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Steve's Lawn & Landscaping Service, Inc. Newsletter
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Greetings!
We've survived the drought and heat of the summer; now we've had drenching rain. The leaves seem to be falling quickly, at least sooner than they did in the last few years - two years ago we weren't able to do our clean-ups until after Thanksgiving, they fell so late. Is there a "normal" weather pattern for New Jersey? It's hard to tell, isn't it?
Update on my kids - Jack, the 11-year-old, is my hero! He was playing in  the woods next to our house with my youngest, Christian, 2, and they accidentally disturbed a yellow-jacket nest. Jack came running out of the trees screaming, but before I could get over to him, he ran back in, grabbed the baby, and burst out of the trees again. He had Christian held out in front of him and Jack's shirt was covered in bees. I grabbed the baby and started swatting the bees that were clinging to Jack. I got stung once, Jack about 20 times, the baby - not even one sting!! I had to use my epipen because I am allergic, but we gave Jack some antihistamine, he slept for a few hours and was back to his old self shortly. What presence of mind for such a young kid - to run back into danger to rescue is baby-brother! I hope and pray that that was our last "adventure" - for this year, at least!
We are working full steam to get the yard work done before it gets too cold. We've started cleaning up the leaves as we cut lawns - when they are finally all down, we'll do a touch up to get the rest of them. My bigger projects are progressing - a beautiful pool patio in Randolph and a driveway and walkway in Mountain Lakes. If you need the best deal on a Honda - new or previously owned - visit Route 23 Honda in Pompton Plains. We just finished the landscaping there and it looks great! Plus, the people are fantastic! http://www.route23honda.com
After nearly 20 years in my house, I finally made myself a new backyard. I'd been thinking about what I wanted for years, but the products were just not what I wanted. Finally, everything came together to match my vision and now I've almost completed a cozy, natural-looking patio, fireplace, bar and pizza oven for my family to enjoy. Follow the link to our website for pictures of what's still a
work in progress.
Check below for some specials and a coupon. There's still time for pruning, sprinkler installations and lots of other projects. We can help you clean out your basement and/or garage. We also have some time-saving holiday solutions this year. If you need an estimate for any of the above or for leaf clean-up, shoot Janeen an email janeen@steveslandscaping.net.
And, don't forget to stop by and take a look at our Auto Center - it's a good time to have your car serviced before the cold weather sets in. There are discounts on our website too!
Regards,
Steve
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Unless you've planted shrubs, installed sod or overseeded your lawn, it's time to turn your sprinkler system off. After you've turned the water off, call our sprinkler hotline and leave a message with your name and address, and confirm that your water is off. We'll schedule your service as soon as possible. Since most people do not need to be home, we'll leave a note behind so you know it's been taken care of and you're all set. If you signed up for one of our sprinkler plans, you've already paid for this service. Just call 973-627-2797 x5. Even better, email sprinklers@steveslandscaping.net.
Choose Steve's for the best of both!
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Current Conditions
 If you weren't able to get on our schedule for Aeration & Overseed this fall, you can still seed your lawn in the spring. It's good to combine de-thatching and overseed, but you have to time it right because our first fertilizer application has a pre-emergent weed control aspect, which will inhibit grass seed germination. Sign up early for your fertilization program to avoid overlap!
Needle Yellowing: The older, inner needles of many conifers will begin to yellow and drop during the autumn. This is normal, but may be magnified by the summer drought.
Black Field Crickets: Beginning this time of year, black field crickets will enter homes in search of warmth. Although field crickets are vegetarians, they can cause damage to some fabrics such as linens and furs. To prevent the crickets from entering the home, make sure that all doors and windows are properly screened and cracks along the home are sealed. Satisfactory control of crickets frequently involves chemical treatment both inside and outside the building structure (a perimeter treatment).
We use this kind of information, provided by the Rutgers Cooperative Extension, to determine our chemical choice and the treatment plan for your lawn. Our fertilizers will help the desirable grass varieties in your lawn combat weeds, insects and disease. We have plans that fit all budgets. Call or email today to get started!
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Fall Leaf Clean-ups -- A Note from Janeen
Right now, we are still technically cutting lawns. The grass is still growing, although it is slowing down, but mostly we are keeping the leaves under control. 
