BEFORE: The remains of the winter - gumballs, leaves, debris, and last year's liriope growth. Jon's Lawns was called to give the property some TLC and a spring cleaning.

AFTER: Perennial cut-backs, weeding, a full debris clear-out and triple-shredded bark mulch has this property looking ship-shape.

Lawn care does not stop when grass stops growing for the winter. Ornamental grass cut-backs, leaf and debris removals continue throughout the winter months keeping properties looking clean and the dormant grass from becoming smothered.

We care for a broad spectrum of lawns here at Jon's Lawns of Annapolis. When it comes to leaf removal, some lawns are cleared every week during the fall and some just one-time, after every leaf has dropped. The schedules depend on each customer's expectation for the look of their property and their budget. While we would love for all of our customer's lawns to look their best every week we understand that is not always possible during leaf season.

The "one-time final clean-up" in December can leave too many leaves smothering the grass for too long. This can cause unnecessary damage to your grass. Grass needs oxygen and to see the sunlight. What we recommend at a minimum is to do at least one leaf reduction prior to the final clean-up in December. This gives your lawn a chance to breathe even though leaves are still falling.

Satisfied customers are often our best promoters.  Last year we rebuilt a fescue lawn here in Annapolis that was overrun with bermuda grass as documented in Rescue the Fescue from the Bermuda Triangle. That customer now has a pristine lawn and spoke with his neighbor who was having the same problem with bermuda grass. So Jon's Lawns of Annapolis swooped in and rescued another lawn. The entire process from wiping out the bermuda grass to having a mint, new lawn takes about a month and a half from start to finish. Well worth the time and effort to have a lawn you can be proud of for years to come.

When you are preparing to sell your house, be sure that the curb appeal makes a great first impression to potential buyers.  

Bermuda may be a nice place to vacation but bermuda grass is a terrible invader of fescue lawns here in Annapolis. We see bermuda grass spread quickly throughout lawns while pushing out the desireable fescue grass. It will also spread into mulch beds and to the neighbor's lawn. It is invasive and very durable, withstanding the driest and hottest conditions. If bermuda grass is caught early on, Jon's Lawns uses products that can kill the bermuda grass without harming your good grass. However, occasionally we get a new customer where the bermuda grass has gotten out of control and we must resort to the nuclear option and wipe it all out and start over.  Pictured below is such a case. In fall of 2016 bermuda grass had entirely taken over the lower slope of the front yard. And as of today the entire yard is bermuda grass-free and the fescue grass is looking good.

April 1st and it was no April Fool's joke. The Red Sox were in town to play a preseason game against the Nationals at the Navy baseball stadium. While tickets were not on sale to the public, Jon's Lawns of Annapolis got a special ticket hookup. Very cool to see my hometown Sox up close and in Annapolis! 

We welcomed the official first day of spring with a well-deserved mulch installation. All lawns and properties deserve to look there best this spring season and all year long.

An early spring means weeds are out in force. Get a handle on them and get your property looking good again.

...water, water, water.

 Just like location, location, location for real estate, water is the key to success for your lawn.

I don't mean to over-simplify the process.  A LOT goes into establishing and maintaining a strong healthy lawn. But 9 times out of 10, improper watering practices cause lawns to fail. Most frequently that means not enough water at seed germination and then again in the height of summer.  However, over-watering can also be a problem. This time of year, during lawn seeding and repair, you do not want to flood your new seed and grass, but rather you should just keep it damp. During days with no rain 20 minutes per day for each area should be adequate.  After 3 weeks you can cut back to 20-30 minutes every other day.

You can see below how our new 1 year old german sheppard rescue is enthusiastic about lawn watering...

No question that our lawns are loving this time of year. From our early end to winter, then our rainy spring, the Annapolis growing conditions have let our lawns absolutely thrive!

Any time of year a little mulch goes a long way to making your property look great.

​Schedule your Mulch Bed Service today!

If you were looking across your fence at this Jon's Lawns lawn next door you might get lawn envy.  That envy might then cause you to call Jon's Lawns of Annapolis to get some of what is going on next door - perhaps a Lawn Health program and Mowing Service combination.  Or perhaps you don't want to worry about anything on your property including mulch, shrub trimming and leaf removal.  Then you might call Jon about drafting up a LawnStrong program for you.

