Prime's Clippings October 2017

Eryngo Leavenworthii, Leavenworth's Eryngo 

Often overlooked, but beautiful summer wildflower

Where is the Fall Y'all?

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We had a pretty mild August but September stayed unseasonably hot, and the first week of October is going to stay in the nineties as well. At least we finished out September with some wide- spread rain.

As soon as we have consistent sweatshirt weather we can start changing out summer flowers to pansies for the winter. If it stays hot they tend to stretch and get aphids. If your summer color still looks good you can enjoy well into November, but it is always good to get pansies in the ground a week or two ahead of our first hard freeze so they have some roots developed.

And when will the first hard freeze occur? It can happen any time from November 20 to February. And if anyone could know that more than a few days in advance, they need to be sitting at a table in Vegas.

Along with milder weather October brings a modest list of gardening chores. Turf still needs to be mowed and leaves mulched up, flowers changed out, fire ants treated with bait products, fall pre-emergents and fertilizer applied, and tired summer perennials tidied up. But outdoor chores are always easier on a pleasant fall day.

Call or email us if you would like a catalog of winter color that will be available this year!

Pansies starting mid-October

Texas Trees for Fall Color

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We all know that fall foliage in north Texas is not a big showstopper, but with the right weather conditions here are a few trees that can stand out.

Autumn Blaze Maple
one of the few maples suited for our area



Cedar Elm
a true native



Chinese Pistache
a well rounded, mid-size tree

Shumard Red Oak
a native and widely planted tree; not to be confused with northern red oaks or pin oaks, both of which will not grow in our soils

Happy Halloween!

LED Christmas Lighting - Time to Plan Now!

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I know, I know, we haven’t even gotten to Halloween yet and retailers are already pushing Christmas. We are not jumping on the marketing bandwagon, but since we are only taking a limited number of new properties for Christmas lighting, we want you to have the info you need to plan your project and get on the schedule. We continue to recommend Seasonal Source LED lighting.

Why Seasonal Source LED?

• LED is green technology, consuming about 80% less electricity than traditional. You save money every year you use them.
• Tired of testing your strings of lights every year only to find half of them don’t work anymore? Our lights are premium grade and ruggedly constructed with a 3 year guarantee.
• Our LED lighting provides a dazzlingly bright display with brilliant jewel-like colors that never fade, chip, or scratch. You can choose from traditional warm-white to an array of festive colors.
• LED are safe and cool to the touch.
• Do more with less. Let’s compare the energy savings: On roof lighting, we typically use the C9 bulb. With LED, 100 ft of roof line will use less electricity than a single 100 watt light bulb. 100 ft of traditional incandescent Christmas lights will consume more power than a 600 watt microwave! When wrapping trees or columns with mini-lights, we can plug up to 300 23 foot long strings into one outlet! Compare with only 35 strings of traditional mini lights.

It's easy to see:

You can cover more area with a huge reduction in electrical costs, or increase your display without dangerously overloading your electrical circuits.


What do we provide?

We can provide everything for your outdoor display, custom designed to fit your home, including mini lights to wrap trees and shrubs, C9 roof lights, lighted wreaths and garlands, and all the jumpers, cords, and timer needed to make it all work. After Christmas, we will come out and place the lights in stackable storage boxes with tags and a diagram so that installation the following year will be easy to duplicate.

What does it cost?

We will measure your roof, trees, shrubs, sidewalks—whatever you want to highlight and provide an estimate and design suggestions. Once you have purchased your lights and supplies from us, we have a simple labor rate to cover installation and take down.

Labor

• Lining driveways, sidewalks, etc.: $2.00 per ft
• Single story roof lines: $3.00 per ft
• Second story roofs: $5.00 per ft

Materials

• C9 roof lights start at $2.75 per ft including wire and clips
• Storage boxes are $10.00 or you can provide your own
• Wrapping tree trunks, shrubs, etc.: 23 ft strings of M5 or G12 mini lights run $25.00 per string. If you already have the lights it is $6.00 per string for labor only.

For estimates, contact Mike Johnson.





