Yard freaks

[TXSTYLE]

Well... I am all about Fashion, Style, Cooking, Drinking, Fitness, Furniture, Decor and many things.

But... Landscaping, Gardening and keeping my yard beautiful is also a priority!

Right now the TX Bermuda is dormant so the grass looks like wheat. However, I plant 'annuals' in our Garden to always have a splash of color year around.

Snapped this outside of our front door.

[lsturbointeg]

Do you guys add mulch to your flower beds every year or every other year? I'm deciding whether or not to do this year? Hopefully if Spring ever gets here I wanna dethatch the yard and aerate before the first app of weed and feed

[UncleWede]

I think I use mulch completely differently than anyone who has to worry about plants and the cold.

I add mulch to keep down weeds. IF I start having to spend a lot of time on weeds in a particular area, all the mulch comes out, layer in a good supply of fertilizer, then cover with new.

[RickFLM4]

Originally Posted by lsturbointeg

Do you guys add mulch to your flower beds every year or every other year? I'm deciding whether or not to do this year? Hopefully if Spring ever gets here I wanna dethatch the yard and aerate before the first app of weed and feed

I used to do it twice / year but now do it once / year with a thick application right before Christmas.

[TXSTYLE]

Originally Posted by lsturbointeg

Do you guys add mulch to your flower beds every year or every other year? I'm deciding whether or not to do this year? Hopefully if Spring ever gets here I wanna dethatch the yard and aerate before the first app of weed and feed

I do fresh mulch every year! It looks nicer and the cost is nominal.

[RickFLM4]

What kind of mulch do you guys use? I use eucalyptus, which is getting harder to find (actually a citrus / eucalyptus blend nowadays). Looks and smells good and natural deterrent for insects.

[King Rudi]

Originally Posted by TXSTYLE

Well... I am all about Fashion, Style, Cooking, Drinking, Fitness, Furniture, Decor and many things.

But... Landscaping, Gardening and keeping my yard beautiful is also a priority!

Right now the TX Bermuda is dormant so the grass looks like wheat. However, I plant 'annuals' in our Garden to always have a splash of color year around.

Snapped this outside of our front door.

I see some Monkey Face Pansies in there

[B58 parts]

Every even year I have the dump truck drop 10 yards over a tarp in the driveway. Every odd year I take couple trips to HD and get 20 bags or so, just lightly top it off in the noticeable areas.

[lsturbointeg]

Originally Posted by TXSTYLE

I do fresh mulch every year! It looks nicer and the cost is nominal.

Originally Posted by RickFLM4

I used to do it twice / year but now do it once / year with a thick application right before Christmas.

Originally Posted by UncleWede

I think I use mulch completely differently than anyone who has to worry about plants and the cold.

I add mulch to keep down weeds. IF I start having to spend a lot of time on weeds in a particular area, all the mulch comes out, layer in a good supply of fertilizer, then cover with new.

Originally Posted by YuminNuman

Every even year I have the dump truck drop 10 yards over a tarp in the driveway. Every odd year I take couple trips to HD and get 20 bags or so, just lightly top it off in the noticeable areas.

I do mine every Spring time here in OH since the whole neighborhood seems to do it at the same time. Here we use mulch to help keep the moisture in and overall curb appeal. Not so much for containing weeds like someone mentioned. I usually pick up about 60 bags from Home Depot when they go on sale for 5 bags/$10. I've got a lot of flower beds to do as well as around the Hydrangea trees, Autumn Blaze Maples and the big Red Oak tree in the back yard

[RickFLM4]

We use about 120 bags @ $3.33 each.

[lsturbointeg]

I am interested in how my tulips will be this coming Spring since we planted about 500 of them around the edges of the flower beds?

[Yapakanichi]

Well here in FL the weather is warming up again and I added my first application of weed and feed. Specifically for Bermuda grass. I'm hoping that the weed and feed can possibly kill off the St. Augustine. It said to not apply it to St. Aug yards. Here's to hoping.

Also releveled the front of my next to the driveway. Got tired of scalping the yard due to the PO not properly taking care of the yard. Got a bad spot in your yard? Just throw sod at it till it's a big ol lump in the yard.

How does one go about leveling the yard?

