As a Northern NJ homeowner, you want your lawn and landscape to look great year-round. A beautiful, well-maintained lawn adds value and curb appeal to your home, but keeping it beautiful can be an overwhelming task. By hiring a professional landscape company that offers valuable lawn services, you can make sure that your home will look its best.
If you’re considering professional lawn care, here’s a checklist of important services you will want to include.
1. Basic Maintenance
Regular lawn maintenance is necessary to establish a green, healthy, well-maintained lawn. It will keep your lawn and home looking great all year. Most professional landscape companies provide basic lawn maintenance on a weekly or bi-weekly basis. Professional, trained landscape crews provide weekly maintenance services that typically include:
- Weekly or bi-weekly lawn mowing
- Border edging for sidewalks, walkways and driveways
- Regular weeding
- Hard surface cleaning of pathways, walkways and driveways
- Spring yard cleanup of dead winter growth and debris
- Fall yard cleanup of summer debris and preparation for winter
Benefits:
There are many advantages to hiring a professional landscaping company to provide regular lawn care. Think of all the time you’ll save with professional lawn services. You won’t have to pay for a new lawn mower when the old one breaks down, which can easily cost three hundred to five hundred dollars. You won’t need to buy equipment, fertilizers and pesticides or deal with lawn diseases and annoying insects.
A professional landscaping company will provide regular weeding, trimming, edging and lawn mowing each week to ensure a well-maintained property all year. Although you will pay more for professional lawn services versus DIY efforts, the service will pay for itself over time and give you more free time for family and friends.
2. Fertilizing
Your lawn and soil need proper nutrients to stay green and healthy, however most soils don’t have enough nutrients to thrive during the growing seasons. A healthy, growing lawn uses a lot of energy to produce new growth and proper nutrients promote healthy root systems and new leaf growth. They will also help your lawn to combat cold, heat, drought, mowing, foot traffic and other outdoor stresses.
Your professional lawn services plan should include a regular feeding schedule that will keep your lawn lush and green. Fertilizing your lawn should be done four times a year to keep your lawn green and healthy.
- Early Spring (February – April): After a long, cold winter, your lawn wakes up in the spring hungry for nutrients that were eliminated during winter. Fertilizing your lawn in early spring strengthens the root system that’s essential to healthy, stable leaf growth during warm weather.
- Late Spring (April – June): During late spring, your grass is using up stored energy to grow and weeds are actively growing as well. Fertilizing with the right products in late spring provides nutrients for continued lawn growth and essential weed control.
- Summer (June – August): Summer heat, as well as drought, foot traffic and insects put stress on your lawn. It’s especially important to fertilize warm-season grasses in the summer to encourage fall growth. Fertilizers can also offer added protection from summer insects.
- Fall (September – November): Fall brings mild, warm days, cool nights and rainfall with morning dew – ideal growing conditions for your lawn. Fall is an especially important feeding time to strengthen your grass, so it can survive the upcoming winter.
Benefits:
A healthy, growing lawn needs proper nutrients found in fertilizers. There’s a wide variety of lawn fertilizers on the market and it’s important to choose the right one for your lawn. The wrong fertilizers can burn your grass and cause yellowing from too much nitrogen. A professional landscape company can provide quality lawn services that include a property analysis of your lawn to determine soil type, grass type and existing landscape conditions. This analysis is a very important part of selecting the right fertilizers for your lawn.
3. Mulching
One of the most important things you can do for your landscape is to provide a protective layer of mulch to the planting beds. Mulching is one of the simplest and most beneficial ways to provide a protective top layer for your beds. As the mulch decomposes, natural matter is absorbed into the soil which helps to keep it loose and aerated. This process naturally increases moisture in the soil and improves root growth for plants. Mulching provides numerous benefits that will keep your lawn and garden thriving year-round.
Benefits:
- Retains moisture in the soil, reducing the need for frequent watering.
- Maintains a more even soil temperature.
- Protects the soil from erosion.
- Reduces soil compaction from heavy rains and foot traffic.
- Prevents weed growth.
- Provides a “finished” look to your lawn and garden.
4. Tree Pruning
Neglected trees, hedges and shrubs can ruin an otherwise well-manicured lawn. Although trimming may seem like an easy chore, it’s essential to know the best times to cut branches, the amount of thinning to perform and the right time of year to do the work. If you jump into tree pruning without understanding the basics, you can do more harm than good.
Unlike improper hedge and shrub pruning, improper tree pruning can be dangerous and have serious consequences for you and your property. Tree pruning is best left to a professional landscape contractor who’s skilled in handling large trees. Professional lawn services and tree pruning require proper equipment to prevent injuries, so you should leave tree pruning to a professional.
Benefits:
In addition to keeping your property looking its best, tree pruning will promote new, healthy growth and prevent overgrown trees and shrubs that could cause damage to your home. A professional landscape company can check for diseases, insect infestation and fungus that can weaken the tree and cause it to fall. In Northern NJ, emergency tree service is often needed after a heavy thunderstorm or snow fall. The threat of unstable, damaged, or weighed-down branches is nothing to take lightly. It causes damage to property and people every year.