That is what happened in this situation.  No need for Lawn Envy when there is LawnStrong.  
#LawnStrong

Here in Annapolis the warm weather has fast-tracked the spring season by two to three weeks. That is keeping Jon's Lawns of Annapolis on its toes as we are anticipating a much earlier start to the mowing season as well as an accelerated weed germination calendar.  These extra few weeks when in years past we still were buried under snow have given us time to get our lawns cleaned up and beds mulched before the grass starts growing. While time is running out Jon's Lawns of Annapolis is ready!

While the idea of a white Christmas is romantic and conjures up nostalgia of Christmases past huddled by the fireplace, when you get dealt a 70 degree Christmas week, make the best of it!

This time of year landscapes can begin to look a bit ragged with leaf debris, old growth in planting beds and worn out mulch.

If we are not going to have a nice blanket of snow to cover it all up, this is a good time to get a clean-up and mulch install to get your property looking good for the Holiday Season.  Besides aesthetics, this mulch will also help insulate your plants roots if or when the weather actually becomes wintery. 

There is a common misconception that grass stops growing after the summer months, with the cooling weather. On the contrary, the vast majority of grass in Annapolis is in fact "cool season grass", mainly tall fescue, and will accelerate growth from September through November. With the recent warm weather and rainfall I have seen more growth in the last couple weeks that almost any other time this year. In addition to maintaining a healthy grass height, mowing in November is an easy way to keep your lawn clear of heavy wet leaves that can suffocate and in time kill your grass.  

Jon's Lawns will work with you to set up a mowing schedule to suit your needs and budget, but we always encourage our customers to choose to keep their grass at the ideal height depending on the season and to keep their yards clear of leaves and debris. Mow on!

Much of the work that Jon's Lawns of Annapolis does would fall into the "lawn maintenance" category, meaning taking care of what is already there. Maintenance can include proper mowing schedule and mowing heights, fertilizer and weed control applications, aeration and more.  Most of our established and healthy lawns that are on Lawn Health and Mowing Service programs only need these regular inputs over the course of the year to remain healthy and look great.

Occasionally we come across a lawn where a maintenance program is not enough. Often these are new customers that are fed up with their yard full of weeds, or a particularly harsh summer has taken its toll. Sometimes a new neighbor has just moved into their new home and is overwhelmed by the poor shape that their new yard is in. Regardless of how the lawn got to the state it is in, there comes a time when a lawn must be completely rebuilt from the roots up. 

The first step in rebuilding the lawn is "clearing the canvas". This is often a combination of chemicals to kill the deep rooted weeds and often mismatched grasses. Then mechanical means can be used to remove all of the excess, dead debris.

Next we will aerate the soil to loosen it and create a surface that is ideal for grass growth. The soil is then fertilized so that the seedling will be fed and the seed is then added.

Many lawns benefit from a layer of compost over the new seed. This will both help keep the seed damp so that it can germinate, as well as work its way into the soil adding an important organic element to the soil structure. Below piles are distributed before being spread uniformly across the surface.

One month later, we have a very nicely re-built tall fescue lawn that will look great for years to come. You may notice the sprinklers on either side of the yard. This customer did a great job keeping the surface wet which is the most critical step. We look forward to simply "maintaining" this new grass in 2016!

Jon's Lawns of Annapolis is fully licensed as a fertilizer and weed control applicator through the Maryland Department of Agriculture. Fertilizer and weed control are important pieces lawn care to achieve the healthiest and strongest lawn possible. These licenses are regulated with good reason. Fertilizer and weed control products must be applied at the right time, during the correct conditions, with the proper calibrated equipment, and in the appropriate amount. Being careless in any of those variables could cause damage to lawns or the environment.

Here at Jon's Lawns of Annapolis it is important to run a tight ship and we take pride in doing things the right way. This past winter we passed our pesticide (weed control) inspection with flying colors and just this past week scored 100% on our fertilizer evaluation. 

This Jon's Lawns customer is a part of our LawnStrong program and chose to have this unused garden at the back of their property reclaimed and returned to be part of their lawn. We started this project by killing and clearing the weeds and excess plant material.
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Then we leveled the ground, aerated, seeded, and fertilized. Our customer picked out a sapling to be placed at the center of the area.
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Three weeks later the new grass gets its first mow along with the entire lawn! The sapling is thriving and the yard is looking great.
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"Don't Give Up the Ship" is a well-known mantra of our US Navy. We were reminded of it today while passing this hydrangea. While most blooms were well past their prime for the season, one beautiful bloom simply will not give up.