Plant & Lawn Care Tips

General Rules of "Green " Thumbs

• Soak the root ball at each watering. It is always better to water more thoroughly and less frequently. This ensures watering the entire root
  system and encourages deep root growth.
  
  
• Check the soil before watering.
  
  
• Mother Nature can, and usually will, alter watering conditions.

Watering New Plants and Lawns

• Trees & Ornamentals - Most trees we plant have large root balls and need a good soaking once every 4 days during Summer months, and once every 7-10 days during Spring and Fall months. The best way is to lay the end of a garden hose near the base of the tree and let the water run for 15-20 minutes. In the second and third year after installation, the tree will still need to be watered, especially during dry periods. Caution: Soils with higher clay content may require less frequent watering.
  
  
• Shrubs - Smaller sized shrubs, 12-36", need frequent watering, every 2-3 days in the Summer, especially those planted in full sun. Water larger sized shrubs on more of a 3-4 day schedule. Wilting leaves are most likely telling you it's dry, but check the soil before watering, sometimes wilting leaves mean too much water.
  
  
• Evergreens - Most evergreens should be watered on a 4-5 day cycle. Evergreens, however, do not have wilting leaves to tell you it's time to water and if you wait until the root ball is dried out, it could be too late. Check the soil frequently.
  
  
• Perennials & Groundcovers - These plants will require the most frequent watering because of their shallow root system. Water every 1-3 days during the Summer months and every 5-7 days in the Spring and Fall months.
  
  
• Sodded Lawns - Newly laid sod needs frequent watering. Under normal conditions, you will need to water every day for the first 14 days. Then every other day for the next three weeks. After the sod has become established and well rooted, a thorough soaking of the lawn twice a week should be sufficient. It is important to water based on inches vs. time. In it's first 4 weeks sodded lawns should receive 3 inches of water per week. Place a pan on your lawn when watering to help measure the amount of water your watering method achieves.
  
  
• Seeded Lawns - Seeded lawns also need frequent watering. Follow tips for sodded lawns except for the amount of time for each watering. Inches per week are not as important as keeping the soil moist. Grass seedlings can dry up in only a few hours on a hot, windy day if the soil is not moist.

Fertilizing New Plants and Lawns

• Trees, Ornamentals, Shrubs, Evergreens, Perennials and Groundcovers -
  Bruss Landscaping, Inc. will apply a mild fertilizer and root stimulation product to your plantings at installation. This product will supply necessary nutrients for rapid establishment. Fall and Spring fertilizations are strongly reccomended to maintain plant vigor. It is very important to maintain a routine in nutrient application for your landscape plantings to thrive.
  
  
• Sod - Sod should be rooted in before any fertilization begins. Once established, you can begin a combination weed and feed type of application. We recommend using a dry granular type of general fertilizer such as 10-10-10, 12-8-10, or others close to those formulations.
  
  
• Seed - Newly seeded lawns should not be fed until all of the seed has germinated. The first feeding should not have any weed control in the formulation and it should be applied at half rate. Seeding is not a one time process, additional seeding may be required to fill in weak areas. Once a seeded lawn is fully established, you can follow the recommendations for sod.

Weeds and Their Control - In the process of installing a new landscape, we have either worked up and modified the soil or new soil has been added. In either case, this will lead to new weed development. In the first year, the best way to control weeds is to pull them. After the first year, you may use weed preventatives such as Preen or post-emergent controls such as Round-Up. Be very careful using these products; misuse can harm or kill your plants. Call your designer to get help on using any product you are not sure of. Periodic re-mulching of your landscape beds can greatly help prevent weed growth.

Pruning Your Plants - After planting is completed, occasionally branches may show to have been damaged during transport. This damage does not show until a few weeks after completion. Use a pruner or small hand saw to prune out any damage you see. If you are not sure call your designer for help first. In years after a landscape installation, proper pruning is vital to fulfilling and maintaining the intended design. Knowledge of the flowering cycle of ornamentals and shrubs is a must to know the proper time to prune. Call your designer to get detailed information on how to prune your new landscape.