5. Organic Lawn Care
Organic lawn care and tree care is a great way to provide a safe chemical-free environment for your family and pets. Organic lawn care promotes natural aeration and root growth in your lawn and plants. It helps to naturally control weeds by improving soil conditions. Custom organic nutrient mixtures promote healthy root systems, increase plant stability and add protection from diseases and insects. Organic lawn care is a good start to a healthy green lifestyle. Organic lawn services and tree care typically includes spring, summer and fall applications.
Benefits:
The most obvious benefit of organic lawn care is a healthier lifestyle. Organic lawn products promote green living and protect the environment from toxic fumes and harmful chemicals. They keep your lawn green and healthy without chemicals that can be hazardous to your family and pets.
6. Lawn Repairs and Renovations
A professional landscape contractor can provide valuable landscape design and lawn renovations for your Bergen County, NJ home. Lawn renovation usually involves killing the existing turf and replacing it with new grass without tilling or changing the grade. Partial lawn renovations can include introducing a new variety of grass into the existing species or introducing a similar-looking looking species into an existing lawn.
When Should You Consider Lawn Renovations?
- Your lawn is frequently plagued by disease or insects.
- Your lawn has discolored or developed brown spots.
- Your lawn has become thin.
- Your grass doesn’t grow properly either from too much sun or shade.
- Your lawn has been injured by drought, foot traffic or wildlife.
Benefits:
Lawn renovations provide immediate gratification. You can quickly turn an old, unhealthy lawn into a beautiful, lush green lawn. If you live in an older home with an established landscape, a lawn renovation can provide a new, updated look for your home. Talk to a professional landscape contractor in Bergen County, NJ about the possibilities of lawn renovations for your home.
7. Garden Design
If you want to create a beautiful garden on your property, a professional landscape contractor has extensive knowledge in garden design and special lawn services. You can create a garden with a variety of different plants that will bloom year-round. A professional can help you choose blooming plants and flowers will thrive in your Northern New Jersey landscape. Services may include:
Design and Planting Services
- Annual and perennial gardens
- Containers and window-boxes
- New bulbs and flowers
- Garden renovations
- Planting of seasonal foliage
- Outdoor holiday garden design
Garden Maintenance Services
- Spring garden cleanup
- Fall garden pruning
- Cultivating and weeding for garden beds
- Fertilizing annuals and perennials
- Garden disease and insect control
Benefits:
What could be better than having a beautiful garden with colorful flowers and blooming plants that provide beauty in your yard all year? A garden will provide cut flowers for your home, color and texture for your yard and beautiful ambiance right outside your front or back door.
8. French Drain
Standing water around your home can quickly damage your home and your landscape. If you have a problem with standing water on your property, installing a French drain will protect your home and indoor air quality. A professional landscape contractor can help you resolve channeling problems and create a landscaping design plan that incorporates a French drain naturally into your landscape.
Benefits:
- Improves Indoor Air Quality: If water enters your basement or foundation, it can cause mold, mildew and dust mites. A French drain will move water away from your home and improve indoor air quality.
- Maximizes Drainage: A French drain will direct water away from your house. You can direct it towards a garden, flower bed or the street.
- Prevents Structural Shifting: Standing water around your house can soften the soil and cause your foundation to shift or crack. A French drain will prevent any damage.
- Enhances Your Landscape: Since a French drain is installed in the sub-surface of the ground, you can replant grass over the drain.
9. Outdoor Lighting
As part of your professional lawn services plan, a professional landscape contractor can install a variety of outdoor lighting fixtures. They will enhance the beauty of your home and provide added security for your property. You can choose from a wide variety of low-voltage, LED and solar fixtures in a range of colors and finishes to complement your home’s style.
Benefits:
Spots and accent lights will enhance your home’s architectural details. Spots and motion detectors will add security. Uplights and spots will accent landscape features and add safety to your home and yard. Pathway lighting will illuminate walkways and garden pathways to direct guests safely.
10. Special Outdoor Features
In addition to professional lawn services, a licensed landscape contractor can provide great design and build services for your home. Many landscape contractors have a formal educational and professional background in landscape architecture and they are knowledgeable and well-trained in building and construction. Outdoor features for your home include:
- Swimming pools
- Outdoor spas and hot tubs
- Outdoor water features like fountains and waterfalls
- In-ground outdoor ponds
- Outdoor terraces and patios
- Fully equipped outdoor kitchens
- Outdoor fire pits and fireplaces
- Outdoor pathways, walkways and driveways
- Retaining walls and fences
Benefits:
Special outdoor features will provide numerous benefits for your Northern NJ home. They will enhance the beauty of your home, provide outdoor entertaining options, add outdoor security and create design focal points in your yard. Outdoor features will create a beautiful ambiance and add value to your home.
