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Cedar Run Landscapes News
November 2011
Articles
Benefits to Fall Clean Ups
Helping Local School
Pre-winer Lawn Care
Rain Guy on the Road
Benefits to Fall Clean Ups
An important step in integrated pest management 

Cleaning up the garden this fall not only helps get a jump start for next spring, but it is a proactive step in creating a healthier garden. Removing dead plant material and leaf debris that accumulates in garden beds minimizes the places for insects and other diseases to ride out the cold winter months. This is not to say you have to chop everything in your garden down to the ground. Leaving healthy perennials that are evergreen and semi-evergreen can provide structure, form and color during the winter months.  

 

Learn more about integrated pest management at:

http://www.epa.gov/pesticides/factsheets/ipm.htm

http://gardening.about.com/od/naturalorganiccontrol/a/IPM.ht m

 

compost image
 
Compost:

Fall clean ups are also a great time to start a compost pile. All that brown plant material along with kitchen scraps can make great organic compost come spring time. But take care not to add any diseased plant material to the pile as it will not be killed during the breakdown process.

 

Compost Resources:

http://www.epa.gov/osw/conserve/rrr/composting/by_compost.htm

http://www.dep.state.pa.us/dep/deputate/airwaste/wm/recycle/Compost/FAQ.htm

http://extension.psu.edu/start-farming/news/2011/compost-how-to-make-it-and-how-much-to-use

 

 

Helping Local School Students
Getting an ecosystem up and running

Bill and Curt cleaning up the filter box
 

At Cedar Run Landscapes, we strive to promote educational opportunities that engage kids in the natural environment. That is why we jumped at the opportunity to help out Knapp Elementary School when their pond was in need of some TLC.

 

After receiving a call asking us to help solve a problem they were having with their ponds pumping system, our pond specialists Curtis Goldman and William Stewart arrived on the scene to volunteer their services. After getting the system's pump up and running again, our guys noticed that the pond could use a good clean up. So they got to work cleaning out the filter box and spruced up the edges with new stone pebbles, while also weeding and pruning the surrounding landscape.

 

We'd like to thank Knapp Elementary School for allowing us the opportunity to give back to the community and to help improve such a great educational experience for their students. 

 

Pre-winter Lawn Care
Raising the Ph 

 

High acidic soils inhibit turf growth because important nutrients such as phosphorus, zinc and copper are not accessible to the root system when the soils acidity levels are too high. Adding lime to the lawn brings the Ph levels to a desirable range for these important nutrients to be available. Lime also furnishes calcium and magnesium which are both important plant nutrients.

  

Apply Dormant Fertilizer with a Pre-emergent weed control

 

Applying winterizing fertilizers just before your grass goes dormant will provide a boost of nutrients to your lawn, making your lawn more winter hardy. By using a fertilizer that has a Pre-emergent weed control mixed in you will be preventing weed seeds from germinating during the winter and early spring months.

 

 

The Rain Guy on the Road Again
The Rain Guy on the High Line


Check out our blog post 

This summer 'The Rain Guy' was out on the road again checking out innovative rainwater harvesting projects in New York and Chicago. Head over to our blog to see pictures and read about what he saw at the High Line and the Shedd Aquarium.

 

 

We hope you enjoyed this months newsletter. Please let us know if there is anything you would like us to write about in the up coming issues.
 
Sincerely,
 
Alden R. Zove
Cedar Run Landscapes