Monthly Archives: March 2017
Applying Pre-emergent Weed Control for Landscape Beds
What is Pre-emergent?
A pre-emergent is a type of weed control used to control broadleaf weeds as they germinate and before they become a problem. There are many products out on the market today. Most times it is a granular (pellet) formulation type product that is used but liquids are also available. For many landscape beds, weeds will seemingly infest over-night and homeowners will spend countless hours picking them by hand or paying a landscaper to pull them out. Applying pre-emergent weed control will give you a fighting chance to keep a little green in your wallet and the weeds out of your hands.
How does Pre-emergent for landscape beds work?
Pre-emergent works by creating an invisible barrier in the mulch/soil area. Weeds are controlled as they germinate and come in contact with the barrier.
Not all weeds and grasses are controlled by one type of pre-emergent product. There are pre-emergent products that work on annuals, some that work on perennials, and even ones that work on both. Product choice is extremely critical to ensure you don’t harm desired plants that are in your landscape beds that have not emerged by the time of application. This is especially true for homeowners that have desired perennials in their landscapes.
For example, daffodils in the picture would have been controlled if the wrong pre-emergent herbicide was utilized. We recommend applying pre-emergent weed control that is safe for your desired plants and still controls the majority of weeds. For the few undesired weeds that emerge later in the season, a non-selective herbicide like Round-up can be used directly on the weed. Always be sure to read the label prior to applying pre-emergent weed control in your landscape beds.
Applying Pre-Emergent: How to Choose the Ideal Locations?
Pre-emergent weed control for landscape beds can go on mulch, wood chips, shredded rubber mulch, rocks, stone type areas, etc. A granular product can be spread with a low volume back pack sprayer or hand crank type spreader. Driveways, walkways, and other high traffic areas should be avoided with a pre-emergent. The more traffic there is on an area, like a rock driveway where cars travel daily, the faster the material will break down and reduce its capabilities to control weeds. Weeds in these types of areas can be controlled with a combination of pre-emergent and post-emergent products, but this is outside the general scope of this blog.
Things You Can Do In Your Landscape To Help Reduce Weed Growth.
There are some things that you or your landscaper can do in the landscape beds to minimize the weeds.
- When installing new planting beds around your property, use a breathable landscape fabric instead of plastic or vinyl. Once trees, plants and flowers are planted and beds are edged, cut and lay down the landscape fabric prior to mulching. This will create a barrier that will help reduce weeds. The fabric can be purchased at any garden supply store and are easy to cut to any size you need. Depending on the thickness of the material, it can last anywhere from 2 to 5 years in most landscape beds.
- One of the easiest ways to reduce weeds in your landscape beds is a layer of quality mulch. Not only does mulch help retain moisture, but it also creates an additional barrier to reduce the weeds. Most homeowners prefer a double or triple shredded hardwood mulch that has been dyed. The dye used, which comes in many colors, will help the mulch retain its color for up to a year. A layer of mulch that is maintained around three to four inches is all that is recommended to help reduce the weeds in your landscape beds.
- Hand pulling weeds is also an effective way to reduce visible weeds. Keep in mind that by hand pulling the weed/plants, some of the roots may be left behind in the soil. Even if it looks like you got it all out, one little piece of root left in the soil can regrow the plant.
- Minimize traffic on the mulched areas. Try to not move the mulch around by raking or digging in the bed. This will disturb the mulch and weeds can start to grow.
Conclusion
Weeds are a nuisance and your time is valuable. One surefire way to help with weed management throughout the season is to treat them preventatively by applying pre-emergent weed control to your landscape beds. As the saying goes, “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” Here is a link to our tree and shrub service page where you can learn more about our Landscape Bed Weed Management Program. Also, if you are in our service area and have any questions, don’t hesitate to call us at 908-281-7888
Soil pH and Lime: How Lime Affects your Soil
What is pH?
Soil pH is the measure of its acidity or alkalinity and is rated on a simple logarithmic scale. The scale represents hydrogen ion concentration and ranges from 0.0-14.0, with 0 being the most acidic and 14 being the most alkaline. The halfway point on the scale, 7.0, is neutral. Soil acidity increases as values decrease from 7.0 to 0.0, and soil alkalinity increases as pH values increase from 7.0-14.
What causes the pH of the soil to be acidic?
The soils of the northeastern region of the United States tend to be naturally acidic. The amount of annual rainfall largely determines whether soils will become acidic, neutral, or alkaline. In regions of high rainfall, such as here in New Jersey, the alkaline elements are leached deep into the lower soil regions by percolating rain water. This natural process leads to acidic soils.
