Before starting a landscape maintenance project, make sure you understand what type of work is best left to a professional.
Caring for and maintaining trees, flowers and shrubberies takes more expertise than one might assume. Inexperienced homeowners who undertake their own yard maintenance often find that their gardens inexplicably die, when the solution is often as simple as implementing proper irrigation and pruning methods. For an idea of what types of yard and garden maintenance are best left to experienced landscaping professionals, consider the following information:
Irrigation
While keeping the vegetation in your yard well-watered seems like a simple task, even irrigation has its complications. For one thing, plants differ in how much water they need: some need to be watered frequently, while others only require a minimal amount. When it comes to sprinkler or drip irrigation systems, the installation requires much precision. An improperly installed sprinkler system often results in the watering of areas that weren’t meant to be watered, such as a patch of unoccupied soil or the sidewalk. In addition to wasting water, this can encourage the growth of weeds and other adverse vegetation. A landscaping professional will be able to install your irrigation system so it waters your garden efficiently and according to each plant’s individual needs.
Pruning
Pruning is one of the most misunderstood areas of yard maintenance—depending on how it’s performed, it can either improve the health and beauty of a garden or destroy it. Though improper pruning may temporarily make a garden look better, it often negatively affects plants and renders them unable to flower again. Proper pruning techniques require acute knowledge, as different plants require different types of cuts at varying intervals. A common mistake is using gas-powered shearers to trim plants that are supposed to be pruned by hand. A certified landscaping professional will have the expertise to prune your plants according to their individual needs.
Fertilizing
Many homeowners assume an all-purpose fertilizer is literally for all plants, but that’s never the case. When fertilizing your garden, you must consider the specific needs of individual plants. The results of improper fertilizing can be seen when a plant starts flowering at the wrong time of year (known as “associate flowering”) or when a shrub produces flowers at its base instead of its top.
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