One thing about springtime in Arizona is the weeds that seem to be everywhere. This happens for many reasons, you have breezes to scatter the seeds, good moisture and plenty of sunshine for growth. That wonderful weather is what brings folks to our Valley of the Sun.
As a commercial property owner or manager you will be looking for ways to control those weeds. That is why pre-emergent weed control is our important topic today.
Weed seeds exist in almost all lawns and gardens, and can be spread in a number of ways. They can be dispersed by wind, water, animals, soil amendments, poor quality grass seed and lawn and garden equipment. Many weed seeds remain dormant for years before they begin to grow since they must reach the soil's surface and receive the proper amount of sunlight and moisture before they germinate.
In the early Spring inspect your lawn area as the warm weather approaches, then decide on the treatment. Apply a pre-emergent shortly before annual weeds, such as crabgrass, begin to grow in the spring. A good rule is to apply the pre-emergent before the weeds begin to grow and bloom. You may decide to use a pre-emergent combined with fertilizer as an early lawn treatment.
Pre-emergent herbicides are applied before the targeted weed germinates, and are an effective preventative method for controlling weeds. Crabgrass preventer is a good example. Pre-emergents establish a chemical barrier that will not kill established plants, but will prevent weeds from successfully growing. The protective barrier breaks down in six to eight weeks. Use of a pre-emergent, therefore, requires proper timing to be effective. Be aware that pre-emergents can harm some desirable ornamental plants and turf grasses. As always, read and follow the manufacturer's instructions carefully.
This time of year try to use selective herbicides. When they are applied as directed by the manufacturer, they kill only certain plants.
A good example of a selective herbicide is a lawn weed killer designed specifically for the removal of broadleaf plants. These products will remove the weeds without killing the established lawn in which the weeds grow. Young, freshly sewn grass would still be susceptible to the herbicide, however, since it would not have had an opportunity to fully establish itself.
If you aren’t looking for another DIY project then give us a call at 623-848-8277. It doesn’t matter to us whether you want lush lawns, desert landscaping or some type of landscaping in between, we can help.
Presented by:
Greens Keeper Landscape Maintenance, LLC
623-848-8277
http://www.commerciallandscapecare.com
greenskeeperllc@cox.net
One of the best management practices for healthy lawns is to use a sprinkler system to control watering and water use. The following tips are based on the assumption that you already have a properly installed and adjusted sprinkler system in use at your commercial location.
Sprinkler Tips
For an efficient system:
If you are experiencing water run off; Irrigate more often for shorter periods of time.
Replace broken and missing sprinklers as soon as they are discovered.
Water conservation
Adjust sprinkler heads so they don’t spray walls, driveways or sidewalks.
To avoid wasting water; shaded areas should be watered about 30% less than sunny areas.
If it has rained, reduce irrigations accordingly. The best way to balance water use is with a system that monitors ground moisture as part of the programming.
Note: A typical lawn sprinkler system uses about 10 – 18 gallons per minute per valve or zone. If a lawn has twenty zones and waters for 15 minutes three times per week, the water consumption would range between 45,000 and 75,000 gallons per month.
And remember: We live in a Desert, Always Use Water Wisely!
If you need help with your commercial properties’ sprinkler system please give Greens Keeper Commercial Landscape Maintenance, LLC a call at 623-848-8277, to see how we can help you solve your water use problems.
Presented by:
Greens Keeper Landscape Maintenance, LLC
623-848-8277
http://www.commerciallandscapecare.com
greenskeeperllc@cox.net
Sometimes Junk isn't someone else's treasure, it is well... just junk.
Webster’s Dictionary tells us that the noun junk is;
1. any old or discarded material, as metal, paper, or rags.
2. anything that is regarded as worthless, meaningless, or contemptible; trash.
3. old cable or cordage used when untwisted for making gaskets, swabs, oakum, etc.
We aren’t sure how it happens. Slowly but surely “junk” just seems to accumulate. One theory is that “junk” results from the missing socks from wash machines all over and must somehow turn into the junk that accumulates in nooks and crannies everywhere. I’m not sure that there is a sound scientific theory to support that but it does brighten my day.
At Greens Keeper Landscape Maintenance we are ready to haul away all the blight that is cluttering your property.
While Junk Removal can be related to storm damage, it can also be just what you need removed from your property, commercial or otherwise.
