To those of you who love cold winters with lots of snow and ice (skiers, snowboarders, skaters, families with young kids, etc.), I offer my sincere condolences. But for those of us for whom snow and ice means lots of hard work, dangerous driving, and staying in the house most of the time, the winter of 2022-23 has been one magnificent winter. I’m writing this NEWSLETTER on the first of March, and other than a dusting the night before last, we’ve not had a measurable snowfall all winter. Lots of lovely days where temperatures got into the high 40s and low 50s and more sunny days than normal for this time of the year. I’ve loved it.
Because of the mild winter, Mother Nature is somewhat farther along than normal: the frost/freeze has long since come out of the ground. The soil temperature the last week of February at the Lawn Depot office was 42 degrees. Early spring bulbs are not only popping through the mulch, they’re already blooming in yards everywhere, lawns that were fertilized late last year (Lawn Depot WINTERFEAST turf food) are greening up and looking great, and the buds on early flowering trees are starting to swell. We’re not out of the woods yet though. There have been lots of significant snows in mid-late March over the years, but the warm soil will shorten the effects of any late snowfall, and we’ll be able to get back to the anticipation of another magnificent Southeastern PA spring.
Lawn Depot employees, both those working in the Garden Center and those in the Turf Management department, have been busy all winter, getting the Garden Center spruced up and rearranged for the spring season, and getting all the equipment ready for a busy spring in Turf Management. The Garden Center is back to its spring schedule now: open every day – Monday through Friday 8-6, Saturday 8-5, and Sunday 9-3. Turf management proposals are out for 2023 for all existing customers and those of you who have requested estimates for service since last fall; and the technicians have been out making early spring applications since President’s Day to keep pace with Mother Nature’s early start. We’re out now every day doing lawn evaluations and emailing estimates for this year’s services. If you’re not currently a Lawn Depot Turf Management customer and might like to enjoy the benefits of having a terrific lawn services company take over the responsibilities of creating/maintaining a lovely lawn at your address, either give us a call (215-348-5553) and either speak to one of our terrific representatives or leave a message if you call outside business hours, stop in at the Garden Center and fill out a request for estimate, or find us on the internet at www.lawndepotinc.com, and select Request Estimate. We’ll be out within several days to measure and evaluate your lawn and will email (or US Mail for those of you who don’t use email) an estimate immediately thereafter.
It’s March and spring is right around the corner. There’s lots of work to do in the yard for all of us, before the starting explosion of the spring growing season. Yards that were mowed into mid-December last fall ought to look terrific now (even and starting to green up) but there’s still plenty of cleanup work to do, such as picking up/raking leaves, sticks, and other extraneous material that may have blown in over the winter. Lawns that were not mowed after late October-early November will undoubtedly look somewhat shaggy now, probably with lots of leaves strewn around. Grass continues to grow until well into December in this area, and will always look best the following spring if the last mowing of the year is close to or after the lawn enters winter dormancy. If your lawns are shaggy/long and/or with lots of leaves on them now, we recommend that you get your mower out (or have your mowing service if you use one) and mow the lawn once now, at about 3 ½” to even it up and help it green up. Then you won’t need to mow again until the grass starts to grow, probably in early April.
Beds also need plenty of attention in March, before applying new mulch. Leaves and debris must be removed, weeds from last year need to be removed, and old, crusty mulch has to be scarified thoroughly, so moisture can penetrate for plants (bulbs, perennials), and granular fertilizers can be applied. All this, before the spring growing season gets into full swing. Remember, when spring starts, it’s an explosion. Be ready for it.
The 2023 season is upon us as we celebrate our 50th year serving the BuxMont area! As usual, we’ve had busy but lonely months over the winter getting ready. Now we’re excited to see everyone, advise those of you who might need it, and offer you the best quality lawn and gardening products and services available anywhere. We’ve been doing this for a long time, but we never get tired of it. We all look forward to seeing all of you, our terrific customers, soon and often in 2023!
Bob Button