Spring Lawn Care

Author: thenicknick

I watched in fascination and awe, after my husband and I split up, as the men of The Bubble maintained their lawns. It seems that my upbringing in the north where all I did from the age of twelve until I headed off to college was mow the lawn had left me ill-prepared for the chemical treating frenzy that I would be confronted with later in life. At most, there would be the fall burn that would inevitably get out of control due to an unexpected wind and my mother would dread leaving my father unattended for fear the entire volunteer fire department would be at the house to greet her upon her return. (Sadly, it wasn’t an unfounded fear.)

So, I can’t say whether it is a southern ’thing’ or something I never paid attention to until I became a homeowner, but there is a healthy competition among the men for the best lawn. We do have two lawn guys in the neighborhood, which may contribute to the peer pressure.

My house sits on the corner, the former model home of the community, the hallmark of The Bubble, and I’m feeling the pressure to fall in line and tame the mess that’s supposed to be a lawn. (I seem to maintain an ever changing mass of weeds broken up by the occasional blade of crab grass.) I’ll admit that I do rather envy the thick green carpet that covers Ed’s yard. And since I can’t yet afford to hire someone more quailitified and infinitely more motivated, the burden falls on me as man of the house to create a lawn others will pine after, that the kids and I can play in, lay in, and enjoy…as long as Snickers stops leaving piles that is.

Ed took pity on me, after he stopped laughing when I met him at the bus stop with a legal pad full of questions and a pen at 7:30am while we waited to send the kids to school. Finally, he offered one of his flyers that explained his services. It was intimidating to say the least. So, I’m breaking it down to a seasonal approach that I can handle.

End of Winter/Early Spring

Pre-Emergent. This should be spread over the entire lawn to prevent crab grass from growing. (Apparently I gave Ed a blank look at this point. So, he explained in girl terms. Crab grass is that spiky grass that even after you mow the lawn, a few stragglers stick up all over like cowlicks causing immense frustration and preventing the nice clean cut look I’m trying to achieve. Ah ha!) It can be found at Home Depot for $42/bag. One bag covers about 10,000 square feet. It also helps prevent dandelions.
Fertilizer. This one is self explanatory. Take care to fertilize the bushes, too!
Ant treatment. This is highly important for anyone who wants to use their yard or has pets. (Take it from the woman who was nearly eaten alive by fire ants during a friendly game of horse shoes in S’s yard last summer.) Ed swears by Ortho Max. It comes in a big red bag and claims to kill ants, fleas, ticks, cut worms, and numerous other menaces. He pours it into the spreader that he walks behind which distributes it evenly. He also advises that if you have mounds, leave some in the bottom to scoop out for a thick application on them.

I’ll be publishing the next lawn care installment as the seasons change. Look for Late Spring/ Early Summer at the beginning of May. I’ll also update you on the status of my yard. I don’t see me winning the lawn care ribbon this year, but at least I’ve thrown my lawn into the race.

Wish me well!

And if you live in Charlotte, NC or its surrounding areas and want to hire Ed, let me know!

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Tags: guide, how to, lawn care

This entry was posted on Sunday, June 28th, 2009 at 2:24 pm and is filed under A Single Girl's Guide. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.