Another of John's Favorite "Weeds"

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You may have noticed tall white “weeds” showing up along our roadsides and pastures during the last few weeks. A closer inspection reveals that they are actually a beautiful euphorbia, Agaloma marginata or Snow on the Mountain. Similar to a poinsettia, the flowers are tiny and somewhat inconspicuous but are surrounded by showy white bracts with green stripes. Natives like these are important sources of nectar for pollinators like our endangered honey bees.

October Chores

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• Mow less often as the lawn slows down

• Water once—twice a week as needed

• Treat fire ants—bait products work well in Fall

• Overseed rye and fescue grass

• Apply weed pre-emergent and fertilizer

• Sow wildflower seeds for spring 

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Our goal is to fulfill the needs of the customer by providing timely, quality services and products.
Thanks for your business!

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Spencer Young
Pool and Water Garden Services

Prime's Clippings September 2017

Lonestar Gumweed, grindelia adenodonta

Just a weed to most, beautiful when you take the time to look

 We will be closed Monday, September 4th 

 for Labor Day 

How Many Days 'til Fall?

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August began nicely and was overall a fairly mild month. We certainly had our share of blistering humid days, but the scattered rains throughout north Texas have made this a very bearable summer. Up north, fall dependably begins in September when the kids head back to school. Around here, be prepared for another month or more of hot weather. Maybe we will get lucky though.

Regardless of the difficulty in predicting the onset of cooler weather, September and October are two very important months for north Texas gardeners.

Probably the most important chore coming up is the application of fall pre-emergent weed preventative to our lawns and beds. Equally important is a fall fertilization with a balanced product including potassium for the roots. Some gardening experts will tell you there is a perfect range of days in which to apply pre-emergent, but in truth that range can be quite extensive, and even applications outside of the peak period can be quite effective. But if you are a do-it-yourselfer, this is the single most important application you can make. Don’t forget to do it!

Some other nice things about this time of year are fall veggie gardens and planting new shrubs, trees, and grass. We are on the tail end of planting fall vegetables, but you can still have some success with crops from seed like lettuce, spinach, kale, peas, radishes, and carrots, and even broccoli, cabbage, brussel sprouts, cauliflower and tomatoes if you can find them potted in the nursery.

Milder weather will start to set in, so get ready to enjoy a great time of year.

Late Summer Lawn and Garden Care

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The time to treat for grub worms is passing, but treatments will still be effective if done in the next few weeks. Grubs do some of their worst damage in the fall but as soils cool they stop feeding and move deeper into the soil, becoming harder to control.

We are still several weeks from lawns starting into dormancy so continue to mow weekly and water regularly. See the tips above regarding fall pre-emergent and fertilizing. You may make applications at any time now and into October.

Roses, if you are lucky enough to have some that have not fallen victim to rosette disease, benefit from a light pruning in late August or early September. We often have a great rose bloom in October.

Avoid trimming spring blooming plants like azaleas and spiraeas any more this year as you may be removing spring blooms. Also avoid high nitrogen fertilizers on spring bloomers, but you can still use balanced fertilizers and especially iron or acidifiers for chlorotic plants.

If we get into a wet spell, watch for lawn diseases like brown patch (later) or gray leaf spot (now), and powdery mildew, fungal leaf spot, and scale insects on shrubs. Treat as needed depending on severity so your lawn and plants go into winter healthy and happy.




Time for Rye and Fescue Seeding

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Time for our annual reminder about over-seeding your lawn with ryegrass. A lush green winter lawn creates a nice foreground or background for early spring flowers like azaleas and spiraeas, and sets your home or business apart from the crowd. Over-seeded lawns normally have fewer winter weed issues as weed seeds have a difficult time germinating in the thick green cover provided by healthy turf. Typical winter weather usually brings enough rainfall to keep your rye green with little or no watering once established.

There are two types of rye seed available, annual and perennial. Annual rye seed is the one most commonly used but will need to be mowed every week in the spring. Perennial rye is more refined, with a darker green color and slower rate of growth, is more difficult to germinate. In our area the term perennial is not accurate. Most rye burns out by June. In shady areas or if we have prolonged cool, wet weather into the summer, ryegrass may persist longer.



