemical must be used very carefully when children or pets are present so I feel it should not be used excessively. There are also granular products for doing larger areas. These chemicals can also hinder grass seed or sod if put down at the same time. Use care with all weed killers and other pesticides and read the directions completely before using.”

Crabgrass and other grasses can be controlled by using a pre-emergent, which stops crabgrass seed from germinating, or a post-emergent, which kills actively growing plants. The pre-emergent is applied in early spring before dandelion flowers show or about the time forsythia blooms are finishing. Most pre-emergent must be put on before the seeds begin to germinate. Some recommend putting the crabgrass pre-emergent on in early March. “I feel if it is rainy and cold in March or April, the chemical may be diluted and effect reduced when needed. The pre-emergent “Dimension” will kill crabgrass that has already germinated. I like this product because you can wait a little later to put it on. The only problem is that I have only seen it available with a fertilizer
combined, like Jonathan Green’s “Crabgrass preventer with Green-up,” so if a person wanted to use this, they would not use the 10-6-4 fertilizer mentioned before.” The post-emergent killers can be applied any time during the growing season.

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