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Understanding Winter Ryegrass Fertilizers

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How to Keep the Deep Green in Your Winter Lawn

After you go to all the trouble of overseeding your Valley lawn with perennial ryegrass, you will want to keep it looking lush and green all winter long. The correct fertilizers are the key. Here’s a quick rundown of the winter turf fertilizer products you will need and why.

Understand the Numbers on the Fertilizer Package

Forget anything that says “all purpose,” because all fertilizers are not alike. A winter lawn needs certain nutrients. First, it will help you to know that commercial fertilizers show a ratio of three numbers, like 15-15-15. Referred to as “NPK”, the ratio describes the product formulation in nitrogen (N), potassium (P) and phosphorous (K). So, a 15-15-15 fertilizer formulation means 15 parts nitrogen to 15 parts potassium to 15 parts phosphorous for any given quantity of the product. Some fertilizers have other additives, which is important to know for your winter lawn.

The First Fertilizer Formulation for Germination

To help the ryegrass seedlings develop root structures, they need extra phosphorous. Ammonium phosphate is a good choice, with a high phosphate ratio of 16-20-0. 6-20-20 and 16-20-20 are also good choices. Follow the package directions for application rate by square footage. Apply this first formulation of fertilizer when you begin watering your newly laid seed, and again two weeks after seedling emergence, which should be about one month after laying down your seed. Always water your turf well after fertilizing.

The Second Fertilizer Formulation Until Spring Temperatures Rise

After you apply the first phosphorous-rich fertilizer, use a more nitrogen-heavy fertilizer formulation every month thereafter until spring. Formulations like 34-0-0, 21-7-14 and 22-3-9 are good examples. Perennial ryegrass benefits from a fertilizer with added iron because iron is not as plant-available in cool soil temperatures. If there is the danger of frost and you have the option, a foliar fertilizer is preferable to a granular one. Always follow the manufacturer’s instructions and be sure to water the fertilizer in well. Be aware that products containing iron stain hardscape materials.

For information about diagnosing and treating your winter lawn for nutritional deficiencies, refer to the Arizona Cooperative Extension Turf Tips article at turf.arizona.edu/tips1195.html.

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The Benefits of Skipping a Year of Overseeding

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The summer Bermudagrass certainly struggled this year. Conditions were such that turf was spotty, lacked its typical green lushness and made a generally poor summer showing. The typical transition from winter perennial ryegrass to summer Bermudagrass in 2022 was not smooth. We saw perennial ryegrass hang on longer than usual and Bermudagrass lack vigor when it finally emerged from dormancy.

Strengthen Bermudagrass By Not Overseeding Every Couple of Years

Whether the turf is the lawn in the back of your home or the community park across the street, it is a best practice not to overseed every couple of years anyway to decrease competition between the winter ryegrass and the summer Bermudagrass. This practice gives the Bermudagrass the chance to fill in weak spots and strengthen when it does not have to compete with the ryegrass for nutrients, water, and sunlight. Skipping overseeding this season, or limiting community overseeding to high-visibility areas like entrances, might be exactly what your Bermudagrass needs.

More Ways to Improve Your Bermudagrass Health Over the Winter

Clearly, another benefit of skipping a year of overseeding is the money and labor you save from seed, water, and fertilizer. Instead, focus your attention on the Bermudagrass by redirecting your spending to improve the evenness of your irrigation coverage, apply soil conditioner to improve the health of next summer’s grass, or treat turf areas for winter weeds. For example, winter is the time to treat Poa annua, a common winter weed that can’t otherwise be treated without killing the perennial ryegrass.

Suggestions for Other Landscape Projects with Your Savings

Putting your overseeding funds toward other landscape uses in your personal yard or for the neighborhood, you could replace missing plants, deep-root fertilize non-native trees, prune and thin trees, or tackle landscape improvement projects like hardscape repairs. No matter what you choose, feel confident about sitting out this overseeding season to improve the health of your Bermudagrass next year.

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Proper Citrus Care: Pruning Basics

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Citrus trees have strong wood that requires minimal pruning. A healthy tree can bear the load of heavy fruit. A common misperception is that a heavily pruned citrus tree will result in new growth and improved fruit quality. In fact, the opposite is true; minimally pruned citrus trees can produce fruit that is of better quality than heavily pruned trees.