The normal preparation for over seeding is to mow the lawn a few notches lower and remove the clippings during the last half of September through October. This allows the seed to make better contact with the ground and improves germination. Depending on rainfall, the seed should be watered several times a week until it is up and growing. In about two weeks, lightly touch up any thin areas. Once it is up, mowing will vary depending on the weather and type of seed used, but once every 2-3 weeks is usually the norm until about March. Light fertilizing in December will enhance the appearance.

Pricing: Scalping, over-seeding, and touch up is based on square footage and will run 8 times the cost of a normal mow. If your mowing is $35, your annual rye installation will be $280. Perennial rye would be $52.50 additional.

For larger or commercial properties call or email to request a quote.

Fescue is a northern grass that struggles here in July and August, but there are transitional mixes now that are an option for heavily shaded yards where St Augustine just will not make it. If you have heavy shade and really prefer a lawn there instead of groundcovers or a shade garden, then fescue may be a fit for you. Like rye, it will germinate now and establish during the winter and spring months. As mentioned, it thins out in our hottest months and does need regular watering, but simply reseed each fall to thicken it back up. Fescue does not usually need to be mowed as often as rye.

We have found an excellent way to install fescue is to aerate the area with a core aeration machine and then broadcast the seed. This is especially effective on slopes where seed may wash.

We only recommend fescue for shaded areas where you are having trouble growing St. Augustine. The pricing is based on square footage with a minimum of $250.




Plants to Consider

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Sunshine ligustrum: If you like yellow, this is a neat little shrub. It is evergreen, takes pruning and shaping well and doesn’t seem to have many insect or disease issues. It contrasts well with dark green bushes, purple foliage plants, and purple or red flowers. Use in full or part day sun and with moderate watering.




Garden phlox: Speaking of a purple bloom that would look great behind the sunshine Ligustrum, this variety of old timey garden phlox from my yard attracts butterflies all summer. Available in many colors, phlox paniculata grows about 4-5 ft tall and does best in part sun. A dependable perennial, cut to ground in winter.




Cassia alata, or Candlestick tree, has been around forever but is rarely seen around here. It dies to the ground each winter but often returns from the root, or can be planted from seed or a 1 gallon pot if you can find it in a nursery. Mine grow to about 9 ft tall every summer.




Black Diamond crape myrtle: An interesting newer series of crapes with striking foliage. Available in many colors. Plant in full sun, will reach about 12 ft.

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-Prime Landscape Services-
Voted Reader’s Choice Best Landscape Company in Mansfield August 2017
Thanks, Mansfield!

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September Chores

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• Mow weekly and do not bag clippings

• Treat fire ants

• Overseed rye grass

• Apply weed pre-emergent and fall fertilizer

• Sow wildflower seeds for spring

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Our goal is to fulfill the needs of the customer by providing timely, quality services and products.
Thanks for your business!

---

Greg Hamann
Owner

Prime's Clippings August 2017

 Prickly Poppy, Argemone Albiflora

an August wildflower and excellent forage plant for quail and bees

Dog Days of Summer

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After a fairly pleasant June, July came on hot and dry as expected. Rains have been widely scattered so consider yourself lucky if you had any in your part of the world. As I write this on the last day of July we are expecting a very nice start to August with increased rain chances and high temperatures in the low nineties—sweet!  But for the next two months plants and lawns can go south in a hurry. Keep an eye on tender plants like hydrangeas or newly planted trees and shrubs, and check your sprinklers regularly for clogged nozzles, low heads, heads blocked by shrubs, etc. It only takes a week or so to do serious damage to lawns and landscapes that are not receiving enough water, so stay alert!

So why do we refer to the sultriest days of summer as the “dog days?" Is it because the heat makes dogs short-tempered and mean, or lazy and lethargic? Because we eat a lot of hot dogs?

The original meaning actually had nothing to do with heat or dogs, but hot weather is what we in the northern hemisphere now associate with the phrase. The ancient Greeks marked this time of the year by the rising of Sirius the dog star just before dawn, and associated it with a potential for war or disaster. It also happened to coincide with a really hot time of year, but depending on where you are in the world Sirius will rise at different times. And because the stars in our night sky move independently of Earth’s calendar, in about 13,000 years we will be experiencing the dog days of winter. And I bet the dogs will still be lethargic and lazy, laying about by a warm fire.

Time to Treat for Grubworms!

