The big three for growing plants are sunlight, water fertilizer. The fourth component most home gardeners (and professional landscapers) need to focus on is the pH, or potential Hydrogen ions, of their soil. All it takes is a soil test from either your local garden center or agriculture co-op. There have been many good plants ruined simply due to the soil not being tested. Once you have the results from your pH soil test, check your plants' optimal pH range and see if they match up. If they do, great! If not, prepare yourself of a slow soil correction with your yard. Fall a great time to get started adjusting the pH of your soil.

Add lime, usually the smaller form the better it will be absorbed. 
Apply at three months or more before you plant.
Mix the lime into the soil. If you are liming your lawn, aerate first.Use the amount recommendations on the bag you have bought. Do not attempt to raise your soil pH more than 1.0 point per year.
Make sure your soil is getting watered. The water is what activates the lime to raise your soil's pH.

Add sulfur. There are different forms of sulfur, some work rather quickly while some take a long time.
As a rule, you will want to use a form of sulfur to lower your soil's pH slowly. Forms of sulfur that lower your soil's pH quickly can be harmful to plants.
If you are adding sulfur to your lawn, aerate first.
Use the amount recommendations on the bag you have bought. Do not attempt to lower your soil pH more than 1.0 point per year.
Irrigate after adding sulfur to make sure all of the sulfur has been washed off your plants since it can burn plant material it touches.

Wear long pants, long sleeve shirt, gloves, dust mask and any other personal protective gear recommended by the label of the products your are applying.
Read and follow the product label.
It may take you years to adjust your soil pH to where you want it to be.
A little lime goes a long way. Remember, lime is a key ingredient in cement, don't harden your soil unnecessarily.
If you soil is very alkaline, you may not be able to lower it to your desired level. Consider different plants or bringing in soil for a landscape bed in that area.

GreenSeasons will your soil's pH for you. We provide landscaping, lawn care and pest control services in the Greater Baton Rouge, Greater New Orleans, Slidell, Hammond and Covington areas. If you would like your soil's pH tested and adjusted, just click here and we will give you a call. 

If you would simply like some advice, please contact us.  

Christmas. It will be here before you know it. Christmas lights will be going up throughout the city. That is when you find yourself digging through the tangled mess of cords, bulbs and dismembered decorations. If the thought of hanging lights and decorating the yard is no longer something you have time for or if you just do not want the to exert the effort, it may be time to bring in the professionals. By using a professional holiday lighting company, you can spend your time with family, shopping, relaxing, or even hunting.

Below are five great reasons that a professional holiday lighting company will make this holiday season the best one for you yet.

Professional Custom Design
A professional holiday designer will meet with you to discuss your holiday lighting ideas. It is important that your holiday lighting and decorations mirror your personal taste. Your home or office structure also plays an important factor on how your lights can be designed. It is crucial to consider your landscaping, architecture, electrical limitations and more. Your holiday light design can be shown to you in a computer generated photo before it is ordered to make sure it is perfect.

Professional-Grade Products
A professional holiday lighting company will use high end professional-grade lights and holiday decorations. Professional-grade products last much longer and come in a larger variety of choices than what you would find at a local store. Purchasing professional-grade lights will provide years of enjoyment without having to purchase new lights every year.

Professional Installation
Everyone looks forward to the beautiful holiday lights and decorations. Few people look forward to putting the decorations up. Installation professionals will install your lights and decorations. Our professionals will use safe practices to put up your lights timely, efficiently and with little to no interruption to you. Spend your time doing something you enjoy and let a professional holiday lighting company do the work for you.

Professional Holiday Decoration Maintenance
Sometimes a bulb will go out or decorations get knocked over. When you have a professional holiday lighting company, it is as easy as calling their number and the problem is fixed. No longer do you have to go outside in the cold and replace bulbs or fix decorations. Holiday light repair is done for you. A professional holiday lighting company will keep your holiday decorations looking perfect throughout the holidays.

Professional Take-Down and Storage
The holidays are over and all you want to do is relax before having to go back to the reality of regular life. With a professional holiday lighting company, you can! They will take down your lighting and store them for you until next year. This will free up the cluttered area in your garage or attic. The next holiday season, your holiday lights and decorations will be put back up for you.

Temperatures for rye grass seed germination should be between the upper fifties and lower nineties. Rye grass prefers to grow when temperatures are in steadily in the sixties during the day. Rye grass prefers to grow in full sunlight and for their seeds to not have much soil covering them.

Since this article is written in mid-October in southern Louisiana, the answer is, "Spread out your rye seed now." The temperature is right for the seed to get started germinating.  You can also check the monthly high/low averages in your area by viewing the monthly outlook on a weather forecast site. Click here to see where I have selected Baton Rouge, Louisiana as the location. This will lead to a beautiful, lush green yard in winter when everyone else's yard appears to be lacking.

Rye grass has other benefits besides making your yard look good. First, rye grass prevents erosion by growing in bare spots that would wash out easily with winter rain. Secondly, rye grass releases allelopathic secretions which prevent other plants from germinating near it. A natural defense against new winter weeds. Lastly, rye grass will naturally fertilize your soil in the winter making the your warm season grass healthier in the spring and summer.

Feel free to read our former post about rye grass by clicking here.

GreenSeasons will spread out rye grass for you. We provide landscaping, lawn care and pest control services in the Greater Baton Rouge, Greater New Orleans, Slidell, Hammond and Covington areas. If you would like rye grass planted for you, just click here and we will give you a call. 

If you would simply like some advice, please contact us.  

It's autumn. A great time of year that brings cooler temperatures, football, changing colors and, unfortunately, hay fever. Fall allergies are a reality for about 75% of people with spring allergies and rag weed is a major culprit. Mold hidden in old piles of leaves and dust mites lurking around your office also play a role in your feeling miserable. Ragweed pollen simply makes things unbearable since its pollen can travel hundreds of miles so there is really no escaping the hay fever it brings.

Ragweed flowers are greenish yellow in small growths on its stems. Its stems are purplish green, hairy and branching. Ragweed gives a look-a-like plant, goldenrod, a bad reputation. Goldenrod has a much larger pollen that does not cause the allergies associated with ragweed. You can tell goldenrod apart from ragweed by a few simple features. Goldenrod is on a single, non-branching, stem and its flowers are bright yellow.

Baton Rouge, Louisiana has been ranked in the top 10 worst cities for allergies for a while now and this year it has moved up to  number 7. New Orleans is not far behind at number 11. Click here for a list of the top 100 worst cities for allergies in the United States. Here are some steps to alleviate the pain these allergies bring. 

GreenSeasons weed control and lawn fertilization is a great choice to reduce the weeds in your yard. If you are having trouble with weed control, just click here and we will give you a call. 

If you would simply landscaping or pest control advice, please contact us.