Landscaping inspirations

The most common cold-season grass varieties, like Kentucky Bluegrass and Tall Fescue, must be mowed by a professional lawn care company every week. Hold off the mowing till you have given the grass enough time to grow to a height of 4 to 5 inches. You should keep the grass at an altitude of 2.5 to 3.5 inches. This gives it significant drought and heat resistance. Also, this height leads to deeper rooting, which will help you to save water and fertilizer. A few more tips to remember when mowing cool-season grasses are:

• Mulch the grass clippings for natural and organic lawn fertilization.

• Sharpen mower blades regularly to prevent stressing the plants.

• Sharp blades also help against fungal growth.

• Don’t remove more than 1/3rd of the total blade length simultaneously.

• For longer blades, mow once on a high setting and a second time a few days later at a low setting to prevent going over the 1/3rd limit.

• Scalped or short-trimmed grass has a minor root system and is more susceptible to heat and drought damage. So, don’t go overboard with your mowing.

Here are a few tips for watering the lawn

• As long as the weather brings frequent rain showers and cold temperatures, you don’t have to water the lawn.

• Although spring droughts are rare in the northern part of the country if you have a dry spring this year, do water the yard once a week.

• Cold season grasses will go dormant during extreme drought and turn yellow, but they will regain their verdant look once the rain and cooler temperatures return.

• Early morning is the best time to water the lawn. So, schedule your watering between 4 a.m. to 8 a.m.

• The first visible sign of dehydration can be seen in the form of wilting or a bluish tinge on the blades.

• To test soil moisture, make a ball with the soil extracted from the first six inches of the ground. If you get a moist, but not drippy, soil ball, the moisture level is just right.

 Moving into a senior living home can feel like a huge life change, but there are ways that you can make your living space feel more comfortable and just like home. You can turn any room into a house in many different ways. Luckily for you, they don’t even take a lot of extra effort and can be done in a matter of minutes. Making your senior living space feel like home is essential because you want to be comfortable and welcome into your new room. 

Display Your Favorite Family Photos 

One of the quickest and easiest ways to make your senior living space feel like home is to display your favourite family photos anywhere and everywhere. If you already have some printed out and framed, place them around your new space where ever you see fit. You may want to get with a family member to find an old photo album from which you can get pictures. 

On the other hand, if you don’t have them on hand, it is easy to get some printed. Please talk with a family member so they can help you pick out your favourite family photos that have been taken over the years. Since most images are now taken digitally, your family members will have tons of pictures saved on their phones that they can take to Staples to get printed for a low price. You can buy inexpensive frames and hang photos around your new senior living home. 

Another great spot for pictures is on the refrigerator! Get some awesome magnetics and hang your favourite photos all over your refrigerator or any magnetic surface in your new home. 

Comfortable Sitting Area 

Your sitting area is a room in your new senior living home that you will probably be utilizing a lot. This is a place where you can watch television, read a book, visit with friends or family, or even do another hobby, so you will want to ensure that this is a comfortable area. There are many ways to make your sitting area comfortable, and the first is by having an excellent place to sit. If you have furniture that you like from your old home, then that’s a great way to make this area feel more like home. 

On the other hand, you could always purchase some new furniture that you find welcoming, comfortable, and homey. Ensure you have an end table or coffee table and shelves if needed. Depending on your interests, you may also want a television or radio in this room. 

Another great way to make your sitting area more comfortable and feel like home is by having comfy blankets and pillows you and your guests can use. Throw pillows are a great way to add a decorative touch to your sitting room. 

Decorate Your Bathroom 

Another great way to turn your senior living space into a home is by decorating your bathroom with fun, bright colours. You will go to your toilet several times daily, so having it colourful and fun is friendly. You could choose colours like yellow, blue, pink, or green. The options are endless, and the choice is up to you when decorating your bathroom. 

When picking things for your bathroom, you should also ensure that you have products that make you feel at home. Using certain products in the bathroom can turn your senior living space into somewhere you feel more comfortable. 

Keep Your Favorite Items 

Buying new items for a new place to live can be fun, but it might feel like something other than your home. When decorating your senior living space, you should mix some of your favourite items with new things. If you have a favourite rug still in excellent condition, consider bringing that with you to help decorate your new space. You also want to bring along your favourite quilt if it brings you good memories and makes you feel at home. 

When moving to your senior living space, you should think about everything that makes your house a home and try to bring some with you to help decorate your new room. This way, you can get some of your memories to help you feel comfortable in your new home. 

