Email from a potential customer
2 years ago I went with W---------n and they were horrible.......little value for the cost and made it very difficult when I tried to cancel the service - had to cancel 3 times before they finally processed my cancellation just before the new season was to begin. I went back to a previous provider and the lawn was better last year but I found weed control was still a battle and I had more crabgrass than previous years. In speaking to some of my neighbours they also had similar complaints about their lawns so I'm not sure if the problem is due to the ban on the use of chemical products to control weeds or the quality of the service.
Hi Peter
Thanks for your reply
We understand your frustration with weeds and crabgrass- there are a limited number of products that are legal to use in Ontario for lawn care.
Both weeds and crabgrass are difficult to control with the products available currently.
Three things that are important to do to combat these pests
1. Thicken the lawn, make it healthier with top quality fertilization applied regularly. Many people simply look at the numbers on the bag, but the 30-0-3 can be composed of poor quality nutrients or high quality nutrients. From our point of view, it will take our Turf King technicians the same amount of time to spread mediocre product as it will to apply a high quality, custom blend. A healthier, greener lawn with dense turf will resist weeds.
2. For crabgrass especially and weeds to a lesser extent- these weeds will be more prevalent in weaker areas of the lawn. Crabgrass tends to grow along the edges. If you had crabgrass in the centre of the lawn- we would suspect that there may have been some insect damage at one time to weaken the lawn there. For any weak areas- overseed with high quality grass seed. Make sure to water twice a day after seeding to give the grass a good chance to germinate.
3. Make sure to mow at 3" mowing height. A longer grass blade provides more shade on the ground. 50% more shade at 3" compared to 2" mowing height. More shade means a cooler soil temperature; crabgrass prefers warm soils to germinate- one of the reasons it is often found along the edges of the lawn where the concrete and asphalt will transfer heat to the nearby soil. Increased shade also means less light. Less light at the soil surface means less weed seeds will germinate.
Doing these 3 things are the most important part of helping your lawn care work better
Weeds will take some time to get rid of. Likely more than one year.
The products today work "okay" on some weeds. On other weeds they work very slowly and there are some weeds that seem to be immune.
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