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Don’t forget! August is the time of year to treat for grub worms. Most of our grub damage is brought on by the larva of the June beetle. Peak flights of the June beetle occur in mid May to mid June and eggs hatch about 1 month later. Grubs are easiest to kill at this early stage of their growth due to the fact that they are closer to the soil surface and very small. Not every yard will have a large enough population to cause damage, but if you have had one in the past you may be in a location that is prone to infestation. Lawns close to street lights where June bugs gather are often hit, and ironically they often attack lush lawns when soil is soft and food (roots) is abundant. They can do serious damage to turf over the next two months. And the application we make for grubs may also act as a preventative for chinch bugs, another bad lawn pest.

Prices start at just $49.95 for customers that are already on our 7 step program!

This many grubs in 1 sq ft of soil is enough to do serious damage.

Summer Surprises

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While enjoying a late afternoon walk a few years ago we were fortunate enough to be caught in a heavy downpour. Like a couple of kids, we came home soaking wet, chilled, and thrilled to have a good rain in mid summer. Then, just a few days later, we discovered a vast swath of beautiful white flowers held on single stems 8 inches tall, growing in an old mowed field that was once the site of the Pike Drive-In Theater in the fifties. Having driven past this corner my entire life, funny how I never really noticed them until I took the time to actually walk through the field. Sometimes you just have to slow down to find the treasure that was there all along.


These summer jewels are rain lilies. Even though these flowers are called lilies, they actually belong to the Amaryllis family. Rain lily is a generic term that applies to numerous species of plants in three different genus: Zephyranthes, Habranthus, and Cooperia. We dug several clumps to set in our beds and after a few days they went to seed. A second rain brought another flush of flowers a week later. These resilient little bulbs will flush after nearly every summer rain and last virtually forever. Our new wild additions joined some pink ones we purchased at a nursery years ago.

Another plant that will help ease the dog days of summer is the Surprise Lily, Lycoris radiata or Lycoris sqaumigera.

Around the end of August, when you have just about given up on keeping your plants pretty, up jumps a little shoot of fresh green growth. In just about a week it is 2-3 ft. tall and a gorgeous spidery red or pink bloom appears.

Excellent in a mondo grass bed or all by themselves, a few clusters of this beauty will transition you pleasantly into Fall.

Planning for Fall Projects

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Every year we like to remind customers that Fall is an excellent time for landscape improvements. Everyone gets spring fever and enjoys freshening up their yard in spring, but well informed gardeners know that Fall is really the best season for planting most of our landscape ornamentals.

Trees, shrubs, and perennials that are planted in September through December get to take advantage of our traditionally mild temperatures and regular rains. Plants that go in the ground in the Fall have reduced heat stress and are better equipped to handle the inevitable dry conditions of next summer.

Although most plants will show little or no top growth during the winter, it’s what is going on in the ground that counts. Root systems thrive in our mild Fall weather and grow vigorously all winter, giving you bigger, healthier plants next year.

Use these hot days of August to make plans for your fall landscape projects.

The Big Email Push

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Experts agree, e-mail is the only way to go!

Once again, we are reminding everyone to sign up to “Go Green” and start receiveing your invoices and newsletter via e-mail. We do not share your address with anyone, and we do not send out e-mail blasts soliciting your business.

You can also pay with your favorite credit card if you prefer.

Just call us at 817-461-4000 to set it up.

Better yet, send an e-mail to: contactus@primelandscapeservices.com

Thanks!

Prime's Clippings July 2017

Ratibida Columnaris- Mexican Hat - a prominent summer wildflower

A Nice Start to Summer

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We have finally erased the deficit on our annual rainfall total, making up for a dry May with several inches in June. That really helped our soil moisture levels and our lakes are in pretty good shape. Plus we had a bonus on June 24, the fifth day of summer, with a cold front that kept our high temperature under 80 degrees! I’ll give June 2017 an A.

Here’s a fun fact: The high on June 24th was 10 degrees lower than the record high set in the dead of “winter” on Feb. 11 when we hit 88. Okay, I’m wearing everyone out with weather trivia, but this lack of normal patterns plays heck with our gardens. We coupled the warmest winter on record in DFW —great for insect pests, with a couple of 14 degree days in early January that burned crapes and other plants. So what does the rest of summer hold? If the first six months are any clue, who knows?

