Spring has arrived and we are preparing your common areas for the blooming season and the higher temperatures. Keep an eye out for some fresh color throughout your community, as we will be changing out the annual flowers in select areas.
We continue with seasonal pruning, in which we prune select plants to about half their size. This will help them grow back to a manageable size during their flowering season. You can see some of the results of this sustainable practice now, as many of your shrubs we pruned earlier in the winter have started to regrow. We are also keeping an eye on your sightlines and pruning low-hanging branches and other visual obstructions as needed.
We were happy to help sponsor Verrado’s Founder’s Day Community Picnic on March 26, where we handed out flowers and plastic pots to decorate with stickers. We look forward to more opportunities to join you!
We continue to fertilize your winter Ryegrass, which will begin to fade out as we lower the mow heights and your Bermuda grass emerges from dormancy. We are also aerating your turf this month, which means that we perforate its surface to allow air, sunlight and nutrients to reach the lower layers. This will help strengthen it. Weed growth tends to be highest this time of year and our spray technicians are applying post-emergent herbicide as needed to treat it.
Turf transition is coming
As the warmer temperatures return, your common area turf that was overseeded this past fall will begin transitioning from ryegrass to bermudagrass. This switch from winter grass to summer grass typically begins at the beginning of April and lasts through the end of May. Until then, DLC Resources crews will continue to fertilize as needed to keep it strong and vibrant. Expect to see dry patches of ryegrass and bermudagrass filling in as we lower our mow heights. This will aid in the transition.
Post-emergent for spring weeds
A warmer winter means the time for weed control is now. There are two categories of herbicides for weed control: pre-emergent and post-emergent. Pre-emergent herbicides was applied in the winter and is designed to prevent seeds from germinating in the soil, while post-emergent herbicides kill weeds that have germinated and are visible in the landscape.
Spring and summer are the best times to use a post-emergent herbicide like Roundup concentrate. Be careful not to spray weed killer on plants or turf as the herbicide is absorbed by the leaves and travels through the plant. These products cannot differentiate between plants and weeds. Additionally, this type of herbicide does not instantly kill the plant. If you spray the weed and then remove it, any remaining roots may not have had time to absorb the weed control spray.
Spring planting
Whether you want to add new plants to your yard or you’re replacing sick, dying, or unhealthy plants, now is the time to do so. For our desert landscape, plant replacement is most successful in the early spring because temperatures and humidity allow the new plants to establish themselves in their new environment before the harsher summer weather arrives.
Ideally, new plants should be installed when nighttime temperatures are higher than 55 degrees for a prolonged period of time and daytime temperatures are lower than 90 degrees. This is especially important for certain tree species like acacia salicina and the desert willow because they establish new roots very slowly.
To learn how to choose your new plants and steps to install them, visit the DLC Learning Center and enter “planting” into our handy search bar at the top right of the page.
Time for frost recovery
What, no frost to trim off? If you have frost damage on your plants now is the time to renovate frost sensitive plants. This will allow the plants to put out all new growth, keeping the plants looking new and healthy. Remember, renovation will take off most all the leaves on the plant, leaving sticks for a couple weeks until the new growth fills in.
Annual flower replacement time
Mid-April is the time to change out those winter annuals for summer annuals. But be careful. The home stores will continue to push those nice looking winter annuals through April.