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17 Apr 2019
0 Comments By Ken Hyatt Landscaping ,

Landscape Spotlight: Dr. C’s NW Plano Project

Like many of our landscape clients, Dr. C originally called Village Green to talk solutions for his thinning grass at his northwest Plano home. As we discussed his lawn it became clear that the answer would need to be a combination of sod and redoing his landscape because of several trees in his front lawn.

Dr. C liked a lot of things about his current landscape which he had done himself. He is an emergency room doctor, and one year, to reduce stress, he pulled out his old landscape and installed an all new landscape, including boulders and stone borders – pretty impressive. His landscape had a lot of perennials, and Dr. C loved the informal look. The problem was in the winter most of them would go dormant and he lost a large part of his landscape. He also had taller plants along his city sidewalk that obscured the view of his home.

David Daigle, our landscape architect, and I came up with a plan that shifted his beds away from the sidewalk to make his landscape feel less like a barrier and more welcoming. Dr. C also wanted grass and that allowed us to install zoysia grass in the slightly sunnier area near the sidewalk. We planted taller variegated pittosporums along the outside edge of his home. We shifted his large (and very heavy) boulders inside the beds and planted plum yew, a fern like plant that form a nice backdrop for them. We added pringle yews to frame the entry. We re-used his Mexican petunias by shifting them behind the boulders. Andres, our stone mason, installed a beautiful stone border and then we installed a decomposed granite path. As you can see from the before and after photos , Dr. C now has the informal look he loves all year round and you can see all of the beautiful brick texture of his home.

Take the stress out of your next landscape update or project by giving Village Green the opportunity to earn your business. We’ve been designing and installing landscapes in North Texas since 1980, and I guarantee we can solve any lawn or landscape issue you may be facing at your home. For more information or to get an estimate on your project give us a call at 972-495-6990 or email me at Ken@VillageGreen-Inc.com.

13 Oct 2014
0 Comments By Kyle GreenTalk, How To , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

How To Get Fall Color in Your Lawn and Landscape

View More: http://ingridhunsickerphotography.pass.us/nallswebWe are officially in the fall season. The temperatures have come down to a more pleasant level and that means that your lawn no longer needs as heavy a watering schedule as it did through the summer (don’t forget to adjust your automatic sprinklers.) You shouldn’t be watering the same amount as you did during the summer.

Typically at this time of year most flower beds and borders look worn out. But though it may feel counterintuitive, fall is the best time to plant in North Texas for a few good reasons.

  • Your soil is still warm in fall in North Texas.
  • The air is cooling down which means plants will lose less moisture through their leaves.
  • And most importantly, these conditions lead to stronger root growth than any other season of the year. 

I went into much greater detail on this subject on our blog a few weeks back. You can read that entry here if you like.

At this time of the year nurseries are well stocked with hardy, late-blooming plants to refresh your bed. And the best part about planting at this time of year is that the plants will have ideal conditions to grow strong roots over winter, so they’ll be ready to sprint into bloom next spring.

If you want to introduce some fall color some of our favorites are…

  • Pansies:   In North Texas Dallas if you want colorful blooms over the winter your go-to flower are pansies.  I’ve never understood why the name pansy got associated with wimpy when they’re the toughest flower I’ve seen.  They can weather single digit temperatures and wintry precipitation.  Then, a few sunny days later, will bounce back and start blooming again.  They will bloom better with a high phosphorous fertilizer (5-30-5 ratio.)  Like most flowers they prefer a loose well drained soil so they don’t stay wet after watering.  An easy way to accomplish that is to add potting soil to the bed.  Pansies are like candy to rabbits, so if you have a large population in your area, it may be challenge to grow them.
  • Violas:  They have pansy-like blooms except the blooms are tiny.  You can plant these in similar conditions to pansies.
  • Kale and/or Cabbage:  Oddly enough, if you have rabbit problems, you are safe planting kale and/or cable.  Rabbits would rather eat your pansies versus eating your vegetables!  These aren’t as colorful as pansies but they’re easy to grow.  To make them look nice later in the spring, trim off the blooms.
  • Mums:  These are wonderful fall plants.  Like azaleas, they only bloom a few weeks out of the year, but when they bloom they look great, especially with pumpkins.
  • Cyclamen:  These are beautiful, delicate flowers but a our North Texas winters can be too harsh for them.  I recommend planting a few of them for a nice change of color in your lawn or landscape, but don’t get carried away.