Have Enough Storage 

Sometimes you may feel cramped when it comes to senior living spaces. An excellent way to make your area feel more significant and like you have more room is to create more organization and have enough storage space. You can purchase flat storage bins that can slide right under your bed. This is a great way to access some of your belongings but neatly put them out of sight when you don’t need them. 

You should make sure that you have organized your closet space. Utilizing your closet and putting things in their rightful spots is a great way to make your senior living space feel like home. 

The reason this industry is enormous isn't that people need help planting their flowers. All the benefits of landscaping exceed their aesthetic value. It also includes more than gardening because landscape design can transform the structure of your outdoor space. You can use your next outdoor renovation project to change how you view and use your yard. 

 Here are some surprising reasons to invest in a landscaping project. 

Gives You More Privacy 

What's landscaping that also takes into consideration your neighbourhood and surroundings? Professional landscapers can use nature to block out loud noises and unsightly highways or neighbours. Plus, you can strategically use landscape design to add privacy to windows in the front of your home. Your backyard can be transformed into a secluded oasis no matter where you live.  

Improves Property Function 

Even if you already have a garden, landscaping help from Cyrus Landscaping can add functionality like a custom patio and walkways to let you enjoy your oasis. Landscapers can also choose plants and flowers to make it easy to maintain and get the most out of your yard. Plants like trees can provide the necessary shade, so you can walk in your garden without burning under the sun. You can also add good landscaping designs, like a sitting area in the shade. 

Good for Your Health 

By having a lovely landscape to enjoy, you spend more time outdoors. And it is proven that more time outside is better for your health, from lowering your blood pressure to enhancing your memory. 

And even if you get help to create your landscape, maintaining it takes some physical effort. Gardening includes stretching, bending, and reaching, as well as strength and cardio training.  

A Great Investment 

As a homeowner, your home's curb appeal increases its overall value. It also gets your home noticed by potential buyers and your neighbours, who will want to rehab their lawn when they see yours. For businesses, aesthetic landscapes show that you are reputable and professional. This makes customers more comfortable spending money on your services.  

Going, Green 

What is a landscape other than a place to truly impact the environment? By planting more greenery, you increase the oxygen in the air and provide more CO2 vacuums. Environmental landscaping also creates more homes for wildlife and food for bees and insects. This improves the biodiversity of your neighbourhood and keeps the environment clean and functional. Removing old shrubs, clutter, and dead plant life lets you keep unwanted critters like roaches, rats, and mosquitoes out of your yard. 

Here are a few tips for keeping weeds away from your lawn:

Don’t use core aeration after applying pre-emergent herbicides, as the coring will break through the anti-germination shield created by the herbicide.  If you must re-seed in spring, use a pre-emergent herbicide that does not affect grass seeds.  

Deal with perennial weeds like dandelion and crabgrass in spring. So, you don’t give them the time to grow stronger.  Use post-emergent herbicide in the fall, particularly if you have a problem with broadleaf weeds like dandelion. 

For weed control without using herbicides, keep an eye out for the shoots and pull them out consistently.  If you cannot pull the weeds out by their roots, snap off the flowering stems to prevent seed propagation.

Want to keep Lawn Maintenance Low?   It depends on the type of lawn and service you want. If you fertilize in spring, the growth will no doubt be luxuriant and deep green, but you will get it at the cost of root system development. This means your lawn will be more susceptible to diseases and pests. Plus, when fertilizing the lawn in spring, you inadvertently supply nutrients to weeds like crabgrass. I am sure you have already reckoned that this means your yard will need a lot of maintenance.  In contrast, if you fertilize in the fall, you will bypass these issues and have a comparatively low-maintenance yard. That said, nitrogen should be the primary nutrient you supply when fertilizing cold-season yards because most cold-season grasses are gluttons for nitrogen.

Weed-free lawn tips:

   Aeration will help to reduce weeds. Here are a few tips for keeping weeds away from your lawn. Opportunistic weeds germinate in areas where they can be successful. Crabgrass grows in thin areas, nutsedge pops up in thin/low spots, and broadleaf weeds spread where there is little desirable grass. The best defence is to have a thick lawn. Don't use core aeration after applying pre-emergent herbicides, as the coring will break through the herbicide's anti-germination shield.

Reseeding: When your lawn revives in the spring, it may not be as thick or green as you would like. A yearly reseeding might be necessary to keep it in tip-top shape. You don't just have to sit around and wait for the timing. Make sure you know a) what kind of seed you are planting and b) what soil you are planting them in.

