Planning for recovery from summer stress to lawns and gardens.

 

Drought Stressed Lawn

This summer has been the driest we’ve seen since 2010.  Things began to go south in mid-June, with significantly less than normal rainfall in June and July.  Adding greatly to this problem were numerous excessive heat warnings with real feel temperatures from 100 to 110 degrees and nighttime low temperatures in the high 70s-low 80s.  As I sit here writing this, we’re waiting to see just how much precipitation we’ll get from Tropical Storm Debby.  Hopefully, enough to get lawns growing again and allow for us to see just how much damage was caused by the incredible heat and dry conditions.  This summer’s stressful conditions have affected landscape plantings as well.  Some customers have reported shallow-rooted shrubs are seriously damaged or dead, even those that have been established for a few years.  Young trees have fared no better, especially those not given supplemental watering.  Perennials and annuals have not thrived as they should despite regular watering and fertilization.  Many plants have scorch damage from the blazing heat and dry conditions.  There will be much work to do this fall to repair the damage to lawns, gardens and landscapes.  The sooner all of us start, the sooner we’ll be able to overcome the damage and restore beauty to our lovely lawns, gardens and landscapes.

There is no reason to believe that the fall season will be different than normal for Southeastern PA, lovely warm days, cool nights, and regular rainfall.  The fall growing season starts as soon as August 15, if we get some meaningful rainfall, and usually lasts into November.  So, we’ll expect 3 ½ months of terrific growing weather just ahead.  We encourage you all to seriously evaluate what’s needed and get started as soon as possible on all that is required to repair damaged lawns and landscapes.  Make sure that during the fall repair/growing season you water new plants/grass well and regularly.  Reparation work will continue through late fall to ensure everything you care about is healthy again before the onset of winter dormancy.

We fully expect that many of you will have lots of questions not only about what to do, but what the sequence of your jobs should be in order to achieve the best results.  We’re ready for you!  We’ve been down this road before and have always advised and assisted you, our loyal customers with the recovery process.  The Lawn Depot Garden Center is still on summer hours through Saturday August 24th (Monday through Saturday 9-5, closed Sunday).  Sunday August 25th, we’ll begin our extended fall hours, Monday-Friday 8-6, Saturday 8-5, Sunday 9-3, however, we will be closed on Labor Day.  Please feel free to stop in during store hours to discuss your own situation with our friendly and talented staff, or call (215-348-5553).

Lawn Depot Turf Management has begun its early fall application work (broadleaf weed control and early fall fertilizer) and shady lawn overseeding/core aeration jobs.  We urge any of you who have already gotten quotations for fall seeding, but have not yet ordered it, to do so immediately so you are guaranteed a spot on our schedule.  And any of you who have not already ordered core aeration or seeding, or both, and may be interested in having us perform the work, please call the office (215-348-5553) or look us up on the web (www.lawndepotinc.com) and select Request an Estimate.  It’s a busy time for our Turf Management group because the ideal conditions for growing grass from seed only happens in the fall.  If you are interested in utilizing Lawn Depot Turf Management for either regular or special application work (core aeration, seeding, liming, etc.), just give us a call or request an estimate via our web site.  We’ll be out to measure and evaluate your lawn (or sections thereof) within a few days and email you a quotation for the requested work.

As the season transitions from late summer to early fall, be sure you’re in the know; join our email list, follow us on Facebook and/or Instagram, or call the garden center for information on our latest 50th Anniversary deals.  We look forward to having many conversations with all of you over the next several months.  As we said earlier, we’ve been down this road before, and we know how to get things back where they should be.

                                                                Bob Button, Ken Button and Carolyn Pfaff

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