You can also introduce a burst of color by purchasing some pumpkins and gourds at a local pumpkin patch. As a long time member of Arapaho United Methodist Church I’d like to put in a plug for you to visit our patch at the NE corner of Arapaho and Coit if you live in the area.  For customers living farther east, check out Cornerstone United Methodist Church (this is my parent’s church) in Garland.

Village Green offers full landscaping design and installation for our customers. I invite you to view our online portfolio and if you are thinking of adding some fall color, or doing any landscape work to give us the opportunity to earn your business. We’re happy to do a free quote and answer any questions you may have. Simply call 972-495-6990 or email ken@villagegreen-inc.com.

30 Sep 2014
1 Comments By Kyle GreenTalk, How To , , , , , , , , , , ,

How Do I Keep Armadillos From Destroying My Lawn and Landscape?

armadilloOver the past couple of weeks we’ve seen an increase in calls regarding lawn and landscape damage caused by armadillos.  Namely how can our customers stop armadillos from digging up their lawns?

The armadillo is an unusual creature. They’ve been around forever, and are in a family that is similar to anteaters.  They thrive in warm climates with soft soil, such as Texas.   They have an excellent sense of smell. When startled, they often jump straight up, and then run surprisingly fast. They are usually about two feet long and about 12 pounds as adults. They are primarily nocturnal, but sometimes emerge after a rain or in cool weather.    The problem with armadillos in urban areas is that they dig for all of their food, which consists primarily of grubs and earthworms.  Armadillos are expert diggers and they can cause serious damage to a lawn or a nicely landscaped area.  They often dig holes in undesirable places, such as underneath a concrete porch, the foundation of a house, or near gas/water lines. If they remove too much dirt from under a concrete foundation, the foundation faces the danger of cracking.

Village Green’s first line of defense against armadillos is grub prevention (click to learn more.)  Be sure and treat your lawn in late spring/early summer with a grub preventative to reduce the amount of food in the lawn.  This doesn’t always prevent the armadillos but it seems to cut down on them.

If they still decide to dig in your lawn (armadillos aren’t the smartest animals around) we have seen some success with applying sulfur.   We have also been using it to chase rabbits out of lawns because of the damage they do to the yard.  It’s sort of voodoo when you use it to chase off animals and it’s certainly not a guaranteed cure but more often than not it improves things.  For those worried about applying sulfur, rest easy; many people apply sulfur to their legs when they are hiking to prevent chiggers.  It is also safe on lawns (in fact up north it is used to change the PH of their soil.)

If you still need help or have questions please give us a call at 972-495-6990, email me at ken@villagegreen-inc.com or fill out our contact form. We offer a full range of affordable services for your lawn and landscape and would be happy to give you a free quote on any of our services.

28 Jul 2014
0 Comments By Kyle GreenTalk, Jobs , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Lawn Care Help Wanted

Village Green is currently  seeking a person to join our lawn cutting team. This position is year round (not seasonal) and has the opportunity for advancement (both in pay and responsibility) for the right, hard-working candidate willing to learn (training provided for sprinkler repair, landscape, fertilization, and pest control.) A few other details.

  • No experience in the lawn and landscape business required
  • Must have a valid drivers license
  • Ability to speak conversational English (for customer interaction)

Village Green is the place for you if you enjoy…

  • A flexible, family oriented work environment
  • Having most weekends off (and nearly every Sunday)
  • Want the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day off
  • Hard physical work outdoors
  • Variety in work sites (moving around a lot throughout the day)
  • Working for a stable, secure, company (Village Green has been around since 1980)
  • Caring and kind management team (we often provide ice cream and cool drinks after work in the hot summer months, and hot chocolate and coffee during the cold winter months…our team are like members of our extended family)

Village Green isn’t the place for you if you dislike…

  • The North Texas weather (it is HOT in the summer and cold in the winter and you’ll be working outside)
  • Muddy, dirty, dusty, wet, windy, etc. conditions (the job is outside, we’re at the mercy of the elements)
  • Hard physical labor (the position involves a lot of pushing, pulling, digging, and lifting)
  • A 45 to 50 hour work week most of the year (it drops to 20-25 January – March, and can spike up to 60 hours a week during especially busy times)
  • Starting early…7am (most days we’re finished by 4pm, but we can work as late as 6pm depending on projects and work load)

If you feel Village Green and this position are right for you, please fill out our Village Green Questionnaire and Village Green Application.  Please note we will be doing background checks and drug testing on all applicants. When you are finished please email them both to Charley.  If you have any questions please call 469-209-5484.

