Lawns, Gardens & Landscapes

When it rains, do you know where rainwater from your property goes? Does it spread out and soak into the lawn or landscape beds to recharge soil moisture and benefit plants; or does it run off into the street and down a storm drain where it often transports pollutants to surface water?

Here in the dead of winter, a valuable service to hire to maintain a residential property is a snow removal company.  No more aching back, slipping and falling and shivering in the cold.  Of course all of that comes at a price, so you have to determine if it’s worth it.  As well, as their employees clean off the snow, there’s a chance that your mailbox or landscaping might be harmed, so that may be a factor in the decision.

During the lawn fertilization season, use responsible practices to help keep nutrients out of streams, rivers ponds, and lakes. For those who live in town, it is important to know that most curbs and storm sewer systems drain directly into surface water. As rainwater flows over surfaces like pavement and bare soil, it collects materials such as soil, plant and animal waste and fertilizers, which contribute nutrients to surface waters.

Floods cause damage to trees in two main ways – physical and physiological. The severity of damage is determined by many different factors, including the tree species, beginning health of the tree, length of flooding event, depth of the water, amount of soil removed or deposited over the tree’s root system and time of year flooding occurs. Generally, broadleaved trees tolerate flooding better than conifers, such as pine, spruce and fir.

Water is essential to life and has no substitute; hence, water-wise practices that conserve and protect water resources are something we all need to use.  During the growing season, it is estimated 40 percent or more of water use is for landscape irrigation. In many cases, the water used for this purpose is water that has been treated to drinking water standards. Plants do not need drinking quality water like we do.

The excess rain this year is a change from many years where we are already worried about drought stress on our landscapes. However, excess moisture is causing problems in our landscapes this year from fungal diseases as well as nutrient deficiencies. Chlorosis

You see a bright shiny package at the garden center saying that it can help you have the most bountiful garden ever, the greenest lawn in the neighborhood, your plants will have miraculous growth, or it will supply every element on earth to make sure that your plants are living their best life. It’s got what plants crave….It’s got electrolytes! You reach out to grab that package and ……. Woah!  Pump the brakes!  Do you know if your plants even need to be fertilized?  Are you just falling for that shiny marketing, or do your plants really need added fertility to grow?

With Nebraska’s weather extremes, many of us have spots in our landscapes that need to tolerate periods of wet feet as well as periods of drought… quite a challenge! The type of wet conditions also varies. A wet, poorly drained site is different than a moist site with good drainage. Wet, poorly drained soils have low oxygen content since the pore space is full of water. For most plants good root growth requires a careful balance of moisture and oxygen; and many plants that like moisture cannot handle standing water. Below are some plants that can tolerate moist to wet soil.

There is still time to plant shade trees this fall, but know that fertilization and the addition of root stimulant products have been shown to have little or no effect on how quickly a tree establishes. However, the unnecessary use of these products could lead to an increase in nutrients in surface water that can impair water ecosystems. Fertilizer and root stimulant products are not recommended unless a soil test indicates they are needed.

Fall is a great time of the year. Trees develop beautiful fall colors, and then those leaves fall to the ground. Tree leaves are fun to play in as a kid and most everyone loves the crunch sound under your feet as we walk over fallen leaves. However, leaves should not be left on the lawn. This can be damaging to turfgrass and to surface water. It is best to use leaves or remove them. Why Rake