Along with rainfall, there are other factors that will affect soil pH. Removal of grass clippings that contain alkaline elements, instead of allowing them to decompose into soil, will promote acidity. Leaves, pine needles, and other plant matter can create more acidic soil conditions as they decompose, and living plants will feed on alkaline elements (potassium, calcium, and magnesium). For these reasons, areas under dense tree cover or anywhere grass and tree roots compete for soil nutrients tend to have more acidic soil.
Why does the soil pH matter?
Knowing the soil pH is crucial because it strongly effects grass growth. Soil pH dictates nutrient availability, elemental toxicity, and microbial activity.
Various mineral nutrients are readily available in varying concentrations depending on the pH of the soil. At certain critical levels, some of the minerals remain bound to other minerals and are unavailable for plant use. The chart is a general representation of plant nutrient availability based on soil pH levels. The narrow areas of each band represent low availability of that nutrient, while the taller areas represent optimal nutrient availability.
The chart clearly illustrates that between a pH of 6.0-7.0, availability is at its peak for most of the critical lawn nutrients. The other thing to observe is that at about 5.5, nutrient availability becomes problematic and only gets worse as the soil becomes more acidic. Likewise, as the soil becomes more alkaline than 7.0, nutrient availability will also begin to suffer. However, soils with a pH of 7.0 or more are very rare in New Jersey, so the concern is normally in keeping lawn soil as alkaline as possible. The chart is not specific to our grass types, for typical cool season grasses found in New Jersey, the recommend pH level for optimal nutrient availability is between 6.3 and 6.5.
In addition to increased soil nutrient availability at a range of 6.0-7.0, this is also the range at which microorganism activity starts to peak. On the above chart the line labeled actinomycetes illustrates this point. Actinomycetes are bacteria in the soil responsible for the breakdown of a lot of organic matter as well as complex soil nutrients. Keeping the soil microorganisms as active as possible is of interest to the lawn care technician because they will help breakdown fertilizers into forms usable by plants, as well as keep thatch to a minimum by aiding in decomposition.
How can the pH be corrected?
Acidic soil pH can be corrected by applying lime. The most common liming materials are calcitic or dolomitic agricultural limestone. These are natural products made by finely grinding natural limestone. Since natural limestone is relatively water insoluble, agricultural limestone must be very finely ground so that it can mix with the soil particles and react with other nutrients to change soil acidity. The more finely ground the limestone is, the faster it will react in the soil. Both calcitic, and dolomitic lime contain calcium carbonate. Dolomitic lime however, also contains magnesium in the form of magnesium carbonate and should be used when soil tests indicate a magnesium deficiency.
Because high quality, finely ground limestone is very dusty and difficult to spread, some companies market a prilled or pelletized limestone for commercial and residential use. A small amount of clay or a polymer is added to the ground limestone so small prills are formed instead of dust. This makes it easier to apply out of a fertilizer spreader. Once applied, soil moisture will cause the granules to dissociate and disperse the limestone particles. Furthermore, newer pelletized lime products can be manufactured with reactants such as organic acids. These reactants speed up the chemical process by which lime changes soil pH, allowing for lawn applicators to produce quicker results, while using less product.
When using any limestone product, it is important to apply the material at the correct rate. Calcitic or dolomitic limestone, be it ground or pelletized, can have recommended application rates ranging anywhere from 5-200lbs/1000sq.ft. The rate at which the lime should be applied depends on the pH of the soil, what target range is trying to be obtained, and soil type.
Optimum pH range in cool-season turf soil is between 6.3-6.5. At this range soil microbe activity and nutrient availability is high, and it provides the most optimum condition for the most desirable species of Kentucky bluegrass and perennial rye.
Soil type comes into play when determining lime application rate. Certain soil types will be more resistant to change in pH than others. In general, it is more difficult to change pH in clay soil than it is in sandy soil. When liming clay, higher lime amounts will be necessary to have the same effect that a smaller amount would have on sandy soils.
Before applying lime to an area, a test of the pH should be done. Soil pH should be measured at least once a year as a general practice. This can be done using any number of kits or through the use of a pH meter. The lower the pH, the more lime it will take to correct. For example, a soil with a pH of 4.5 will require significantly more lime to correct to 6.5 than a lawn with an initial pH of 6.0. It is for this reason that a pH reading should be taken at least once each year.
If severely low pH is suspected, a soil sample can be sent to a commercial or university lab. The results of the soil test will specify how much lime should be added in a single or multiple applications to correct the problem. In addition, any other nutrient deficiencies that may exist will be specified, and recommendations on treatment to correct these issues will be provided. Soil tests are a very accurate and a useful tool in determining hard to diagnose turf issues. However, soil test results take time and are an added expense, which is why they are less practical for determining pH on every lawn.
If you are in our service area and want to know more about liming your lawn or testing the pH, give our office a call at 908-281-7888. Also, you can learn more about our liming process from our website.