What type of seed should you choose?  We Suggest using Kentucky-certified creeping Red Fescue and Perennial Ryegrass. For overseeding, 0.75 lbs can cover 1,000 sq. ft. Going price is $12.99 at Blue Grass Nursery in Balzac; you can contact them at 403-226-0468

Deal with perennial weeds like dandelion and Crabgrass in spring so you don't give them the time to grow stronger. Using a dethatcher in spring helps minimize weeds. Dethatching also helps reduce thatch. A thick thatch layer can prevent water, air, and nutrients from reaching the soil and roots, making grass susceptible to disease and pests. Dethatching also allows you to aerate your lawn at the same time, which can improve drainage and help the roots grow deeper. Dethatching your lawn can be an essential step in taking an average-looking yard and making it something spectacular; however, if you don't know what you're doing, you can end up doing more damage than good today;

We are going to talk about seven common mistakes the average DIYER makes that can end up costing them time money and making things worse in the long run, if you're new to Lawn Care you've never dethatched before it's simply the process of removing dead organic material from the top of your soil that can inhibit air water and nutrients from getting down into the roots of your grass, removing that layer of dead organic material in the top of your soil allows your grass to breathe take in nutrients.

The first Common mistake the average diyer makes when dethatching their lawn is just choosing the wrong time of year to dethatch regardless of your grass type you want to make sure you dethatch your grass while it's actively growing for cool season grass like I have that's late spring or fall when the grass is really growing and thriving, if you have warm season grass early summertime or anytime throughout that summer growing season is ideal for you the process of dethatching can be stressful on your lawn so you want to make sure that you're not doing this during times of dormancy or when your grass is already stressed out by the elements that can open you up to disease problems or weed issues that can end up making your lawn worse in the long run.

The second common mistake the average diyer makes when dethatching their lawn is using the wrong equipment if you have a small yard and it's not going to take you long to rake that entire thing going through with the dethatching rake can pull that thatch layer out and you can get the job done relatively quickly, however if you have a larger space something up to about 10 000 square feet you're going to want to go with a powered option the one that I've been using which has given me great results is the billy goat dethatcher it's a power raker that uses fuel. DIYers can purchase a billy goat from Arnes Equipments 2024 CR551V - Billy Goat for $2999.99. You can call them for more info at 403-908-9811.

The following common mistake when dethatching is doing the process while your grass is wet. It's early morning, and the ground is still covered in dew. If you've just had rain or run your irrigation system, there are better times to go through with your dethatching machine. Everything is going to get gunked up in your machine. It will be harder for all that thatch to get pulled up to the top of the surface, so doing this. At the same time, your grass is dry and will be a better option if you have in-ground irrigation. Turn off your sprinklers for a few days, wait for the weather to have no rain, and wait for everything to dry out just a little bit. It will allow the dethatching rake, the electric dethatcher, or your powered scarifier to lift that thatch and pull it up to the surface. It will be a lot easier for you to collect that batch after you've gone through your lawn. 

 The fourth common mistake has to do with pre-emergent applications. Pre-emergent herbicides are put down either in a granular or liquid form, and what they do is they prevent weeds, specifically grassy weeds like Crabgrass, from popping up and causing problems in your lawn if you've put down a pre-emergent herbicide. You do not want to dethatch after you've done that because that dethatching process can interfere with the barrier in your soil that prevents those weeds from popping up, so if you've already put down your pre-emergent application, you may want to wait for a different time to dethatch your lawn. 

The last mistake we want to avoid is fertilization after dethatching your lawn. As I mentioned already, the dethatching process will cause some stress to your grass. Still, putting down some fertilizer immediately after dethatching your lawn will give it all the nutrients it needs to bounce back and start thriving the way it should. If you neglect to do that, there's a good chance that weeds will have more of an opportunity to take over your lawn. It's just not going to bounce back as quickly as it should, so once you're done with dethatching, you want to make sure you remove all that dead material and put down a fertilizer, which will allow your grass to start thriving. Use eco-friendly fertilizer in the fall, particularly if you have a problem with broadleaf weeds like dandelion.

Want to keep Lawn Maintenance Low?  

It depends on the type of lawn and service you want. If you fertilize in spring, the growth will no doubt be luxuriant and deep green, but you will get it at the cost of root system development.  This means your lawn will be more susceptible to diseases and pests. Plus, when fertilizing the lawn in spring, you inadvertently supply nutrients to weeds like Crabgrass. I am sure you have already reckoned that this means your yard will need a lot of maintenance.  In contrast, if you fertilize in the fall, you will bypass these issues and have a comparatively low-maintenance yard. Nitrogen should be the primary nutrient you supply when fertilizing cold-season yards because most grasses are gluttons for nitrogen. 