We can likely count on 2 months of hot, dry weather and a need to supplement Mother Nature’s blessings with regular water from our sprinkler systems. With that in mind, read on for a primer on how your sprinkler system works, and how to get the most out of it.

Horsemint- A wildflower that loves the heat and is great forage for honey bees.

Sprinkler Systems 101
(most likely a lot more than you want to know, but not nearly as much as we could tell you!)

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Thanks to Murphy’s Law, it seems that right when you need your sprinkler system the most is also when it is most likely to break down.  Unlike changing the oil in your car, there isn’t a whole lot of preventive maintenance you can perform on your sprinklers, but routine inspections are extremely important.

A typical sprinkler system starts at the backflow device, which is usually in a large box located a few feet from your water meter. There are 2 handles here which are used to turn the water off to the sprinklers without affecting the water to your house.  Silt often accumulates around this valve and the handles corrode, making it difficult to turn off the water in an emergency. We recommend cleaning out the silt once a year and replacing your handles with stainless steel handles. Stainless handles will last forever.

Your control valves are located throughout the yard and have an electric solenoid and rubber diaphragm. These parts fail over time, the wire splices may corrode, and fire ants eat the insulation off the wires. If a valve is not coming on it is often an electrical problem. If it sticks on and runs continuously, it is usually a bad diaphragm or debris may have lodged in the valve. In most cases, we rebuild the valve with all new components, or replace the valve entirely if there is internal wear or other issues. Spray heads are typically used for patterns of 4 ft up to 15 ft, rotors for patterns of 15 ft to 40 ft, drip irrigation for ornamental beds or pots, and bubbler heads for trees, large plants, or large pots. Pop-up sprays and rotors have seals that harden with age and leak or prevent the head from lowering after it pops up. This is the main reason heads get broken by mowers. Properly installed, a head that is working properly cannot be hit by a mower. If you see a lot of water pooling around a head when it is running it may have a bad seal. Spray nozzles also become clogged, and heads settle so that they are crooked, too low, or too high. Drip is notorious for being damaged by digging in beds, and rodents also love to chew on drip. Correcting these issues is all part of routine maintenance. Your controller is the brain of the system, and most of today’s controllers have sophisticated settings that allow you to optimize how and when you apply water. Like any computer, they may be damaged by power surges, lightning, or gremlins. But what is the first thing you always check when your controller isn’t working? The electrical outlet! Plug something else in and make sure you have electricity there. If so, then you can call us to come look for the gremlins.

Sprinkler system scheduling: Okay, this is a subject that can get very involved. There are formulas for calculating how much water you may need using actual rainfall amounts, evapostranspiration rates for your lawn or different types of ornamentals, soil types, slope, micro climates, etc. And the truth is that most sprinkler systems are not perfectly designed. There's lots of really good ones, but an equal number with coverage issues. In fact, most spray zones have an efficiency rating of only 60% and rotor zones 70%.


So, for the average property owner with the average system, here are some easy to follow guidelines:

• Most weeks in summer we need to apply about 1 inch of water to our yards. 
• A spray zone applies about 1.5 inches in an hour.
• A rotor zone applies about .5 inches per hour.
• A drip zone applies about 1 inch per hour, but drip can vary considerably because there are so many different products and ways to design it.

So, you will need to run your sprays about 40 minutes a week, your rotors for 2 hours, and your drip 1 hour. Maybe a little more according to how efficiently they are working.

For lawns and established shrubs it would be ideal to apply all that water at one time so you get a really deep soaking, encouraging deeper roots. But flowers, new plantings, and some common plants like hydrangeas and caladiums need water more than once a week. For ease of programming, and to cover the variety of plants that you may have, most properties should be set up to water two to three times per week.

So now we have a  twice a week schedule that looks like this:

• Spray zones 20 minutes, Rotor zones 60 minutes, Drip zones 30 minutes

And here is the last tweak that is not difficult and will really help you get the most out of your water. Except for some lucky folks (like me) that live in a narrow sandy band of the Cross Timbers that runs through north Texas, most of us have clay or clay-loam soils. These soils are tight and accept water very slowly. That means that your water will start running off after just a few minutes of watering. How to solve this problem? Set your sprinklers to run twice in one cycle, using half the water each time. Some controllers have a built in Cycle/Soak function that you can program, but all controllers have the ability to let you set two or more start times. That is a really simple way to get more water to soak in.