Spring is Citrus Pruning Season

If your citrus tree requires pruning, the best months in Arizona are February to April. Best is after the danger of frost has passed but before the tree flowers. Pruning between April and October can expose the tree to sunburn damage, and November to February exposes the tree to potential frost damage.

Regular Maintenance with Minimal Pruning

Citrus trees produce the least fruit in areas of the tree canopy that are most shaded. Thus, your citrus tree may only need to be pruned in the spring to thin out those deeply shaded sections inside the tree canopy, opening them up to sunlight for fruit production.

Year-round maintenance of citrus trees involves regularly snipping off suckers and removing branches that are weak, diseased or dead. As with other trees, a limb that crosses another should also be removed to prevent damage to and consequent disease in the other limbs it touches.

Citrus trees, like roses, are most often grafted varieties onto a base rootstock. Shoots growing up around the base of the trunk or in nearby soil are rootstock suckers that should be removed. They are characteristically thorny and will not produce the desired citrus variety.

Thorny, unproductive varietal branches higher up in the tree can also be removed as part of regular maintenance.

Protect Cuts with Paint

Especially for large cuts, protect the exposed citrus wood by painting it with a 50%/50% mix of latex paint and water. Never use an oil-based paint on citrus.

Want to know more about how you can maintain the investment in your landscape and improve its value? Call us at (602)-243-1106 or fill out a request a bid form by clicking here.

Overseeding

The Overseeding Process: First Steps to a Healthy Winter Lawn

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Overseed season is right around the corner and that means it is time to prepare your turf for what is to come! In Arizona, the best time to overseed turf is in October, when temperatures are consistently below 65 degrees.

Overseeding is a process with multiple steps and it is important to follow each step methodically in order to achieve the best results! The first steps of this process should begin in early September, prior to scalp and overseed. These small adjustments will hopefully begin to slow the growth of the turf, dry the areas out, and make it easier to transition the Bermuda into dormancy. You will begin to notice the change in color and quality of the Bermuda.

Lowering Mow Height

Lowering the mow height on your turf is an important step towards the overseed process. Keep in mind that when you begin to lower the mow height it is a good idea to also stop fertilization, ensuring that the Summer turf you are trying to deplete does not continue to grow. By lowering the grass height of active Bermuda, you are also removing old dead grass and thatch buildup. It is important to remember that the initial lowering of the mow height is not the scalping event. Rather, it is a practice you can do to actively help for when actual scalping begins.

Reducing Water

Decreasing water to existing Bermuda grass before Rye seed is to be distributed is a great idea. This helps decrease competition between the two grass types and helps in efforts to start to diminish the existing Bermuda, making way for its Winter counterpart. This can be done by reducing water by about 30% in the week prior to scalping and then stopping all water distribution about 1-3 days before.

By taking these actions now, prior to scalping efforts are to be made, you will be setting yourself up for success in overseeding. It is important to remember that during this process, turf may look different or spotty as Bermuda begins to die off. Scalping, the next step in the process, will affect the look of the lawn even more but is necessary to make way for the new rye seed to be distributed. Be sure to be patient with the process and take all meansure necessary to prepare for a beautiful Winter lawn.

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Treating Grubs in Turf

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Notice your turf looking a bit spotty or unhealthy in areas? This could be because of some small pests known as grubs! Grubs are a huge issue here in Arizona when it comes to turf health as they feed on the roots and other inert materials in order to grow. They are extremely small in size and can go unnoticed until the damage they cause is already done! While it may be difficult to know whether or not grubs are affecting your turf this season, we have some information to get you educated on what these pests are and how to plan for their arrival!

What are Grubs?

Grubs are the larval stages of different types of beetles that are found here in Arizona. They are typically white in color and are extremely small (varying in size from 1/4 inch long to about an inch long). The beetles usually lay their eggs around early summer in sunny locations, such as Arizona, leaving the growth process of the larvae to take place towards the end of our Summer season. It is in this growth process that they begin to affect the health of the turfgrass where they reside.

