SUMMER SERVICES Throughout the summer season we offer the following services: 1. Lawn Mowing and Maintenace 2. Sidewalk and Curb Edging 3. Aerations 4. Overseeding 5. Small Tree and Shrub Pruning 6. Landscape Bed Maintenace 7. Additional Cleanups Each of these services is decribed in detail below. Lawn Mowing & Maintenance A Man For All Seasons continues to make adjustments to the cutting of your lawn according to prevailing conditions. Early in the summer months we generally cut the grass a bit shorter (usually no lower than 3") to help keep the still strong growth rates under control. As we head toward the warmer months, we adjust the cutting height to a higher setting in order to help protect your lawn from showing signs of drought stress. Cutting height adjustments are easily made on our mowers, and are made on a lawn to lawn basis depending on the prevailing conditions at any given property. Trimming (a.k.a. "Weed Whacking") heights are also adjusted quite frequently throughout the summer months. In fact, trimming may not be necessary every week for some properties, and we adjust our services accordingly. Overtrimming can lead to the development of unsightly areas of crabgrass, so we take appropriate caution. Sidewalk and Curb Edging Some folks confuse edging with trimming. Edging is the process of using a vertical spinning steel blade to remove the excess grass that grows over the edges of your sidewalks, driveways and curblines. This process really helps enhance the look of your lawn. Think of edging as the frame around the picture of your lawn, and you get a much better idea of what edging can do for you. Edging is one way to make your lawn stand out in the neighborhood, and the definitive lines created by edging can be what separates a great lawn from a good one. Edgings are performed on either a bi-weekly or monthly schedule in order to keep those edges looking their best. Aeration If you didn't get a chance to aerate in the spring, don't worry. Aerations can be done in summer months as well as long as we aren't in a time of drought. Aeration is the process of mechanically removing small plugs from the turf, and replacing them on top of the grass. This process provides multiple benefits for your lawn. First, the newly created holes in the top layer of soil provide a natural conduit for moisture and nutrients to more easily reach the root system of your lawn, thus increasing its health. Second, the newly created gaps also provide an ideal area for the existing lawn to fill in, thus creating a more dense and lush grass layer. Third, as the small plugs naturally break down, they also help create a softer top layer of soil for nutrients and moisture to get through. This is especially important Southeastern Michigan as our soil tends to have a higher level of clay in it than most soil does. This makes the soil especially prone to compacting which can hinder the ability of needed nutrients and moisture to get to the root system of the lawn. Aerations are recommended at least once per year (twice is even better), and are usually performed in tandem with overseeding. Overseeding Overseeding can also be handled in the summer as long as lawns are receiving the proper amount of water. Overseeding is beneficial for any lawn, regardlesss of condition. For lawns which aren't quite as lush, overseeding provides a much needed boost to help fill in any gaps in it. By using a seed combination of multiple types of grasses, you aid the lawn in becoming more durable and hearty over the long haul. By overseeding established lawns, you aid the lawn in becoming more disease resistant. Many diseases and pests target a specific variety of grass plant. By overseeding, you guarantee a healthy mixture of grass varieties in your lawn, thus preventing it from being wiped out entirely if and when it does get hit by a pest or disease. This process is especially critical for newly sodded lawns. Most sod is comprised of a single type of grass, usually bluegrass. While a pure bluegrass lawn looks great now, just wait until it gets hit by a mold or fungus. Single grass type lawns can be wiped out in a matter of days by disease, and then need to be completely replanted. So protect your investment and overseed your lawn twice per year (spring and fall). Small Tree and Shrub Pruning Have those evergreen shrubs gotten too furry looking? Or maybe the forsythias you cut back last year have overgrown your bay window again. Either way, we can help. Whatever your pruning needs, let us help keep your landscaping looking its best! Give us a call and we'll meet with you to cover your specific wants and needs when it comes to keeping your property neat and orderly. Landscape Bed Maintenance Summer gives us another chance to help with your landscaping. Whether it is clearing out old plants, adding enriched topsoil to your beds, or just finishing them off with a new top layer of mulch, A Man For All Seasons is ready to help you get your beds ready for the season. Additional Cleanups Sometimes you just need some extra work done on your property. Maybe an area you had planned on planting in the spring just never got taken care of and needs to be trimmed down. Or perhaps you decide to finally get rid of that old pile of firewood in the back yard. Whatever the project, we can usually help....just give us a call.