If you have anything on your property that needs removal please take the time to give us a call at 623-848-8277 so we can help.
We look forward to helping you make your property more beautiful and valuable by clearing away any Junk. No job is too little or too big. We remove your junk one item at a time until it is all gone. We will remove your headaches from commercial property, rentals, homes, garages, estates or storage facilities.
No time; we can help. Job too big for you; we can help. Gives us a quick call so we can solve your problems.
Presented by:
Greens Keeper Landscape Maintenance, LLC
623-848-8277
http://www.commerciallandscapecare.com
greenskeeperllc@cox.net
Drip Irrigation: An efficient and economical way to water your garden, saving time, money, and water.
Drip irrigation is an efficient and economical method of watering. Used commonly in arid areas like the Phoenix Arizona Metro Area with scarce water resources, the use of drip irrigation is increasing in this area. This irrigation method is typically more than 90% efficient at allowing plants to use the water applied. Unlike other forms of irrigation, such as sprinklers that are only 65-75% efficient, drip irrigation reduces runoff and evaporation. Drip irrigation applies the water slowly at the plant root zone just where it is needed.
Drip irrigation has more commonly been used in commercial nursery and agricultural operations, however, commercial property owners are beginning to take advantage of its uses and benefits. As a property owner, you can save by using drip irrigation in your floral areas, and to water trees and shrubs.
If you need a new installation or repair consider Greens Keeper Landscape Maintenance to do your project. Let us give you a quote.
At Greens Keeper Landscape we want you to know how to take care of your property. If you don’t want the headache of landscape maintenance we take care of your landscape for you. To find out how we can help just give us a call at 623-848-8277.
Presented by:
Greens Keeper Landscape Maintenance, LLC
623-848-8277
http://www.commerciallandscapecare.com
greenskeeperllc@cox.net
Greens Keeper Landscape Maintenance is a service oriented family owned business specializing in commercial landscape maintenance.
While our normal hours of operations are from 6:00 AM to 2:00 PM we offer 24/7 service and Storm Damage Clean-up as needed by our customers.
We keep our operating costs low and pass these savings on to our customers. We provide high quality service and pride ourselves on our up front communication practices.
Our hourly rate is $26 per hour. Our special project rate, including sprinkler repairs, is $30. We offer convenient payment terms of 2/10 net 30.
All of our vehicles are clearly marked and all of our employees are in uniform for easy identification. Many of the small unexpected things that other companies charge for, we include in your price.
If there are minor sprinkler repairs that are needed, most of them are also included (no charge). We accomplish this by providing an allowance for sprinkler heads, drip emitters, shrub heads, and repairs to lateral lines and drip lines. The only sprinkler issues that we would have to charge for would be main line repairs, valves & timers. And we always get these pre approved by our customers.
Unlike other companies we don't mark-up inventory, whenever possible. Another one of our popular services is safety and visibility trimming at no extra charge. This means that if you have things we think could be a liability on your property related to the landscape, we will communicate with you and work together to resolve these issues before they cause an accident or damage vehicles or buildings. If there is vegetation blocking the view of signs or safe passage in and out of the parking lot, trees blocking safety lighting, we will keep those items at their smallest manageable size (no charge).
We don't charge anything for the installation of winter lawns. This means you do not pay anything for scalping and removal of summer lawn, sprinkler tune up, and top dressing where needed. And the seed is provided at the market price. We also offer a full range of tree trimming options for our customers including emergency storm damage clean up and tree removal. Lawn fertilizer is done quarterly for the price of fertilizer only.
We will strive to keep your landscape safe, clean and beautiful. At the same time keeping your costs as low as possible.
We meet or exceed the highest insurance standards, with $2,000,000 business liability, $1,000,000 commercial auto, and $1,000,000 workman's comp. And we can list you (the customer) as additional insured at no extra charge.
We can Help your business be more successful! Please contact us at; Sales: 623-848-8277 We serve the entire Phoenix Metro Area.
Presented by:
Greens Keeper Landscape Maintenance, LLC
623-848-8277
http://www.commerciallandscapecare.com
greenskeeperllc@cox.net
Many times the use of desert landscape is done to make the need for watering a non-issue. They are very good at storing water. Many desert plants store water inside themselves, like cacti, for instance. While desert plants are drought tolerant by their very nature they still need some water just to thrive in our climate.