24 Jul 2014
0 Comments By Kyle GreenTalk, How To, Lawn and Landscape Care , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

How To Get Rid of Bare Patches in a Shady Lawn

Landscaping in PlanoJust the other day I got this email from a customer:  “I am unable to grow grass on the heavily-shaded west side of my house. I have tried seeding and St. Augustine sod. Nothing has worked and now I have mostly dirt. Any suggestions?”

I wish I had a quarter for every time I’ve been asked this question. In fact, It is one of the most frequently asked questions I get regarding lawn care.

Over the years, I have heard countless people tell me they have spent thousands of dollars replacing the grass in the shady areas of their lawns. Then time after time, they end up watching it disappear a year later.

If the conditions are right to grow grass, it will fill into an area by itself. But if not, installing sod or seeding is only going to cause you to waste money and become frustrated.*

I believe in education first and foremost, so let me share the rules of thumb for turf sun requirements.

  • Bermuda needs about 8 hours of sunlight to survive.
  • St. Augustine needs about 6 to establish, once established you can plant a tree and as the tree casts more shade the St. Augustine will gradually acclimate to less light (which explains why your neighbor may have thick St. Augustine under his trees and you don’t).
  • Zoysia is starting to become popular and has similar light requirements as St. Augustine.
  • Fescue doesn’t mind the shade, but it’s a cheap short-term solution because you have to replant it each year.

Right about now you are probably thinking, what if I prune my tree limbs. If I cut them back, I’ll get more sun and it will fix my problem.

It’s a logical thought, but please do not prune you trees in order to grow grass in your bare spots. It is a bad idea. Thinning trees is like removing an arm or two of an umbrella. At the end of the day you are still going to have an umbrella, albeit, an ugly one! Studies have shown there is virtually no difference in the light hitting the ground under a thinned tree versus one that has been thinned. Pruning a tree can be great for a tree, but don’t do it with the hope it will help the grass underneath it.

So what’s the solution? Surely something can be done to make those dirt patch area look better.

The best solution is acceptance. If you have a shady area you need to accept it, and adapt to it by installing plants that like the shade. There are plenty of ground covers and shrubs that do well in little to no light. Most of the landscapes we install are in very heavy shade. If you can accept the shade, and find plants that thrive in the shade, you can easily change an eyesore to a pleasant spot where you can escape the brutal Texas summer heat.

If you need help finding solutions for your lawn, give us a call at 972-495-6990, email me at ken@villagegreen-inc.org or fill out our contact form. I’d be happy to answer any questions. For those that don’t’ want to invest the time and energy into transforming their yards, Village Green offers affordable landscaping design and installation which can transform your lawn in no time! Many of our projects include transforming shady lawns filled with dirt patches into an oasis for our customers. You can see some of our work in our landscape portfolio here.

*More Resources and Information

  1. Secrets to a Health Lawn:  Water
  2. Secrets to a Healthy Lawn:  Sun
  3. Secrets to a Healthy Lawn:  Food

 

10 Jun 2014
0 Comments By Kyle GreenTalk, How To , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Summer Watering Guide

Sprinkler Repair in Richardson TX As the temperature gets closer and closer to the century mark, I get more and more questions about how to keep your lawn and landscape looking good in this Texas heat.  Not to mention during Stage 3 water restrictions. First, you need to water for about sixty minutes per week in the summer. That can vary based on a few variables (has it rained? Do you have a lot of shade?) But sixty minutes is a good basic guideline for our area. The challenge though is the infamous clay soil in North Texas can only absorb so much watering at one time.  Often, anything beyond 10 minutes (the number is actually 7 or 8 minutes, but it’s simpler to explain and program 10 minutes to our customers,) is going to run off which is bad for your water bill and our environment. This is further complicated by the fact that about 2/3rds of our customers can only water every two weeks. Below are a few scenarios based on various water restrictions in our area.

  1. The ideal watering plan is twice per week, with 3 ten-minute bursts each morning.
  2. The second best is once per week, with 3 ten-minute bursts in the morning and 3 at night.
  3. The third best (and what 2/3rds of our customers are having to do under current restrictions) is every two weeks, with 3 twenty-minute bursts in the morning and 3 at night.

You may have to pull out a calculator to make sure the sprinklers will stop before the cut-off times and those with larger properties may not have enough minutes in the day to do what we recommend (especially those with every two weeks.) The programming has become so complicated for many of our customers that we’re installing a lot of new controllers that support the every two-week scheduling.  Two models that do this are the Rainbird ESP Controller and Weathermatic Smartline Controller.  They start at about $350 and go up from there based on the number of zones you have. One final point, if your sprinkler system has rotary heads (that turn out slowly and send out long streams of water) you will need to water those zones twice as long.  The reason being they are covering twice the area with the same number of gallons and need to run twice as long to put out an inch of water. If you need more help programming your sprinkler, or making sure your system is in top condition give us a call at 972-495-6990, email me at ken@villagegreen-inc.com or fill out our contact form. We offer affordable sprinkler system inspections and tune-ups that will guarantee appropriate and adequate water coverage for your lawn. Our certified irrigation technicians can also install water-conserving nozzles and applicators so that water usage is as efficient as possible.

