At Boulevard Nurseries our landscape team also offers spring and fall cleanups, mulching, grass mowing, weekly or bi-weekly bed maintenance (weeding/cleaning), hedge and shrub trimming, tree and shrub installations, tree pruning, tree removal, stump removal, lawn regrading, lawn seeding, lawn aeration, sodding, brush mowing, brush clearing, full backhoe service, stone driveways, stone pads, french drains and trenching.
Lawn Aeration
The compaction of soil is the main reason to have a yard aerated. When soil gets compacted any type of water will run off instead of getting absorbed into the ground for the grass roots, this causing dead spots in the lawn. Yards with a high volume of foot or vehicle traffic will cause compaction as well. Our method of aerating is called core aeration. This method pulls out small plugs of soil and allows water, air and nutrients to reach the roots of the grass. We also recommend after the aeration is to overseed, this method is when we broadcast spread grass seed and starter fertilizer over the aerated areas. Multiple seeds drop in each plug hole helping for a healthier fuller lawn. The best time to perform a lawn aeration is early spring or early fall to help the new seed establish a strong root system.
Sodding & Seeding
Sodding and seeding are both considered a toss-up on which works best. Sodding gives you the instant sight of green grass. The speed of rooting is the biggest hurdle. Sodding can be done at any time during the landscaping season. The biggest concern is the access of a water supply making sure you can cover the entire sodded area. Owning an irrigation system makes this much easier to cover the required area. Lawn sprinklers and hoses can also be placed on the sod but recommended to be moved daily to prevent lawn burning. This is the most expensive way for a new lawn.
Seeding takes a much longer time to achieve the instant green grass look. Timing is everything when it comes to seeding. Early to mid-spring and early fall are the best times to seed. This allows the seed enough time to germinate and establish a strong root system before the summer heat or the winter cold. Fall seeding has the benefits of less weeds for the new seed to compete with. Top dressing the prepared area with an inch of either straight compost or a 50/50 mix of screened loam and compost help the seed with germination because of the nutrients in the compost. This method too requires a water supply. Even after the seed germinates the new grass will still need to be watered depending on season and temperature. This is the least expensive way but the most time consuming. This process takes between 5 and 14 days to see results depending on seed type.
Hydro-seed is a faster way of growing grass seed. This mixture of water, seed, fertilizer and bales of fiber mulch help speed up the growing process. Watering is a much bigger priority in the spring with hydroseed. In the spring season if not watered during the growing period and well after germination properly the risk for weeds to take over the new seed is extremely strong. This process too can be expensive due to the amount of materials used, but you will see results in 5-7 days. Hydroseeding is cheaper than sodding but more expensive than seeding.