Lawn Doctor of Loganville, Lilburn & Snellville
December 2024 Newsletter
Thank you to all our terrific customers for entrusting your lawn management to Lawn Doctor. 2024 presented us several challenges. After a great start to the growing season in the spring where we had ideal and consistent temperatures, we had another very hot summer resulting in drought stress, compacted soil, and the inevitable weed challenges that brings. The Caribbean and Gulf hurricane season then brought us a deluge of much needed rain, but also an Army Worm issue that is not a common occurrence in North Georgia. Despite these challenges, we are proud of the results that we have achieved when we compare your lawns to your neighbors.
Looking forward to 2025, Lawn Doctor is committed to having the greenest and fullest lawns in the Metro Atlanta area. We have just about finished up all our 2024 treatments to annual customers and applied to very important pre-emergents that are designed to suppress the winter weed germination that can fester all spring in Bermuda and Zoysia lawns. We have performed many aeration and overseeding on our fescue lawns and have fed these lawns to re-establish during the colder weather months.
Our first Lawn Maintainer rounds of 2025 will focus on the following:
- Spring pre-emergent applications and spot treatments of winter weeds.
- Early spring feedings of slow release fertilizer that is designed to feed the lawn as the temperatures rise.
- Soil testing all lawns on annual programs in good standing to identify any issues obstructing desirable growth and soil health
Pre-pay for 2025 and save!
As we complete the 2024 schedule, we will open up the window for you to pre-pay for your 2025 lawn services and save. Keep an eye on your Inbox and we will notify you when your account can be prepaid to save 5% on the annual cost of all services. Prepayments can be accepted by cash, check, Venmo, Zelle or online by credit card at lawndoctorcustomer.com.
Other Lawn Doctor Services to consider in 2025
Spring Aeration (Bermuda/Zoysia): An aeration should be done once per year and no more than every other year. This will alleviate the natural compaction caused by weather, runoff and foot traffic. Heavily used turf may require more than one aeration per year.
Bed weed Control: We can apply spring pre emergent controls to your shrub beds and treat the beds with post emergent controls. This is a 5-application program beginning before the growing season and going through October. Doing all 5 applications will greatly reduce the amount of any hand weeding necessary by you through the year.
As our partner in the lawn care journey, what does Lawn Doctor suggest to our customers?
- Water – While Bermuda & Zoysia have or will soon enter dormancy, there is still a need to hydrate the lawn. The winter water needs are significantly less than in the warmer months. While normally we recommend Bermuda & Zoysia lawns be watered once per week for 30-45 minutes (in the absence of 1” of rain per week) during growing season, the lawn needs only watered once per month in dormancy (in the absence of 1” of rain per month). Always aim for watering first thing in the morning before 10AM to mitigate the amount of water that remains on the plant overnight to avoid fungus issues.
- Avoid over watering – In the winter months, we are aiming to have the root zone of the soil to be hydrated, while not oversaturated. Oversaturation can lead to fungus issues. As a rule of thumb, if you are able to stick your finger into the soil and it feels moist, the roots have enough water and watering shouldn’t be applied.
- Mow at a higher height of cut – A Bermuda or Zoysia lawn provides insulation to the soil during dormancy to capture heat into the soil to benefit the roots. Mowing Bermuda or Zoysia at a higher height with a sharp blade is recommended. A fescue lawn requires a higher canopy in the summer to provide shade to the soil and in the winter fescue can be cut slightly lower to provide a crisper appearance. And continue to mow without reducing the height too low to mitigate weeds from fully developing and “going to seed”. While our pre-emergents are effective, they work significantly better when less undesirable weed seeds have dropped into the lawn.
As always, we are here for you. Whether it is to address an issue, discuss your lawn’s future, or just chat and get to know you better we always love the communication we get from you. We wish you and your family a very Happy Holiday Season and a terrific New Year.
Many thanks,
Steve & Sally Polhamus
Lawn Doctor of Loganville, Lilburn & Snellville
2634 Cindy Lane, Suite E
Snellville, GA 30078
770-715-5303
www.lawndoctor.com/snellville-ga