It's hard to say exactly what our schedule will be at your house because it depends on what kind of trees you have, when they lose their leaves, and what your neighbor's leaves are like.
In general, we keep working until early- or mid- November and then when all the leaves are down, we do final clean-ups. We watch your neighbors to see what they are doing with their leaves - everybody hates when their lawn is clean but their neighbor's leaves come blowing over. Sometimes, we do a partial clean-up in November and then we come back to get the rest of the leaves in December. Or, if the leaves drop down steadily, we do a few partial clean-ups until they are all gone.
Our Maintenance Manager and the lawn crews monitor our properties so that we arrange the leaf clean-ups as efficiently as possible for everybody. We base everything on time - we have the time for fall clean-up built into your program and towards the end of the season, the cuts become mini clean-ups. However we split it up, we always use the full amount of time allotted in your program, that's for sure!
If you have a preference, or are anticipating visitors (i.e. Thanksgiving at your house!) please let us know and we will work around your needs. Sometimes a few leaves might fall or blow back after the final clean-up. If that's the case, a few leaves will not hurt your lawn and we can get them in the spring when we do the spring clean-up.
I hope this helps. Please let me know if you have any other questions.
janeen@steveslandscaping.net
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Holiday Lights  Another way Steve's can save you time and money! Save time by having us do the work and we'll save you money by using new LED lights. The chart below gives you an example of the energy savings you can enjoy when you use LED lights through Steve's. We offer many different decorative types of lights - icicle mini lights, nets, snowflake icicle lights, commercial grade rope lights, colored bulbs, blizzard tubes, snowfall lights, etc. as well as traditional incandescent lights. You save either way and you don't have to climb a ladder!! Plus, we can provide unbreakable ornaments for your outside trees.  Contact us for an estimate for this holiday season.
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Spring's bright paradise has come to this
Now the thousand-leaved green falls to the ground.
Farewell, my days.
The thousand-leaved red
Comes to this thunder of light
At its autumnal terminal--
From Farewell Without a Guitar
by Wallace Stevens |
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Phone:
973-627-2797 x1
Fax:
973-586-4888 |
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List of Services
Fertilization Programs
Outdoor Living Spaces
Tree & Shrub Sprays
Flower Bed Maintenance
Fire Pits, Outdoor Fireplaces, Pizza Ovens
Spring & Fall Clean-Ups
Putting Greens
Personal Gardening Service
Mulch, Stones, Top Soil
Landscaping & Plantings
Sprinkler Installation & Service
Retaining Walls
Patios, Walks, Driveways
Sports Netting
Landscape Lighting
Electric Dog Fences
Grading & Drainage Solutions
Snowplowing |
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NJ Licenses:
Pesticide:
#94563A
Contractor: #13VH03889600
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This is my backyard. When we started, I had a small, block patio off the family room. You can see where it was in the bottom photo - adjacent to the grass in the top right. The ground sloped up into the woods - very hard to grow anything on the hill - plus the kids and dog were always running through the few plants that survived.
We started with the position of the fireplace and planned the rest of the space around it. The bar has a space for a small refrigerator, and I used a wine refrigerator to store the electronic devices. There's a small sink in the back counter.
The wood is a couple of huge cedar trees - my friend was clearing some land and I asked him to save me the cedars. Then I took it to a rough cut lumber yard, where I had it cut into boards. I'm going to put an awning over the top to protect the bar during the winter and keep out the rain.
Here's a hint for when you build yours - don't put the back-splash flush against the house - I have room to run the wires in the small space behind it.
The fireplace is amazing! There's something about a fire on a cool autumn night that just attracts you. It's so relaxing! Everybody loves it!
I'm also constructing a pizza oven, which I plan on venting into the bar area to keep the other side of your body warm while you sit at the bar with the fire on your back.
It's taken me a long time to do it, in between projects for my customers, but it is worth every minute and every cent!! It's brought my family together.
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Happy
Halloween!
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Free Lawn Cut with a new, non-program fall leaf clean-up! Save up to $50.00 on a final lawn cut when you book a new, fall leaf clean-up (actual savings may vary depending on the price of the lawn cut for your lawn). This is a special, limited time offer. Coupon must be mentioned at the time of your call. | | Offer Expires: November 30, 2010 Top |
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