Larvae live in the soil of the grass and they typically feed on the roots and organic matter that surrounds them. They have chewing mouthparts that allow them to easily take down roots and in places where they are abundant, this can cause noticeable damage. Their feedings typically result in brown, irregular sections of turf that may look as if it is dying- leaving an overall spotty lawn. In addition to the damage that the grubs cause from feeding on the organic matter of your turfgrass, other animals are more likely to damage your lawn in these areas as well. Birds and small mammals use grubs as a food source and tend to be drawn towards turf areas where these grubs are thriving, feeding on the grubs and causing turf decline as well.

How to Prepare For and Treat Grubs in Your Arizona Landscape

Since these pests begin to cause damage in mid-summer but often go unnoticed due to their size, it is common to uncover a grub infestation late- usually in late summer to the early months of fall. Luckily, there are lots of options for grub control that are aimed towards getting rid of the pests after an infestation.

Curative treatments are those treatments that are applied following an infestation and damage. These treat the turf to get rid of the existing grubs in an attempt to repair the areas where affected. These are typically insecticides, which kill the grubs in all stages of life- clearing out an infestation. While curative chemical treatment tends to work in killing off grubs and helping the lawn repair itself, preventative treatments offer more options for type of treatment and are generally more effective.

As far as preventative treatments go, we often find that a mix of chemical and organic treatments works best for Arizona turf. When going the organic route-ensuring that turfgrass is watered and fertilized optimally works as a great way to help the grass withstand grub activity. Re-seeding damaged areas or areas that are looking sparse also helps to keep the lawn looking balanced. With chemical prevention, it is advised to use insecticides in places where grubs are anticipated (from past years populations) or expected. Applying this before egg-laying takes place will help ensure long-lasting protection to your turfgrass.

Find a list of chemicals to use for both prevention and curative purposes by the Arizona Cooperative Extension here.

It is a good idea to work with a professional landscape management company, such as our team here at ELS Maintenance, to curate a plan of prevention and treatment for grubs in turf! Be sure to reach out today to request a big for your community or commercial property!

[email protected] | 602.243.1106 | 3329 E Southern Avenue, Phoenix AZ 85040

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Summer Annuals

Arizona Landscaping; Preparing For Summer Annuals

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Spring has officially arrived and it is almost time to plant Summer Annuals here in the desert! However, before we can enjoy the beautiful colors that these plants bring to our landscape it is important to know the proper ways to prepare for their arrival. Preparing your landscape for Annuals is a multi-step process that includes irrigation checks, possible soil amendments, and plant replacement plans.

Proper Irrigation

Proper irrigation is imperative to plant growth and health, especially here in Arizona as our Summer temperatures remain in the triple digits for the majority of the season. Annuals require a consistent supply of water due to their shallow root systems, relying on a fully working irrigation system to keep them alive and growing during the Summer months.

Most irrigation systems require constant monitoring, maintenance, and repair so it is a good idea to inspect your irrigation prior to the planting of new annuals. Some common irrigation issues that can be found include: multiple people changing the settings on the irrigation timer, broken irrigation heads, poor water pressure, and more! Checking your irrigation and ensuring that your system is working at its optimal performance prior to planting your Summer Annuals is a practice our team does out in the field and something that we encourage all residential owners to participate in when it comes to their own lawns and gardens.

Soil Amendments

Soil preparation is an important step in planting Summer Annuals and should be done a couple of weeks before planting is to be performed. To properly prepare soil it is important to ensure that it is free of debris, well drained, and obtaining adequate amounts of light. To improve soil quality, amendments are a good option!

Amendments are added to soil along with fertilizer to alter its condition and better enable plants to grow. They can change the soil in a number of ways depending on the amendment that is chosen but are used to positively impact plant growth and help the fertilizer do its job. Common types of soil amendments include lime, elemental sulfur, organic matter, ammonium sulfate, and gypsum.

Plant Replacements

Have extra landscape budget but are unsure of where to put it? Plant replacements are a great investment! Plant replacements/replenishments allow you to give your landscape a noticeable facelift and increase its value and beauty through the Summer months. Adding plants to your landscape will not only provide you with more diversity and versatility but also with fun combinations of color and texture to display.

