Leaf raking season is here. It can be a hard task. But the reason that people find it so difficult is that they make leaf raking mistakes. Below are some of the most common leaf raking mistakes that people make when fall is here.

Leaf Raking Mistakes 1 – Waiting too Long

There are leaves falling throughout the fall, so the time to do it isn’t when all of the leaves are off of the trees. You want to rake throughout the year so that you don’t have to do it all at once.

This is also going to help you with pacing yourself.

Leaf Raking Mistakes 2 – Not Using the Right Kind of Rake

A narrow rake made of metal will gather fewer amounts of leaves and cover areas that are smaller. This means that you are going to work really hard without a good reason. Rather, choose a rake that is lightweight and has angled tines and a wide raking spread. You’ll be able to cover bigger areas and you won’t pierce the leaves so you don’t have to worry about clogs.

Leaf Raking Mistakes 3 – Wearing the Wrong Gear

After you have chosen the right rake, chances are that you want to start right on raking. However, if you’re doing this and you aren’t used to doing it, it can very quickly cause blisters to form on your palms and fingers. You should always put some gloves on, and these should have a snug, but not tight, fit.

If you find that you are sneezing while you’re raking, dust masks should also be in your gear. This is going to stop the airborne particles from the dusty, dry leaves from getting into your nose and lungs.

Leaf Raking Mistakes 4 – Making Random Leaf Piles

When you rake your leaves into your yard’s center, you’re doing a lot of extra walking around. It’s better to rake them onto tarps placed in various areas in the yard. Then you want to gather up the tarps and take your leaves where you’ll dispose of the leaves. This means that you aren’t going to have to keep on bending over to pick the piles up.

These are four common leaf raking mistakes that you want to avoid making. Are you dreading having to do your yard cleanup this fall? If you are, then you might want to contact us and get a quote for our fall cleanup service.  Let us do your fall cleanup for you for a fair and affordable price. Contact us here or on Facebook.

If you are interested in using straw as mulch, it’s a good idea. But there are a few things that you want to do to make sure that you are using straw as mulch the right way.

Using Straw as Mulch Tip 1 – Don’t Use Hay

Even though they look alike, hay and straw are different. Hay is used for feeding animals and contains seeds. If you use it as much, the seeds are going to germinate and then create weeds. Straw, on the other hand, will contain few weeds. So, when you’re purchasing your straw, look for weeds.

Using Straw as Mulch Tip 2 – Use Nitrogen in the Soil

Before you plant, you want to put some nitrogen in your soil before you’re planting. As the straw is breaking down, it might rob your soil of it temporarily. You can avoid this by adding worm castings or well-rotted manure to your soil. Another option is an organic fertilizer that is balanced.

Using Straw as Mulch Tip 3 – Wait a Few Weeks

You shouldn’t lay your straw mulch onto your vegetables until they’ve been in the ground and growing for three or so weeks. When you put mulch on seeds that are newly planted, it could prevent them from germinating.

Using Straw as Mulch Tip 4 – Weed the Garden

Before putting straw mulch down, weed the garden. Even though mulch is going to prevent most germination of the newer weed seeds, you want to remove the weeds that exist prior to spreading the straw.

These are four tips for using straw as mulch. If you are interested, we offer mulch delivery. Contact us here or on Facebook.

Mulching is a great way to help your landscape. But a lot of people don’t know much about it. Below are some tips for using mulch and how to use it to its fullest.

Tips for Using Mulch 1 – Tweak Your Mulch’s Thickness

When you come close to an edge area, like a steppingstone, tree trunk, or pavement, you want to make it thinner. It’s not a good idea to put your mulch against the trunk of a tree.

Tips for Using Mulch 2 – Try Out Different Mulches

There are many different textures, beginning with options like shredded bark and pine straw. If you want a new appearance and you want to update the mulch you use, like shells from cocoa beans and nut hulls, you can even try seaweed.

Tips for Using Mulch 3 – Never Ignore the Bare Soil

Mulching doesn’t just mean putting mulch around your plants. It’s also a good idea to mulch even when there aren’t any plants around. It can help avoid erosion.

These are three tips for using mulch. If you are interested, we offer mulch delivery. Contact us here or on Facebook.

When you buy a plant in the store, you want to look at the tag. Understanding how to read a plant tag is very important. Below are some of the things that will be on a plant tag and what they mean.

How to Read a Plant Tag

Common Name

That’s what it’s usually called. If you want a certain shape or color, more specifics are needed. That’s why you want to know how to read a plant tag.

Scientific Name

There are scientific names for every plant. The first part’s Latin and usually is italicized on its tag. It describes the plant’s group and the species. It also will include the cultivar. This is going to be in quote marks and will classify your plant, even more, when it comes to petal and leaf shape and color.

Mature Height & Spread

This is the plant’s maximum width and height it will likely reach when it’s completely grown.

Hardiness Zones

The hardiness zone numbers tell you the region the plant will grow best in. These zones are based on the temperatures. It’s still possible to grow plants that aren’t in your zone. However, they’ll have to be grown as annuals.

Sun Exposure

You are going to see this particular information on the tag as a sun icon or written out. When the tag says it needs to have full sun, the minimum number of hours is 6. This means that it needs direct sunlight each day for at least 6 hours. Partial shade/sun means it will need around 3 hours. If the tag says it’s a plant that needs to be in full shade, you want the plant to get under 3 hours.

Water Needs & Animal Resistance

If your tag isn’t saying when the plant needs to be watered, search for how many raindrops are on it.

• 1 – allow the soil to completely dry out
• 2 – the soil should be dry 1” beneath the surface
• 3 – keep soil constantly moist

If there’s an icon with a deer or rabbit crossed out, it indicates that they aren’t going to eat your plant.

When you are looking for plants at the store, one of the best things that you can do is know how to read the plant tag and understand it. We hope that this blog helped you out!

Interested in our services? Contact us here or on Facebook for more information.

Composting is a great choice to help your garden grow. If you want to, you can create an indoor compost bin. Below we are going to tell you how to create an indoor compost bin.

How to Create an Indoor Compost Bin

What You Need

• Container with a lid
• Drill
• Mesh screen made of nylon
• Glue gun (hot)
• Dirt
• Shredded newspapers
• Kitchen scraps
• Drill holes into the container lid

Drill 5 holes that are evenly spaced in your container’s lid to provide ventilation. You want to have air to help your materials with breaking down. That is what the holes are going to do.

1. Add the Screen

Cut your screen into a piece that is large enough for covering your air holes. Then attach it to your container lid’s underside. This is going to help with keeping bugs like fruit flies from getting into or out of your compact bin.

• Fill It with Your Scraps

Knowing what you want to put in your compost bin and what you shouldn’t put in it is going to make composting a lot easier. You should put dirt on its bottom and then the shredded newspaper. Then you put the scraps on top. These are things like coffee grounds, banana peels, and eggshells each day as you’re cooking or cleaning out the fridge. Break them into little pieces so they decompose quicker.

Don’t add dairy products, fats, and meats since they can produce bad odors and attract rodents or other pests.

• Stir

You want to stir your compost about once per week. This is going to aerate your mixture. Make sure that you’re putting your lid on tightly. This is going to avoid attracting pests you don’t want to see. When it’s ready for you to use, you’re able to add it to the compost pile outside.

There you are. You know how to create your own indoor compost bin. Keep watching for more composting tips coming soon.