Im sorry it had to come down to the economy, it should have just been implemented because it was the right thing to do but as we all know economy and profit comes first in most of the political decisions that eventually become law.  there  are so many variables that are involved in proper fertilization and pest control and we could talk all day about different situations, here are some tips on responsible fertilization.

1. Never fertilize before heavy rain is expected, the rain fall washes the granule fertilizer in to the drain and eventually into our water ways.

2. Always read the label of what you are about to apply to your landscape and turf.

3. Never apply more than one pound of nitrogen per one thousand Square ft of area, measure area length times width and this will give you your area in Sq.ft.

there is a formula available through the Sarasota County Extension service

4. There is no need to feed nor water plants in the Winter, the turf nor plants will use the fertilizer because they are dormant.  Water very little for they do use much water because they are not actively growing.  With all of us working together to keep our Sarasota landscape and turf lush green and healthy with out polluting our waterways.

Here are some tips on hiring a good irrigation contractor.

1. Make sure he or she is licensed

2. Make sure he or she provides references with addresses so you can see what the yard looks like. A good irrigation system will show by how healthy the plants and turf  are.

3. When installing the system make sure the contractor separates all turf zones from plant zones and that all tree bubbler’s are separated from the two as well.

4. If operating on a pressure switch make sure zones are built to run between 30 psi and 50 psi this will keep pump running while system is in operation.

5. Make sure all components are a high quality such as Rain Bird or Toro.  I prefer Rain Bird, however Hunter makes a good rotor head.  Try to keep all components one brand which makes repairs easier.

6. Call State Of The Art landscaping to get a proposal or let us service your existing irrigation system.  Call Garry at 941-809-8735

The property had full shade in the front yard, the landscape designer installed shade tolerant plants such as Cat palms, Bromeliads, Song of India and one of my favorite ground covers kangaroo Fern.  All this was well placed and looked great, however the Sarasota landscape designer chose Empire Zoysia for the turf.  Now that it has been two years the grass is in decline, Empire Zoysia will not take full shade, Empire Zoysia in Sarasota needs the minimum of three hrs. of sunlight per day.  so after spending a huge chunck of change our clients are left with having to replace the front yard.  this designer had to of known it,that  the Empire Zoysia was not going to work in the shade and if he did not know, he should have.  This one mistake is going to cost $1,500.00 dollars to replace, so before some really nice looking and very talented Salesman gives you a proposal for installing landscape in Sarasota make sure to check references and take time to google every plant, tree and type of turf they are proposing.  Make sure that placement of plants are going to survive and thrive in the environment they are being placed in.  Alot of contractors will tell you and sell you anything, its up to the buyer to research all the plants, trees, and turf that will be installed and the best way to so that is research on the enternet, or look around your area and see what does best.  and the very best way is to call State Of The Art Landscaping at 941-809-8735 we warranty all work and stand behind our designs and installs for the life of the maintenance that we provide.

Dollarweed is often confused with dichondra. One way to distinguish the two is by looking at the placement of the leaf stem. Dollarweed has a stem located in the center of the leaf while dichondra’s stem is located at the edge (see image below).

Dollarweed leaf on left and dichondra leaf on right.
Bert McCarty, Clemson University

Before starting a weed control program homeowners should realize that complete eradication of dollarweed (or any weed) from the landscape is not practical. A more practical approach is to control (not eradicate) the weed by limiting the infestation to a tolerable level.

Cultural Control

Dollarweed is a water-loving plant that can float. The presence of dollarweed indicates that there is excessive moisture in the area. Research at the University of Florida demonstrated a reduction in dollarweed just by reducing irrigation frequency (http://grove.ufl.edu/~turf/weeds/dollarweed.html). Monitoring moisture levels and evaluating irrigation frequency are the first steps to controlling dollarweed. Landscape plants and lawns require one-inch of water a week for optimum growth.

A properly maintained landscape that is not stressed by insects, diseases, drought or nutrient imbalance is the best defense against weeds. Proper mowing height of lawns and a 3-inch thick mulch layer around trees and shrubs will prevent the invasion of weeds.

Chemical Control

Lawns: Dollarweed thrives in weak, thin turf with excessive moisture. The first defense against dollarweed is to reduce moisture levels and modify cultural methods (i.e., proper mowing height and irrigation).  After taking steps to modify the lawn care techniques, a chemical control may still be necessary to further reduce the dollarweed population. Herbicides should be chosen according to turf species and applied in late spring (after full spring green-up of the lawn) when weeds are small. Herbicide effectiveness is reduced as weeds mature.