Lets say you have 4 spray zones, 2 rotor zones, and 1 drip zone.
What is the total run time needed?

• 4 zones x 20 minutes = 80 minutes, 2 ones x 60 minutes = 120 minutes, and 1 zone x 30 minutes for a total of 230 minutes or about 4 hours.
• Set your sprays for 10 minutes, your rotors for 30 minutes, and drip for 15 .
• Set your first start time for 12:00 AM, then set a second start time for 4:00 AM

That gives your first cycle a chance to soak in and you will have less water running down the gutter! This also works well for watering on slopes.

Again, these are basic guidelines. You may have shady areas that need less than hot sunny areas so adjust those times down. Or a big bed of begonias that may struggle with watering just twice a week in the heat of summer, so you could add a “B” program for an extra day to water just that zone.

As I said at the beginning, this can get very involved. You can follow these guidelines, or consult with us further if you really want to see how much you can do to keep more of your water going where you want it—the roots of your plants.

You are welcome to email questions to me at:
John@primelandscapeservices.com
Texas Licensed Irrigator #0004812






The Big Email Push

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Experts agree, e-mail is the only way to go!

Once again, we are reminding everyone to sign up to “Go Green” and start receiveing your invoices and newsletter via e-mail. We do not share your address with anyone, and we do not send out e-mail blasts soliciting your business.

You can also pay with your favorite credit card if you prefer.

Just call Olivia at 817-461-4000 to set it up.

Better yet, send an e-mail to: contactus@primelandscapeservices.com

Thanks!

July Chores

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• Mow Weekly
• Finish planting summer flowers
• Mulch beds
• Treat new fire ant mounds after rains
• Watch for chinch bugs in the lawn
• Treat for grub worms
• Check sprinklers

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Our goal is to fulfill the needs of the customer by providing timely, quality services and products.
Thanks for your business!

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John Hoover, General Manager

Prime's Clippings June 2017

Centaura Americana - American Basket Flower
An early summer wildflower

Ready for Summer?

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May was a disappointment to much of the metroplex regarding our rain totals. Normally our wettest month, it seems most of the storms split north and south of Fort Worth. There have been blisteringly hot days and a few blissfully cool days as well, but it is a sure bet that hot weather will start to dominate.

We have already had to start supplemental watering in between the scattered rains, and pay close attention to newly planted flowers, shrubs, and trees  to make sure they are not allowed to dry out. Remember, those root zones remain the same size as the pot they were in for several weeks or even months. Many plants will recover from wilting but it always slows their growth.

So here is my early summer checklist:

• Weed beds and mulch everything
• Fertilize lawns and beds
• Spot spray weeds in the lawn
• Check sprinklers and adjust heads
• Hand water new plants
• Plant the last warm season vegetables—it’s a little late, but cantaloupes and a few others can still go in
• Start enjoying the tomatoes, peppers, squash and other garden goodies that are already producing (side note: wage war on squash bugs!)
• Get outdoors and enjoy the last crops of wildflowers

And when it gets too hot, head for the lake or the pool. Welcome summer!

What to watch for as we heat up...

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Surprisingly, we haven’t observed too many insect issues yet in spite of our warm winter. Mosquitoes are starting to show up but have not been a big problem. We have been monitoring for bagworms on one of our properties that has hundreds of cypress trees, and they have not shown up yet. We are nearing the time for tent caterpillars as well, so we may start seeing both of these critters pop up in June.

Fire ants of course are ever-present and make new mounds after every rain. And that’s possibly the key to why we haven’t had big problems with any of these pests — we haven’t had a lot of rain just yet.

Aphids and azalea bark scale are a constant problem on crape myrtles, and a systemic insecticide is the most effective weapon against the bark scale.

Conditions were optimal this winter for some blight and canker on Italian cypress and similar trees. There is no control, so if you have dead patches in your cypress or junipers prune it out or remove the tree. Some crapes had severe freeze damage, treatment is the same. Most fungal diseases should decrease as it gets hot, but gray leaf spot and chinch bugs are potential summer problems for St. Augustine.

gray leaf spot

chinch bugs

Prime landscapes new ride at Six Flags!

