How Much Water Does Your Katy Lawn Need?

So, how much water does your lawn need? This can be a tricky question especially in the Texas summers. Most people we speak with in Katy tell us they are not sure and they just guess. If you just guess and turn your sprinklers on two or more times a week you might be over watering.

Over watering is not just wasteful, it can harm your lawn. Here at Katy Lawn Service, we recommend a deep and less frequent watering schedule for a lush and healthy lawn. This schedule helps to grow deeper roots, which helps with disease and winter freezes. A good rule of thumb is to water 1 inch per week. If you are looking for a more specific recommendation, then we suggest that your water penetrate 6 inches into the soil. Here is a simple test you can run to see how much water you are getting on your lawn.

•Put out five or six cans in your grass, like tuna or pet food cans. Make sure you put out enough cans because sprinkler heads do not spray evenly and some area of your lawn will get more water than others.

•Turn on your sprinkler for at least 30 minutes.

•Check and measure how much water is in each can.

•Next you need to get an average water depth. To do this just add all the depth measurements and divide by the number of cans.

•Now that you know the depth, just run your sprinkler long enough to allow 1 inch of watering. For instance in the above step you found out that your sprinkler averaged ½ inch in 30 minutes then you know you would have to leave your sprinkler running at least an hour.

 Pretty simple but also pretty important for a beautiful lawn.

Here in Katy Texas we have a lot of clay in our soils and this can be a drainage problem. Clay will not absorb all the water and you will have run off, which is wasteful and does not benefit your yard. We recommend you splitting your times to allow for absorption. Water 30 minutes, wait an hour than water for another 30 minutes.   

If you are wondering how far down your soil is getting water, simply use a shovel. You spade will easily penetrate the wet soil and stop on the dry dirt. If you find that you are only going down 3 inches, then double your watering to get down to the desired mark of 6 inches.

Here are a few more watering tips:

•If you have a new lawn, you will need to water more frequently but less time. Meaning instead of watering (2) 30 minute cycles per week as we described in our example you can water (4) 15 minute cycles 2 times per week. If you see that your lawn is not responding well or turning brown, the increase your watering.

•Make sure you adjust for rainfall.

•Watering in the morning is ideal as your lawn is cooler and there is less evaporation. Watering in the evening can encourage disease.

•Grass near trees need more water as trees suck up a lot of the water in the soil, so keep this in mind.

•Check your sprinkler placement or sprinkler heads to make sure they are covering the lawn and not your driveway or sidewalks.

Follow these tips and you should have a beautiful lawn this summer! If you need the Katy experts to take care of your lawn, please contact us!

Katy Lawn Service

281-784-0330

http://lawnservicekaty.com/

Fertilizers For Katy TX Lawns

What Do The Numbers Mean On Fertilizers?

When you see a fertilizer product, there will be three numbers boldly listed on the front of the package. These numbers are very important and tell a great deal about what this fertilizer will do.

Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Potassium (N,P,K) are what the three numbers refer to, in that order. Those numbers refer to the percentage of each element contained in the product. For instance, if purchase a 50-pound bag of fertilizer with a 15-5-10 ration, that means there is 7.5 pounds (15% x 50) of Nitrogen, 2.5 pounds (5% x 50) of Phosphorus and 5 pounds (10% x 50) of Potassium. The remaining ingredients are fillers, used to help distribute the elements.

Top, Bottom and All Over

A good way of remembering how each element works is “top, bottom and all over.” Remembering this will help you recall that Nitrogen (N), the first element listed, aids in the lawn growing above the ground.  Nitrogen does a fantastic job greening up your lawn and provides the necessary nutrients for a lush yard. Many fertilizers will frequently have a high first number for this reason.

Phosphorus (P), the second number, is very good at establishing the root systems. Phosphorus is also most responsible for fruit production and flower blooms. Fertilizers designed for new lawns and flower beds have a larger middle number.

Potassium (K), the final number listed on the label, it is responsible for maintaining a healthy lawn. This is because Potassium helps to build strong cells within the plant. Lawn have to endure stress, heat, cold, pest and diseases, Potassium is the element that helps yards with these challenges. Winterizer fertilizers will have high levels of potassium.

