August 31, 2016

Artificial grass is perfect for...

Artificial grass can tend to be more expensive than regular grass (at least the up-front costs are).

You probably wouldn't want to put artificial grass in your whole back yard.

However, if you have a small area it is a GREAT place to add some artificial grass!


And the best part is that you don't have to mow or water it! It is super easy to maintain.


If you need help deciding if artificial grass is right for you, contact us! We'd love to help!

Let's talk about weeds!

Weeds.

That seems to be a very popular topic right now.  So let's talk :)


Weeds are considered any undesirable plant and they are very undesirable (especially when they over-run everything!)

Have you ever noticed how some properties don't seem to have any weed problems and others can't stop them from growing? There could be many reasons (having a landscaper for one :) but it also depends on where your property is and what is around and next to it. A home sitting next to a vacant lot or open land will have a much harder time controlling the weeds than a home sitting in a developed HOA. Why is this?

Weeds carry with them seeds just like any other plant. And when they are mature those seeds drop, get blown around by wind, etc. They go everywhere! So, the home next to open land will have many more weed seeds blowing around and being carried by the wind. Whereas the home in a developed HOA won't have as many as the HOA's usually have strict guidelines about how properties should and shouldn't look.

But there are quite a few things you can do to help eliminate or at least control them.

To help eliminate them, a pre-emergent can be applied. This is applied twice a year to HELP prevent weeds from coming up. This is not a 100% guarantee solution. However, it is a great way to help with your weed population. This works best if applied regularly twice a year. It kinda works as a barrier on the soil where the weed seed hits the chemical layer, disforms it, and doesn't allow it to grow. This helps to control about 80% of the variety of weeds.

Another way to help eliminate them is to hire a landscaper or grounds maintenance company (like us!!) This way you don't have to worry at all about the weeds. They may still be in your yard but you know that they will soon be taken care of.

Since we are on the subject of maintenance let's talk about the different options we have available as it relates to weed control:

1. Monthly service - this is where we come on a scheduled day once a month. This would not be an effective solution if you know that you get a lot of weeds.

2. Bi-weekly service - this is done every other week on a scheduled day. This option is much better than monthly for weeds. Weeds tend to grow a LOT when we get rain!

3. Weekly service - where we come each and every week. This is the best option, especially if you want your yard looking tip-top all the time. This allows us to get weeds while they are small and haven't had the opportunity to start producing seeds.

We still have many mix and match options when it comes to yard maintenance but that's the basics for you.

But what if you don't want someone to take care of your yard on a regular basis? Because in reality, you could do it yourself! I don't know about you, but I tend to get busy sometimes. And sometimes things happen or come up or I just don't want to do yard work. And then do you know what happens? Yep! I'm in trouble! My yard has turned into a huge mess and instead of spending an hour outside I'm going to have to spend all day!

If that has happened to you we are here to help! We also offer one-time services!

Here are some of those options as well:

1. Weed-eat, rake, and spray - This option is great if you have tall weeds and a big mess. We will weed-eat them down as close to the ground as we can, rake up the weeds, and then spray them all with a chemical solution.

2. Weed-eat and rake - This option is great if you want the weeds cleaned up but don't want or need them sprayed. We just weed-eat them as close to the ground as possible, rake them up and haul them away!

3. Weed-eat and let lay - This is popular if you have a large property or area that you just need knocked down. We'll just come in a weed-eat all those weeds and grass.

4. Spot Spray - This is a chemical application that we use to "spot spray" the weeds. Meaning, that if we see a weed we will spray it. This is not like the pre-emergent. This is a post-emergent. It will not be applied to the entire area but only to the weeds that are seen. This option may need to be repeated frequently during the growing season.

5. Weed pulling - And then there is an option to hand-pull the weeds. This option is great if you want to get most of the weed root out of the ground. However, it is the most expensive option that we have as it takes quite a bit of man-power and time.

Do you have any questions about weed control in Arizona?

Are you in need of some help?

Contact us - we'd love to help you out!


August 30, 2016

In full bloom


Arizona has a different climate than many other places. There's a lot of brown - dirt, rock, brush. 

But oh my goodness, Arizona is SO beautiful! Especially when things are in full bloom!

(The bushes with purple flowers are Texas Rangers and the yellow flowered ones are Lantana.)

What's your favorite plant?

August 25, 2016

Maintenance




This is why you would want maintenance!

To have a year look this good and not have to do anything about it :)

Contact us if you'd like to stop doing your own yard work!

August 24, 2016

Move out clean-up



Sometimes you just need a little help getting your yard cleaned up before move-out inspections!

We miss you Lillie!

August 23, 2016

We love mail like this!


We got this in the mail yesterday!

We strive really hard to provide excellent work and customer service so it makes us super happy to get mail like this :)

Grasshopper invasion


When you see these trucks you know that some serious work is about to be done!

August 15, 2016

Valves

How is your irrigation system? 

We often find systems that are old and just need to be re-done.

Look at this valve set up!




Set it and forget it :)

We only use quality commercial-grade irrigation parts that will last. 

If you need help with your irrigation system - contact us! We'd love to help :)

August 12, 2016

Sod installation

Working hard getting the ground prepped for sod installation:


And then it rained! (Life in Arizona - LOVE it!)


More prep work.


Now the ground is ready to lay the sod!


Beautiful!


We have been doing much more artificial grass this year than in previous years. 

Sod is still a great option if you like the feel of real grass. 

And if you aren't crazy about yard work - contact us! We are! And we'd love to help!

August 11, 2016

Grass removal

Sometimes having grass just doesn't work out.....

BEFORE:



And AFTER:



The reasons for taking out grass could include being on a well and not having enough pressure, time and money it takes to take care of it, money savings, etc. 

There are lots of options to think about if you are thinking about removing your grass. 

Instead of grass, you could install rock (like this homeowner). 

You could install artificial grass instead.

You could do some hardscaping (pavers, flagstone, etc). 

Or a pool! (but we wouldn't be able to help with that until it was installed and you need some landscaping around it :)

Whatever the reason - contact us if you would like a little remodel!

August 10, 2016

Update on the kiddos

Many of you have watched our kids grow up since they were babies!

Well, they've grown up too fast!

Today the kids went back to school :(


Here's our senior this year:


He's pretty excited about that. And me too! He gets to be my intern in the afternoons! Usually the first day of school means that the kids have to wake up earlier than usual but this kid got to sleep in! He's been working out in the field all summer so it was nice for him :)

Next, is our Junior! (we're gonna have graduates back-to-back!)


Here's our Freshman:


Yes, that means we have 3 in high school (again)!

We had 3 the year that T graduated and we're doing it again :)


Which means we don't have any middle schoolers (pretty good trade I think).

M is in 5th grade this year!


And G is in 2nd grade!


I miss these kids!






They crack me up!


Besties!


And T. We can't forget about him. 

Right now he is in South Dakota serving as a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. He left exactly 14 months from today. 10 months to go. He is doing great!


August 1, 2016

Walkway


  What a mess!

Let's see how we can fix that!

First, we yanked everything out.

Then we laid down some mesh.


Next, we added some rock. 


That made such a huge difference!

This homeowner has quite the views don't you think?!

How can we help you with YOUR project(s)?

Call or email us - we'd love to help!

520-456-8945

customerservice@grasshopper-landscaping.com