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We were honored to work on a new attraction at Six Flags again this year, helping them usher in The Joker. This is an exciting ride for the true thrill seeker. And it is exciting for us to get to work with the skilled and dedicated team at Six Flags and observe how they meet all the challenges in bringing these world-class attractions to the public.  Be sure and include a trip to Six Flags in your summer plans!

June Chores

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• Mow Weekly
• Finish planting spring flowers
• Mulch beds
• Treat for fire ants, mosquitoes, and caterpillars 

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Our goal is to fulfill the needs of the customer by providing timely, quality services and products.
Thanks for your business!

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Greg Hamann, Owner

Prime's Clippings May 2017

Oenothera Speciosa - Evening Primrose ... One of our beautiful local wildflowers!

Keepin' it Cool

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I spent April 22, Earth Day, immersed in some beautiful woods in Oklahoma, catching trout in a gorgeous river, and enjoying a nice campfire with lows In the forties. What a great way to celebrate a day that many folks don’t observe, but one that means a lot to a nature boy like me. The dogwoods and redbuds had finished their bloom, but wildflowers were abundant and the spring rains had everything lush and green. So for something a little different, I included a few photos from the woods of Tishomingo Oklahoma and some unique wildflowers in this newsletter. Enjoy!

May is historically our rainiest month and we have had some decent rains just about every week now, so hopefully we will maintain this pattern and get to enjoy a few more weeks of mild temperatures. The only drawback to cool nights is that weeds grow faster than lawns, but that should all change soon and grass will start to dominate.

Leave sprinklers off until rains disappear for a week or more, but  keep an eye on any new plants. We have been jumping into  80- 90 degree afternoons already and that can wilt newly planted flowers in just a day or so. But cool weather and frequent rains can bring on fungal problems like  brown patch in St. Augustine and leaf spot on hawthorns and photinias. Issues like these have to be addressed periodically, but again, we should be happy and take the rain over drought conditions anytime. And I’ll celebrate all the cool weather I can get before the July blast furnace comes on.

Remember our record setting rain fall in May 2015?

A Magical Mystery Quiz

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Anyone that can correctly identify these pictures can have free lawn mowing for a year! Wait, Greg just saw this and said only if I want to pay for it, so I guess that’s out. Besides, I can’t stand to keep secrets, so I’ll just go ahead and clue you in after the break.

You may have guessed that it is a leaf gall, but here’s the rest of the story: This is elm sack gall, caused by the elm aphid Tetraneura ulmi. Galls are deformities on plants that can be caused by insects, disease, or fungal pathogens. What is fascinating about this one (to me anyway) is that the aphid secretes a substance which causes the elm to grow this fuzzy red bulb, which the aphid then uses as a nursery/hotel to raise it’s brood. In June they emerge and drop to the ground to colonize the roots of certain grasses. They then fly back to the tree and deposit eggs in the bark to start the cycle again in spring. So they are using the elm to make little aphid hotels and don’t even feed on it! This tree was covered with hundreds. It looked like it was covered with berries. Fascinating!

Celebrating Wildflowers

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Many of our wildflowers bloomed earlier than normal again this year due to the unusually warm winter, but we had a pretty good show regardless. And it continues still! Here are a few I observed while celebrating Earth Day in Oklahoma, some you won’t see on the beaten path.

Meadow Parsnip growing along the shady edges of oak/cedar woodland, about 2 feet tall.



Tradescantia, or Spiderwort growing in low areas where moisture is abundant.
This is available in nurseries occasionally.



Blue eyed grass. This low little clumping grass is common in fields but you have to look for it. It blooms for about a month and is only 3-6 inches tall.

Now this group of pictures came two weeks ago from about 120 miles west of Fort Worth in Carbon Texas. Indian paintbrushes are most commonly seen in red-orange, but can also be white, yellow, pink, and magenta. I found a patch that had every color. Simply beautiful.

Sometimes the most beautiful gardens are those untouched by the hand of man.

May Chores

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• Mow Weekly
• Finish planting spring flowers
• Mulch beds
• Treat for fire ants

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