When buying a fertilizer, think about what you are trying to accomplish. General purpose fertilizers usually have equal numbers of N,P,K. Katy Lawn Service recommends a 15-5-10 in late February and early March for a quick green up.  Some people will be tempted to put down a weed and feed during this period but if you read our article about Pre-EmergentHerbicides, you know that this is not necessary nor good for your lawn. Quick fixes will not fix the problems. A planned-out strategy and patience always wins.

Summer Lawn Schedule

We recommend you apply fertilizer two more times before the winter months start. The next time is late March or early April and then in late June or early July as a lawn care routine. A ratio of 3-1-2 works best in Katy, TX. Formulation we recommend are 19-5-9, 19-4-10, 18-4-6, 15-5-1. Make sure to use a slow release fertilizer. During mid-October or early November, apply your winterizer, with a formulation of 18-6-12, 8-12-16, 10-5-14, this will ensure a hardy winter grass. Here is a great fertilization schedule from on of Houston Texas’ best experts, Randy Lemmon.

Finally, whenever you apply fertilizers, more is not better. You can burn your lawn by using too much and over fertilizing. You might also damage your soil. Just remember that if you have a healthy and well maintained lawn, then less is better. If you want the lawn care experts of Katy to take care of your lawn, just call us and set an appointment. One of our experts will come out and give you a quote. You can have a lawn you have always dreamed of and be the envy of all your neighbors! Call us today!

Katy Lawn Service

30702 Falcon Trace

Fulshear, TX 77423

281-784-0330

http://lawnservicekaty.com/

Lawn Care Service Near Typhoon Texas From Katy Lawn Service

Katy Lawn Service Weed Prevention Tips

Great Tips From The Lawn Care Service In Katy TX

Pre Emergent Herbicide And How To Use It For Weed Prevention In Your Lawn

Stop Weeds Like This In Your Lawn

A pre emergent herbecide does not kill weeds that are already growing but prevents new weeds from growing. Pre emergents are chemicals that stop weeds before they can establish themselves. Many people believe that a pre emergent keeps weeds from germinating. Why that might seem like the case, actually that is not what happens.  Weed seeds can stay dormant for long periods of time and will only germinate when the right conditions are met. For a pre emergent to do its job, you actually want the weed to germinate. The reason for this is because, depending on the pre emergent you are using, either the root or the initial leaf is prevented from developing and the weed dies. So saying a pre emergent keeps weeds from germinating is incorrect. You actually NEED the seed to germinate to kill the weed.

When To Apply To Your Katy Lawn?

So now you know how a pre emergent works, so when should you apply it to your yard? As we talked about earlier, the product has to be applied before the weed germinates and takes root, so the soon the better because pre emergents  have no affect on already established weeds. Katy Lawn Service recommends applying before the ground temperature reaches 55 degrees. As you know, here in Katy, TX, our winters can be quite warm, so we recommend applying in early February for all of our lawn care customers. You see, pre emergents are very unsoluble, meaning they do not dissolve very easily in solutions (i.e. water.) You want to put down your pre emergent about 2 weeks before weeds germinate so it can form a barrier on the surface of your lawn and be ready to do their job. Pre emergents are broken down by microbes and when the soil temperatures are low, so is the microbe activity,  Instead of trying to time out temperature windows, especially with the crazy fluctuations we have here in Katy TX, we recommend all our our lawn service customers apply pre emergents every 90 days, just to ensure a beautiful lawn. 

You can get your pre emergents at any Houston Garden Center,or  Cornelius Nursery. You want to stay away from the big box stores like Lowe's and The Home Depot as they carry main stream products and not specialty products like a pre emergent. Most people do not do this treatment to their lawns. If you are a do-it-yourselfer, knock your self out! But if you want a professional lawn care company to complete this task, the call Katy Lawn Service, we are experts in yard care and very knowledgeable with pre emergent herbicides.

You can have a beautiful, weed free yard for you family to enjoy and be the envy of your neighbors. No more trying to kill those ugly weeds once they get a foothold in you grass. Kill them before they have a chance to grow!

Call today and we can come out and give you a quote. 281-784-0330 

Katy Lawn Service

30702 Falcon Trace

Fulshear, TX 77423

281-784-0330