[RickFLM4]

I also applied weed n feed and pest control to the lawn this weekend (plus fertilized palm trees, tabebuia, gardenia and juniper and applied perimeter pest control around house). I still have St. Augustine. I go back and forth on using weed n feed as I don’t find it very effective for some weeds. I have had better experience using spray on products for spot treatment (Image, for example) but you have to be careful not to use it too often or over-apply. On St. Augustine, which is salt tolerant, you can also sprinkle some baking soda over weeds, but I wouldn’t do that with Bermuda or other grasses.

As far as leaving the yard, it depends on how out of level it is. I wouldn’t want it completely level - I want water draining away from house. If just a small area that needs to be leveled a little bit, I’d throw some top soil over the grass (but not enough to completely bury the grass) and keep doing that until it got leveled.

[UncleWede]

hand-tilled the garden soil in the opposite direction then tamped it down with rake on Sunday. Too much rain of late to make that feasible. Still very few weeds or volunteers.

Wife bought 8 trays of "Window Sill Greenhouse" and we seeded calabasitas (Mexican zucchini), jalapenos, Serrano, red bells, beefsteak, and a roma heirloom of some sort. She wanted to put carrots in those as well, but I talked her into the idea that carrots go right into the ground.

Moved around some pots, transplanted some new orchids, and buried several bags of flower tubers. I warned her the selected location barely grows crab grass, but whatever.

[UncleWede]

Apparently you are supposed to wash down the deck of the mower :

And a fire pit poker is the correct tool to scrape said deck!

[CTinline-six]

Originally Posted by UncleWede

Apparently you are supposed to wash down the deck of the mower :

And a fire pit poker is the correct tool to scrape said deck!

Not necessarily. Unless the deck is 100% dry afterward washing the deck only traps moisture in the grass that is still stuck to the deck. The deck will rot out even faster.

Scraping off the caked on grass occasionally is all you need to do.

[CTinline-six]

I'm not really a lawn freak, but I do appreciate a nice striped lawn. I mulch everything (including leaves) with a Toro Personal Pace walk behind mower.

[UncleWede]

Originally Posted by CTinline-six

Not necessarily. Unless the deck is 100% dry afterward washing the deck only traps moisture in the grass that is still stuck to the deck. The deck will rot out even faster.

Scraping off the caked on grass occasionally is all you need to do.

I certainly don't spray it down BEFORE mowing, so there shouldn't be anything.

What prompted this was going into the shed and it smelled like I forgot to empty the bag the last time. Nope, it was empty. After mowing (for the second time this week ) I looked under and found it all caked up, possibly slowing down the blades it was so thick.

[CTinline-six]

Originally Posted by UncleWede

I certainly don't spray it down BEFORE mowing, so there shouldn't be anything.

What prompted this was going into the shed and it smelled like I forgot to empty the bag the last time. Nope, it was empty. After mowing (for the second time this week ) I looked under and found it all caked up, possibly slowing down the blades it was so thick.

Oh definitely not before mowing haha.

I'm talking about the mowers with the wash ports on the deck. Usually it only gets out some of the grass, leaving the underside of the deck only partially clean and the remaining grass dry. Rots them out in around 5 years.

Is it wet when you mow? Certain kinds of grass are worse at caking underneath than others.

[UncleWede]

Originally Posted by CTinline-six

Oh definitely not before mowing haha.

I'm talking about the mowers with the wash ports on the deck. Usually it only gets out some of the grass, leaving the underside of the deck only partially clean and the remaining grass dry. Rots them out in around 5 years.

Is it wet when you mow? Certain kinds of grass are worse at caking underneath than others.

I live in Cali. Is it wet when I mow???

Actually it has been of late

When I wash the deck, it's wheels up baby!

[lsturbointeg]

Originally Posted by CTinline-six

Oh definitely not before mowing haha.

I'm talking about the mowers with the wash ports on the deck. Usually it only gets out some of the grass, leaving the underside of the deck only partially clean and the remaining grass dry. Rots them out in around 5 years.

Is it wet when you mow? Certain kinds of grass are worse at caking underneath than others.

on my Husqvarna I wash the deck after each mow.

[Yapakanichi]

I wash my mower pretty regularly...

BUT

I have an EGO power+ self propelled mower with a plastic deck lid. I remove the battery, flip her on the side. Spray all the excess grass off and let it dry while it's standing in the garage or whatever.

I also spray off the edger and weed eater attachments. Never had an issue.

Today I applied the insecticide for the beginning of the year. I love Florida. Everything is waking up and hopefully this year the yard will take off with Bermuda grass.