Village Green Downloadable Resource Guides

Water Resources

Water Schedules

15 May 2014
0 Comments By Kyle GreenTalk , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Spring Watering Guide & Grass Update

LawnFreezeDamage-Dallas2The past few weeks I’ve spent most of my time visiting lawn after lawn and talking with customers about what’s wrong with their grass. In North Texas, we had one of the coldest winters on record, and it did a LOT of damage to St. Augustine. What a lot of people don’t realize is that St. Augustine is a tropical plant, and is usually very aggressive.  My normal recommendation is for our customs to be patient, and the grass will fill back into freeze damaged areas soon.

This year is different.  We had a HARD winter (record setting hard.)  So hard in fact, that I’ve seen a few lawns nearly wiped out from freeze damage.  Thankfully this isn’t the norm.  Most of the lawns I’m visiting will fill back in once we have some warm weather and rain, which you’d figure we’d have by May 20th!  Amazingly a lot of lawns are still partly dormant at this time of year which is highly unusual.  Lawns come out of dormancy when the soil temperature reaches 65 degrees to a depth of 4 inches.  To get there we need night-time temperatures that are consistently above 60 degrees, which hasn’t been happening in North Texas.  Just last week we were getting down to the low 50s at night.  Yes we’ve had 90 degree days but not enough of them in a row to cause the grass to grow strongly and all lawns to come out of dormancy. I’ve even seen some neighborhoods where one side of the street was about ¾ dormant and the other side was about ¾ out of dormancy.  My best guess is the other side got a little more sunlight and did better. Strange days indeed (to quote John Lennon). My bet is we’ll actually see some warm weather soon (it is Dallas after all.)  In fact, this past week or so I’ve noticed that a lot more lawns are finally coming out of dormancy and growing like they normally would have in April.  This means that a lot of that winter damage we’ve been seeing should start going away over the next few weeks.

While you’re waiting on Mother Nature to warm up, you can make sure you are watering your lawn properly for the spring (download our FREE watering guide.)

In the spring your lawn requires around a half an inch of water per week on average. That equals roughly 30 minutes for most sprinkler systems. The problem we have in our area is our infamous clay soil can only absorb about 10 minutes worth of water. After that it will run off which is not good for your water bill or our local water supply.

Our advice? Don’t water all 30 minutes at once. Instead program your sprinkler’s controller to water one day per week with a start time of 2am, 4am, and 6am, having each zone run for 10 minutes.

If you have rotors (the type of sprinkler that turns slowly while spraying a long thin stream) you need to water twice as long (at least 20 minutes per zone at 2am, 4am, and 6am.) Depending on the rotor speed and stream, you may need to water even longer to give your lawn what it needs.

Do you need help optimizing your sprinkler? The Village Green sprinkler gurus can tune up your system and have you ready for summer in no time. If you have questions give us a call at 972-495-6990 or email me at ken@villagegreen-inc.com. I’m always happy to chat about ways to improve your lawn and landscape.

 

20 Apr 2014
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Secrets to a Healthy Lawn: Food

LawnDifference

What better day, than Earth Day, to publish our final installment on our three part series on the secrets to a healthy lawn? As we’ve said, a North Texas lawn needs three things to thrive: sun, water, and food. If you want to read our first two installments follow these links.

Secrets to a Healthy Lawn: Sun
Secrets to a Healthy Lawn: Water

Today I want to talk about food for your lawn. Typically in North Texas we start fertilizing our lawns as the weather warms up in late February or early March. The exception is when we’re having a particularly cold winter (like this year!) When we have a cold winter we’ll postpone our treatment for a few weeks.  When we fertilize is the same for all lawns, but the what is dependent on your individual lawn…your type of grass.

Bermuda grass likes a kick start to help it green up quickly so we apply a high-nitrogen fertilizer. If you’re a DYI person, be sure and find a ratio of 28-3-10 (all fertilizer bags will have three numbers separated by a dash (-) usually located across the top. The three fertilizer numbers represent the percentage of Nitrogen (N)- Phosphorus (P)- Potassium (K), in that order. These numbers will always be listed on the bag in bold writing.)

