September 2016

September, what a great month! The weather is usually beautiful making September the perfect month to start getting ready for fall. Leaves are starting to turn colors, lawns and trees are starting to go dormant. That makes this the perfect time to get those fall fertilization’s done, ensuring that your lawn is ready for spring. It is also a time when you should look at getting your trees pruned before winter hits. Fall is one of our busiest times for pruning, so call now for your free estimate.

We hope that you all enjoy the rest of your summer! From all of us at MHTree, have a safe and happy Labor Day weekend!

The summer of 2016 has been hot. In fact, since April 1st, only 5 days have not been above the average high for Denver. Furthermore, we have had 50 days of above 90 degree temperatures. The cumulative stress to our trees, shrubs and flowers has been dramatic. We have seen everything this summer from high rates of mortality in new landscapes to extensive leaf scorch in large established trees.

Through summers like 2016, it becomes increasingly important to prepare your landscape for whatever the Colorado weather can throw at it. Here are some tips to help you throughout the spring, summer, fall and winter.

“Lawn watering is often stopped in early fall. Conventional thinking is that because ET (evapo-transpiration) rates are low and the turf isn’t growing much, it is OK to stop watering. However, historic ET and rainfall data for most of Colorado shows a need of 0.5 to 0.75 inch of irrigation per week during September and October.

While mowing isn’t needed as frequently during fall, the turf DOES continue to grow – but in ways that differ from spring and summer. Turf grasses form tillers (side shoots) and rhizomes that increase the density of fall turf. This is an important time for turf to “heal” after a stressful summer, especially if it has been worn down by traffic or suffered from disease or insect problems.

Fall watering is essential for late season nitrogen applications to work most effectively. Fertilizer applied to dry turf is less likely to enhance fall rooting and increase energy storage. Be sure to water in fall fertilizer applications, often considered the most important application of the year.

Fall is the best time of year to control perennial broadleaf weeds – dandelion, clover, bindweed, plantain, and thistle, to name a few. Fall herbicide applications are more effective when applied to healthy, green, actively growing weeds. The herbicide is more easily absorbed and moved to weed roots resulting in better control.

Finally, fall watering of lawns that were damaged by winter mites (clover mites, Banks grass mites) is essential for discouraging mite activity this upcoming winter and reducing potential mite problems.”

September and October are great months to get your landscape ready for winter. Pruning trees with heavy or over-extended limbs can help to reduce the likelihood of winter storm damage.