Crabgrass Prevention

I’m back. Last week was hectic.  Between interviewing new employee candidates and being home with sick children, I was almost happy it was Monday 🙂

It sounds like we will have a blast of winter this week. I have heard estimates as low as 1′ and up to 12″.  I enjoy the snow and winter activities, but I was getting ready for spring.

Speaking of spring, let’s talk about how you can be prepared to get your lawn started out right.  Spring can be a tough time for grass, but given the proper nutrients and care we can combat any weeds that may be lurking under the surface.  Once we get the weeds controlled we then work on either maintaining your lush lawn or we can help you get your lawn on track for years of enjoyment.

The best way to get your lawn started in the spring is to apply a crabgrass preventative.  There is a short window of opportunity for applying these products.  If applied too early the product will be gone before the weeds get a chance to use it.  If applied too late the weeds will have already germinated and the pesticides will have no affect.  So when is the right time to apply crabgrass preventative?  When they start to germinate, which happens when the soil temperature is 60 degrees for 3 consecutive days.  We try to follow this guideline to get maximum control from our products.  Since we can not apply all of our clients applications in a 3 day window, we have products available to us that have longer residual affects, which allow us to apply the products earlier.

Along with the crabgrass preventative we mix in a fertilizer application for the established grass. Sometimes crabgrass will still pop up, even when applications are timed and applied correctly.  Why is this you ask?  Crabgrass is stubborn.  Once it germinates and starts to grow, then an application of post-emergent product will need to be applied.

Another thing that often happens is dandelions.  Many people think the dandelions should go away or be stopped once they apply their first application of crabgrass preventative.  Unfortunately, dandelions are not crabgrass and need to be treated separately with a broadleaf control.  We try to apply our first broadleaf application in late Spring.

The easiest and often most economical way to control weeds is to call a professional.  We would love to get you a free estimate if you are in the Menomonie, Eau Claire, Chippewa Falls, Pepin, or Durand area. Just contact us and ask about any specials we have going on.  info@pudenzirrigation.com or 888.264.8858

Looking for employees

I just want to take one moment to pay our respects to Whitney Houston.  She had a beautiful voice and influenced so many…..

Now onto the task at hand. This time of year is when we start looking at our staffing needs.  We need to determine who is coming back and how many we need to hire.  Once we determine how many new team members we need, we look at the best way to advertise the job opening.  We do not need to put the job posting on a national level; let’s face it, these are not jobs many people would move to take.  But we don’t want to sell ourselves short either. Our ad does need to get enough exposure to get some good candidates.  Another consideration is how much money to put in to into ad placement, we will be investing plenty in the new employee when they are hired.

This time we are going to start by placing an ad in our local paper and see what type of response we get. We like to find local people. They do not have to drive far to get to work and they usually know many people in the community.

I always have to remind myself to hire slowly.  Often times it seems we get to crunch time and we hire the first person who seems worthy.  This way of doing things does not usually work out very long.  I have to stick with the motto, “Hire slow, Fire fast.”

If you are looking for more hiring information, check out this article.  I found it informative. How To: hire the best hourly employee – Landscape Management

It’s almost Spring…at least in my mind

Christmas is long gone, the new year and it’s new resolutions have come and gone.  We have Valentine’s Day to look forward to next Tuesday.  In Northern Wisconsin now is a time when we have to hunker down and wait out the end of winter.  Some folks are fortunate enough to travel and get away a week or more at a time, but the rest of us look for ways to get closer to spring…at least in our mind.

Well I have found a way to help get your mind in spring mode.  How about planning a garden?  Some of you may already do this and for others this may be something you have always wanted to do but never have.  I am in the second category.  I personally am not a “green thumb”.  I wish I was more of a gardener.  Last year I did help with a garden, which was very fun and helpful; I learned a lot.

To get our mind into spring, starting plants for your garden is a great way to do it.  The following article will give you some pointers as to how to start your vegetable garden.  For those of you reading this who are gardening veterans I would appreciate your input.  Do you have any tips or tricks you are willing to share?

How to begin?

Here it is my first blog!

I have tried coming up with a plan or a direction for this blog, but have not been very successful.  This will be mostly a business blog, with some personal reflection and ideas mixed in.  The business part of the blog will revolve around my lawn care and lawn sprinkler business, Pudenz Irrigation, sometimes doing business as Grasscapes.  I will have lawn care tips and tricks, links to different industry articles.  I will discuss why it is good to have a professional lawn care company take care of your yard, as well as, the importance of proper watering.  As for the personal side, I will take time to discuss how I balance owning and running a lawn care company, while also being a mom of 2, and a wife.

From time to time, just to see who is paying attention, I will also post our deals on the blog.

Hope you all enjoy.

Hanna