Annual flowers are a great addition to any landscape as they are beautiful and add color, fill bare spots in a landscape, and can be changed each season to match the look that you are going for at that time. Now is the time to plant the plants you have been waiting for all Winter- be sure to get with your area manager to discuss your planting plan before it’s too late!

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Ornamental Grasses in Your AZ Landscape

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This holiday season we are talking more than ornaments for your tree! Ornamental Grass is a great addition to any Arizona Landscape and is an aesthetic plant material that thrives in the Winter, providing some green to your community while other plants struggle through the colder temperatures.

Ornamental Grasses are low water use and require little maintenance outside of pruning. They add texture and color to a landscape, specifically in the Winter season as other plants go dormant during the cold. These grasses come in a variety of types to choose from and are great for providing privacy, filling up dead space, and making a landscape look unique.

Maintenance of Ornamental Grasses in an AZ Landscape

Due to their frost-hardiness, Ornamental Grasses should not be pruned during the late Fall/ early Winter timeframe that most plants are. Instead, they should be attended to in the Spring after the frost has lifted and temperatures begin to rise. They can be lightly pruned to ensure they are looking their best at this time.

Water usage should rise slightly in the summertime for these plants to help them survive the hottest months of the year, however otherwise they are low water usage grasses. This is great for a desert landscape to help save on water use that would typically be higher for other plant material and regular grasses.

For more information on landscaping tips to maintain ornamental grass, visit the Arizona Landscape Contractor’s Association blog post.

If you are interested in an AZ landscape management company to help you with the maintenance of your HOA community or commercial property’s landscape, click here.

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Landscape Construction

Arizona Landscape Construction; Hardscapes

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Landscape construction is an often overlooked service provided by some landscape management companies where hardscape elements can be added to landscape design to improve the overall use and value of a commercial property or HOA community.

Hardscape elements are an important aspect of a landscape’s design and use and they can range from simple, smaller projects such as walkways or fences to larger structures such as neighborhood parks, irrigation systems, and commercial structures. Hardscape work typically requires heavy equipment and involves permanent to semi-permanent installations.

These elements of landscape construction are a critical part of landscape design as they increase usability of the area. When considering adding a hardscape element it is a great idea to go with a company who works in landscape management as they are able to understand the overall landscape of your community and incorporate the new elements in to best compliment it.

Landscape Construction of a Neighborhood Park Area

Here at ELS we offer an entire division of our company that is dedicated to Arizona landscape construction, complimenting our landscape maintenance division. The construction division provides consulting, design, engineering, and general construction services. This division specializes in commercial landscape, irrigation, all type of hardscape elements, electrical work, amenity installation, and neighborhood public park specialty design construction projects.

To read more about what the ELS Construction Division can do for your HOA community or Commercial property, visit our page here.

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General Construction Questions

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Communication in HOA Maintenance; Are You Asking Yourself These Questions?

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As a community manager or board member for an HOA community it is important to ensure that the maintenance company you choose for your community is keeping lines of communication open with you and your board. Important questions to ask yourself when considering if a company is right for YOUR community are:

  1. Is my HOA maintenance company transparent in what they are doing in my community and when?
  2. How is my HOA maintenance company communicating with me and my homeowners? Is their current method effective?
  3. What can my HOA maintenance company do when it comes to communication to make my job easier?

While there are other factors to take into consideration as well, communication between landscape company and community plays a vital role in establishing a long lasting and mutually beneficial relationships.

Download Our Free Communication Infographic Here

Blog Posts For FAQ

Blog posts are a great way for HOA maintenance companies to keep communication open and touch on certain topics that require longer explanations and detail to properly explain. Regular and consistent blog posts by an HOA maintenance company helps to answer frequently asked questions from homeowners and board members as well as to educate the community on industry standards. Blog posts should be easily accessible and shareable so that you, as a community manager, can send them out en masse. This helps mitigate an influx of homeowner questions and/or complaints for various landscape events that may happen in a community each season.

