Nurturing Your Landscape

Every landscape is unique. Different design elements have specific maintenance requirements to ensure they look their best. The following guidelines will help protect your new investment. Please contact us if you have any further questions. We’d be happy to help!

Watering New Plants

You can avoid costly replacements by monitoring your perennials, shrubs, trees, etc. Pay attention to soil moisture, insects, and weeds. To check if watering is needed, remove some mulch or rock groundcover from around the new plant. The soil should be damp and not be muddy. If crumbling and dry, water deeply and allow time for it to drain before watering again. We will ensure your new landscape gets the appropriate amount of water at installation. It’s now up to you to properly water your new plants. NOTE: Failure to appropriately water plant material will void your warranty.

Water deeply and infrequently… Watering deeply and less often is much better than watering less but more often. You want the plant’s roots to grow towards the water that percolates into the lower soil. By allowing time for the soil to drain between waterings, air penetration is possible which further promotes root development and drought tolerance. Root growth is much slower when only light watering is done.

Water in the early morning or in the evening… Watering at cooler temperatures conserves water and gives plants time to absorb the water before the sun is strong.

Water the roots, not the plant… Apply water to the base of the plant. Moisture is taken into the plant by the roots. Spraying the foliage allows for evaporation, wastes water, and can lead to disease problems. For shrubs and trees, remove any nozzles and place the hose on the ground about 6 inches away from the trunk/stem. Water flow should be a small stream about ¼ inch in diameter.

You CAN water too much… If you over-do it, the plant will drown in soil filled with water where oxygen should be. The best way to water is to apply it at a rate the soil will absorb without pooling or runoff. Take into account rainfall.

So, how much? On average, a good watering routine is 1x per week in spring/fall and 2x per week during hot months. Before winter, do one thorough final watering. New plantings should be watered four times weekly, but less during cooler or wet weeks. Duration depends on plants size but approximate watering times are:

  • Small to medium plants          1-2 minutes

  • Large shrubs                           2-3 minutes

  • Trees                                       20 minutes

Watering New Lawns


First Two Weeks

  • Keep the sod and topsoil evenly moist by watering deeply once a day.

  • Pull back a corner of sod to make sure water has saturated through to the topsoil.

  • Make certain all areas of your new lawn are getting watered. Corners and edges will dry out faster and are much more easily missed by a sprinkler. It’s usually a good idea to hand water the corner and edges.

  • If possible, do not walk on the new sod until the first mowing. Footprints can be created easily when the sod and soil are soggy.

  • Cut back the frequency of the watering just before the first mow to firm up the soil.

After Two Weeks

  • By this time, small fibrous white roots should be growing into the soil below. Confirm by pulling back the sod. It’s now time for the first mow.

  • Ensure grass and soil are dry before mowing. Ruts from the wheels of the mower can be created if your lawn is still wet.

  • If it has grown longer than 6 inches, mow it twice: once at 4 inches, then at 3 inches. It is not advised to remove more than 1/3 of grass height.

  • For the first month don’t cut the grass shorter than 3 inches.

  • Mow diagonally to the seams. Remove grass clippings if they are left behind. Water promptly after cutting. 

Watering Grass Seed

  •  Keep the area consistently moist (but not flooded) and undisturbed for at least five days.

  • Burlap can be used to protect the seed during germination. It should be removed when grass blades are poking through.

  • Wait until the grass is approximately 4 inches high before the first mow. Take extra care when walking and pushing the mower through the area.

Trees

Staking trees provides support while the root system establishes itself. Stakes and ties are not always needed. When used, they should be removed after one year so the tree can move freely. If a tree is staked for too long, it does not invest energy in strengthening its trunk and could snap in heavy winds. Pruning should be performed by certified arborists. However, you can remove suckers as they appear. Suckers are the stems that grow up from the root system at the trunk.

Shrubs

Please consult with us for pruning instructions for the specific shrubs in your landscape. We recommend annual pruning by a certified arborist.

Groundcover 

Mulch should be added every few years to keep the optimum depth of 3-4 inches. Mulch helps regulate your plant’s root temperature, minimizes water evaporation, and insulates during winter. It limits weed growth and breaks down over time to reintroduce nutrients into the soil. Stone Groundcover should be blown/vacuumed at least twice a season. Organic matter will break down in your rock bed and provide a medium for weeds to grow above the landscape fabric.

Weed Control

Weeding can be done manually by hand pulling or with a cultivating tool. Application of herbicides should only be performed by licensed Pesticide Applicators. Ensuring 3-4” of mulch goes a long way to suppressing unwanted vegetation. 

Fertilizing

Your new trees/plants/sod have been fertilized by Alladins during installation. A starter fertilizer is applied in the root zone which contains the nutrients needed to ensure proper establishment in the first season. Applying too much fertilizer harms your plants and can leach into the water table having negative effects on the surrounding ecosystem. We can advise on an annual fertilization schedule after the initial season.

Winterizing

Winter winds can cause water loss through the leaves/needles. Evergreens and specimen plants may require a wrapping of burlap. Wrapping should not touch the foliage. Other protection may be required if rabbits and deer frequent your neighbourhood. Evergreens in particular should enter winter well-watered.