St. Augustine and zoysia are different than bermuda. During our warm, wet spring weather they are prone to a fungus called brown patch. Just like the name suggests, this causes patches of brown to creep into the grass. These brown patches feed off of nitrogen which is why we use a different ration, 5-10-31 (The last number (31) promotes better root growth, a good thing right after winter since both St. Augustine and zoysia are cold sensitive.) Once we’re past brown patch season we’ll switch over to the higher nitrogen fertilizer (usually in late May.)

So what does all of this mean for us today? We’re coming off the the 6th coldest winter on record in North Texas with 40 days below 20 degrees. Many are looking at their brown lawn and wondering if they will ever have a nice looking lawn again (I’ve even had a few customers mention they are considering replacing their lawns because they look so bad.) My advice. Patience. If you have the three keys to a healthy lawn (sun, water, and food,) your lawn will recover.

Still not convinced? As always, if you have questions give us a call at 972-495-6990 or email me at ken@villagegreen-inc.com. I’m always happy to chat about ways to improve your lawn and landscape.

06 Apr 2014
0 Comments By Kyle GreenTalk, How To, Mosquito Control , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Tips for Getting Rid of Mosquitoes in North Texas

Aedes_Albopictus Many customers are asking me if I think this year’s mosquito season will be easier since we had such a hard winter. I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but a hard freeze doesnt’ kill mosquitoes…at least enough of them to make a difference. Which is why the Dallas County Health and Human Services kicked off its West Nile virus awareness campaign before county commissioners earlier than ever for the 2014 season. This year, county health officials are anticipating more West Nile cases (because the rules for diagnosing the disease have changed.) 

You can protect your yard, and the community at large, with these  5 tips to help control mosquitoes.

  1. Get rid of any standing water on your property. Check your gutters, drains and flowerpots.  Anywhere water stands is a breeding ground for mosquitoes. Drain it!
  2. Use insect repellent when you are going to be outside (especially true from dusk until dawn when mosquitoes are most active.)  Repellents that include DEET, picaridin or oil of lemon eucalyptus are the most effective.
  3. Wear light, long sleeve shirts and pants when you are going to be outside for an extended amount of time (especially from dusk until dawn.)  Mosquitoes are drawn to heat and carbon dioxide (which is why it is important to wear lighter clothing so your heat signature isn’t too great.) 
  4. Use air conditioning or make sure there are screens on all doors and windows (and they are in good repair) to keep mosquitoes from entering the home.
  5. If there are any green-water pools nearby, report them to the local health department.

It is important for everyone to do their part, because mosquito control truly is a community effort.  If you have questions on any of these tips, give us a call at 972-495-6990 or email our Founder and President, Ken Hyatt at ken@villagegreen-inc.com.  We’d be happy to answer your questions if you want to do it yourself.  Or if you want to save time and have us do it, we’d be happy to give you an estimate on what it would cost for our Mosquito Assassin Program.  Our program is safe, yet effective.  It kills up to 90% of your mosquitoes and keeps killing them for a month after we leave (which is great if your neighbor isn’t doing their part.)  It only takes a five-visit program to keep them gone all season long.  

Good luck fighting the bite!

Below is information from the Village Green Resource Center, helpful links we’ve compiled to benefit our customers. 

Mosquito Resources

West Nile Virus

 

11 Mar 2014
0 Comments By Kyle Dallas Lawn Care, GreenTalk, Landscaping Dallas , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Village Green Featured on Angie’s List Experts Podcast

I have to admit that I was shocked when I got the call from the Angie’s List Experts podcast asking me to be the guest expert on their popular series.  If you aren’t familiar, the Angie’s List Experts podcast brings highly-rated service providers from Angie’s List together to answer questions and provide home owners with the best tips and advice for their next home improvement project.
 
My interview was for Episode 008, where I talked about spring lawn and landscaping tips for a beautiful yard.  Personally I think I sound funny, but my friends and family tell me that’s how I actually sound!  You can judge for yourself by listening to the episode on the Angie’s List website by clicking here.  Or listen to it on iTunes by clicking here. Regardless of how I sound, there is a lot of great information from my 30+ years of lawn and landscaping in this 15 minute podcast.
 Screen Shot 2014-03-09 at 12.47.27 PM

If you have any questions regarding your lawn or landscape, please don’t hesitate to contact me at 972-495-6990 or ken@villagegreen-inc.com.  I’d be happy to answer any of your questions.  If you do listen to the podcast I’d love to hear what you think.

Thanks,

Ken Hyatt, Founder and President of Village Green