With Cyrus Landscaping, customers can enjoy an extensive list of services that cover property maintenance requirements throughout the year. Call Cyrus at 403-200-4548

There are many outstanding achievements and benefits you might expect to come out of teaching kids about the garden. The garden is an essential part of the home, and the more involved you can get kids in it, the more you will find it is being looked after properly. But It’s also an essential thing for the children to appreciate, and you might discover that there are significant benefits to teaching kids about the garden and getting them more involved. If you are thinking about doing this but don’t know where to start, look at the following. 

Sowing seeds 

One of the great joys you can instil in your children is learning to grow plants from seed; a great place to start teaching kids about the garden. 

Sowing seeds can be fun and educational in this way, and you should find it interests your children. When you teach your children the joy of sowing seeds, you will find that it amazes them, which will probably mean they will want to do it again. That is undoubtedly a valuable skill to have, and it is something that you can easily teach them in an afternoon. It’s good to start with something that grows visibly and fast, such as cress. You might even encourage the seeds with some moist paper towels or by covering them with clingfilm. All of this can be an excellent opportunity for education for your children, and you should make the most of that opportunity as you see fit. 

Keeping animals  

If you have the space and you are keen to keep some animals, then this is something else you should encourage your kids to help out with. Keeping animals does wonders for children: it enables them to gain confidence around animals which can help later in life should they come into contact with them in the wild. 

It also means that they can appreciate and understand animal welfare issues. You should be able to easily keep some animals in your garden, such as chickens and ducks. 

The benefit of keeping chickens and ducks is that you get a daily supply of eggs. You can collect these eggs with your children – which they will find magical – or ask them to help you feed them with Little Peckers Bird Food. Either way, it’s an excellent experience for them. 

Weeding  

A simple task that always needs doing, you will find that you always want a bit of help when weeding your garden. It is also a great thing to get your children used to doing, as it helps them to distinguish between plants – a helpful ability which improves their general understanding of nature. Show them how to pull weeds from the roots and ensure they don’t return. 

We hope these are helpful ideas for teaching kids about the garden; do have a look at some of the other garden-related resources on the site: 

Make a flower pot fairy garden, 

Take a look at our bug hunt printable to get the kids spotting the wildlife, 

Colour in these fabulous adult and kids butterfly colouring pages, and 

Finally, here are five tips to help create imaginative play spaces in the garden. 

If you are looking for other activities off-site – have a bash at these too: 

Play dough activities in the garden from Mama, Papa and Bubba, 

17 activities for the kids in the garden from Teaching Mama, 

Fun-a-Day has some more fairy garden ideas, and 

Last but not least, Fantastic Fun and Learning has some science ideas for you for the garden. 

Regarding nutrition, athletes are notorious for adding exotic foods and supplements to their diets. But what if you had a readily available superfood right outside your door? The humble dandelion is more than an obnoxious weed. It’s a nutritional powerhouse with health-boosting vitamins, minerals, and protein. Here are some of the health benefits of dandelions — and why you should stop trying to eliminate them.

WHAT ARE DANDELIONS GOOD FOR? 

Despite their reputation as an aggressive and invasive plant, these weeds are traditional healers, prized as a part of a healthy diet and essential ingredient in health tonics. While we curse them for their tenacious grip on our landscapes, their jagged-edged leaf was once admired for resembling a row of lion’s teeth. The name harkens from the French “dent de lion,” or lion’s tooth.

They are treating everything from water retention to high cholesterol. They are low in calories but rich in vitamins A, C, and K. They also deliver a generous serving of minerals, including calcium, iron, and manganese. Another nutritional benefit? Dandelions contain a high level of fibre.

The easiest way to eat a dandelion is via the leafy greens, often described as earthy, nutty, and bitter. You can eat them raw in a salad or pureed into a pesto. If the tartness is too much for your tastebuds, try sauteeing them to neutralize their bitterness. While it’s possible to find dandelion greens at the farmers market or a health food store, it’s even easier to find them growing close to home. But you must be mindful not to harvest from a yard sprayed with chemicals or by the neighbourhood dogs!

While the flowers get all the glory and the leaves give the plant its name, the lowly roots are the medicinal part of the dandelion. Dandelion roots can reduce inflammation, improve skin tone, and ease digestive distress. Often dried and ground to create a coffee substitute, the roots are also used to make tea. Some adventurous eaters sautee or roast the roots and eat them like carrots.  

Love them or hate them, dandelions are not going away anytime soon. Instead of fighting this helpful plant, why not see if they belong in your nutritional regime? So close your eyes, blow on the seeds, and make a wish for more dandelions. At the very least, you’ll always have a handy local backup for running out of spinach.

ENJOY