Watering is sometimes a challenge for plant owners, especially for those who live in the desert where plants have extreme water needs. Watering questions are typical of the many inquiries we receive each year in talking with commercial property owners. In the interest of both conserving water and maintaining healthy and beautiful landscapes, let's look at this sometimes-mystery called irrigation.
It might be helpful to start by discussing how plants process water and how this process protects plants from the sun's intense heat. When temperatures are high and humidity is low, the transpiration rate for plants is high. Transpiration rate describes how fast water vapor is lost to the atmosphere through evaporation, primarily from a plant's leaves. This water loss occurs during photosynthesis when openings called stomata on leaf surfaces open and close for the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide. When the stomata are open, water vapor escapes. This evaporation has a cooling effect on leaves and is a critical part of a tree's protection from the sun's heat and light.
Our challenge is to provide water in quantities sufficient to allow plants to "breathe," that is, to release water vapor in amounts needed to keep plant surfaces constantly within a temperature range cool enough not to suffer true dehydration.
But it's not only a function of providing adequate water. Desert-adapted plants have special features to help them handle the heat. They sometimes have thick plant surfaces or reduced surface areas or other adaptive qualities. Plants without these features have a hard time in the summer heat. Some non-desert adapted plants have large leaf surfaces that transpire at such high rates that they lose water faster than it can be replenished. In spite of having enough water in the soil, they can suffer from sunscald.
The owners of these non-drought-tolerant species have a difficult task keeping them alive, let alone green. Survival is not only a matter of having adequate water. It's also about a plant's genetic functional ability to handle our hot environment. And that is sometimes beyond our control or even an irrigation controller.
More importantly you can let Greens Keeper Landscape Maintenance do all the work for you and take the burden off your shoulders all together. Give us a call at 623-848-8277 and let’s talk about it.
Presented by:
Greens Keeper Landscape Maintenance, LLC
623-848-8277
http://www.commerciallandscapecare.com
greenskeeperllc@cox.net
While living in the southwestern desert climate offers a wider variety of plant choices than many areas, those faced with the job of landscaping near a swimming pool still have the basic commercial property considerations pool managers in any region must confront.
Before sending workers on an impulsive trip to a nursery or home center for whatever strikes their fancy, have them do some research.
If they choose fruit or flower-bearing trees and shrubs they may be beauties, but they will make a big mess when their leaves, needles, fruits, flowers, nuts or catkins fall in and around your pool or spa areas. Fruit and flowers trees, shrubs and bushes can lead to a lot of extra work for your pool cleaner.
Desert plants, cacti and beautiful roses bushes have needles and thorns, as do colorful bougainvillea, barberry, pyracantha and luscious blackberry bushes. Can you imagine a resident, their child or a visitor accidentally falling into a rose bush or type of cacti?
Over the years, trees and plants with invasive roots can damage the pool’s structure, its surrounding area, and its plumbing system. This list includes ficus, elm and oak trees.
While the whole bee / hummingbird / ecosystem thing can be an amazing when it is happening in the garden and common area, you don’t want any pollinators mistaking your pool guests for an enticing honeysuckle or bottlebrush. Other bee-lovin' plants include Wisteria, Sweet Clovers, Delphinium, Larkspur, Queen Anne's Lace, Cosmos and many Salvias. Keep these far away from your pools or hot-tube/spa areas.
Nearby nurseries or botanical gardens usually feature plants that are indigenous to your area or will adapt well to our climate. You may be tempted by the idyllic images and order an exotic banana tree off some website, but you might be wasting your dollars if it’s not suitable for your neck of the woods. If in doubt, consult regional charts or your local nursery.
Low-maintenance plants mean less work for your staff. The landscaping near your pool should enhance its surroundings and often sets a mood, like an island or oasis. You don’t want to be spending the bulk of your maintenance budget trimming and fertilizing the poolscaping, especially if it’s hard to access. Keep it simple. With the right plant selections, you can relax when thinking about the swimming pools and enjoy the scenery.
At Greens Keeper Landscape Maintenance we have an even better idea, let us to the work and stressing about your commercial landscape needs.
It doesn’t matter to us whether you want lush lawns, desert landscaping or some type of landscaping in between, we can help. To find out how give us a call at 623-848-8277.
Presented by:
Greens Keeper Landscape Maintenance, LLC
623-848-8277
http://www.commerciallandscapecare.com
greenskeeperllc@cox.net