Utilizing blog posts as a resource to send to disgruntled or confused homeowners saves time, shows authority as an informative manager, and helps educate the homeowner.

Monthly Community Newsletters

Community newsletters are one of the BEST resources a maintenance company can supply when it comes to keeping communication open between community manager, board, and homeowners. These newsletters create a space where everyone can feel up to date on what is happening and holds the company to a level of accountability as all tasks that they should be completing are outlined in the newsletters.

We recommend releasing supplied newsletters (newsletters your HOA maintenance company creates and sends to you) monthly for large communities. A strong and effective newsletter will have one section dedicated to projects and events for the current month and another, separate section, dedicated to upcoming projects and events later that season. This allows for everyone to be on the same page and tells homeowners what they can expect from the HOA maintenance company.

Here at ELS, we release monthly newsletters for over 15 of our largest communities. This has decreased the amount of questions and emails that community managers receive and has increased satisfaction among homeowners, board, and managers.

Community Newsletter Example (Front)
Community Newsletter Example (Back)

Managers and Staff at Important Meetings

The presence of your HOA maintenance company at important meetings with the community is crucial to ensuring that all questions and concerns regarding landscape are addressed. A company that is not willing to attend these meetings is a company that is not willing to communicate. Building relationships with the community, attending all important meetings, and showing up plays a huge role in the overall success of the community and company.

While communication may not be on the top of the priority list when looking for a new HOA maintenance company for your community, we believe it should be. Here at ELS we value effective and strong communication with community managers, board members, and homeowners just as much as we value a job well done out on the field.

Download Free Communication Infographic Here

If you are struggling with your current HOA Maintenance company and feel they are not up to par with your expectations, contact us today!

Unhappy with the communication from your current HOA Maintenance company? We got you!

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Types of Turf for Your AZ Landscape

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There are a variety of turf options when it comes to the choice for your landscape, however here in the desert southwest it is important to be aware of the kinds which survive best through our hot Summers and short Winters.

We recommend choosing between Bermudagrass, Midiron, and St. Augustine for the Summer turf in your AZ landscape. These are best used in general areas and are strong warm season grasses that will survive the heat!

Breaking Down Your Options- Warm Season Turf

BermudaGrass:

  • High heat tolerance
  • Grown from seed
  • Dormant in the Winter Months (Typically Nov.-March)
  • Does not always need Overseed in the Winter
  • Requires around 8 hours of sunlight/ a day to thrive
  • Maintenance Includes: Regular weed control and fertilization, mowing to ensure height of 1-3 inches, regular irrigation, and Winter Overseeding.

St. Augustine

  • Thrives in shadier areas
  • Requires only about 3 hours of sunlight a day to thrive
  • Available in Sod form as well as plugs or stolons
  • Not a strong candidate for Overseeding but does retain some green color in the Winter months
  • Maintenance Includes: Regular fertilization, mowing to ensure height of 1-3 inches, no overseeding, placement in mostly-shaded areas.

Mid Iron

  • High heat tolerance
  • Can handle quite a bit of foot traffic making it great for use in parks and high traffic areas
  • Requires 8 hours of sunlight per day to thrive
  • Available as Sod
  • Maintenance includes: Regular fertilization and weed control, regular irrigation, monitoring for pests and disease, Winter overseeding, and mowing to height of 1-3 inches depending on intended use.

Winter Turf Options for Your AZ Landscape

In the late Fall months it is recommended to Overseed both Bermudagrass and Mid Iron turf. When overseeding, it is important to choose a strong cold season grass that will ensure your landscape looks its best throughout the Winter. We recommend choosing between Annual and Perennial Ryegrass to Overseed your lawn.

Annual Ryegrass:

  • Fast germinating
  • Green color is bright and aesthetic

Perennial Ryegrass:

  • Fast Germinating
  • Heat and drought tolerant
  • Hardier turf than Annual Ryegrass

Take these characteristics into account when choosing the right turf for your Homeowner’s Association landscape and be sure to reach out to a professional with any questions before laying down your new turf.

For more information on the steps in Overseeding visit our article here.

Looking for a landscape management company for your Homeowner’s Association or Commercial Property? We’re here to help!

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