Antrazine (Hi-Yield Atrazine Weed Killer, Image for St. Augustine & Centipedegrass, Southern Ag Atrazine St. Augustine Weed Killer, and Spectracide Weed Stop for Lawns Conc. for St. Augustine & Centipede Lawns) can be applied to St. Augustinegrass and Centipedegrass up to two times a year. For maximum effect atrazine should be applied once in the fall and again in late spring (after spring green-up). Atrazine has a pre- and post-emergent effect on weeds, which means it helps to control both emerged weeds and weed seed. It should NOT be applied to newly seeded lawns due to detrimental effect it has on seed germination. Delay atrazine applications to newly sodded and springged lawns until it is well-established and actively growing. CAUTION: Atrazine can travel through soil and enter ground water, please read the label for all environmental precautions.

Dollarweed in a lawn.
Bert McCarty, Clemson University

A three-way herbicide may be used safely on bermudagrass, zoysiagrass, centipedegrass, St. Augustinegrass and tall fescue. The active ingredients of a three-way herbicide include the following broadleaf weed killers: 2,4- D, dicamba, and MCPP (such as Ferti-lome Weed Out Lawn Weed Killer with Trimec®, Bayer Advanced Southern Weed Killer for Lawns, and Spectracide Weed Stop Weed Killer for Lawns). Herbicides containing 2,4-D should be applied at a reduced rate on St. Augustinegrass and centipedegrass to prevent damage to these lawns. If a second application is needed, apply the herbicide in spot treatments. Repeated applications of a three-way herbicide should be spaced according to label directions. CAUTION: Three-way herbicides should not be applied during spring transition (green-up of lawn) or when air temperatures exceed 90 ºF. A newly seeded lawn should be mowed a minimum of three times before applying a herbicide.

Imazaquin (Image Nutsedge Killer) can be applied safely to bermudagrass, St. Augustinegrass, centipedegrass and zoysiagrass. Apply imazaquin in the spring (after spring green-up) when weeds are small. A second application can be made in six weeks after the initial application. Do not apply to newly planted, plugged or sodded turfgrass.

Once dollarweed has been eliminated in areas of the turf, bare spots will be left behind. To prevent the invasion of new weeds in these bare spots fill them with plugs or sprigs of the desired turfgrass.

Landscape Beds: In landscape beds dollarweed can be hand dug or controlled with a herbicide. Dollarweed is a perennial weed that can emerge from seeds, tubers and rhizomes. Once dollarweed has made its way into the landscape bed a herbicide may be necessary if hand pulling is not practical.

Glyphosate (such as Roundup Original, Eraser Systemic Weed & Grass Killer, Quick Kill Grass & Weed Killer, Bonide Kleenup Grass & Weed Killer, Hi-Yield Super Concentrate Kill-zall Weed & Grass, and Green Light Com-Pleet 41% Systemic Grass & Weed Killer) can be used for spot treatments around ornamental plants. Glyphosate is a non-selective herbicide that should be used with caution. Do not allow glyphosate spray mist to contact ornamental foliage or severe injury will occur. A cardboard shield may be used to prevent glyphosate spray from drifting to nearby ornamentals.

Imazaquin (Image Nutsedge Killer) is a selective herbicide that can be applied safely to certain landscape plants; see product label for a listing of the plant materials. Imazaquin should not be applied around the root zones of plants not on the product label. It is best to apply imazaquin when weeds are small (early spring). A second application can be applied six weeks later if necessary.

Glyphosate and imazaquin are both more effective when weeds are actively growing and should not be applied under drought conditions. As with all pesticides, read and follow all label instructions and precautions.

Thanks to Sarasota landscaping for this information.

Thanks to the University of Clemson for this information.

Here are some tips on how to get started growing Vegetables in Sarasota and Venice. 

Tip one.  Make sure that your growing area has good drainage, drainage for growing vegetables is very important, hard rains can easily ruin your garden if the water has no where to drain to.  When Picking your area think back if you have seen standing water in that area, take some soil samples to see if the ground is saturated, also take a soil ample to your local extension service and get the information on your Venice, Sarasota planting site, to see what exatctly is in the soil.  Most l;ikely you will have enough phosphate, nitrogen and potasium will most likely be needed.

After picking your site and checking drainage, along with finding any soil ammendments that may be needed, add good natural soil enhancers, such as oak leaves, grass clippings and such.  These types of natural soil ammendments in Venice can replace man made fertilizer, and are so much better for the environment.  Remember man made fertilizer in Venice and Florida is ruining our environment, the heavy nitrogen that is applied to mostly St Augustine grasses is causing outbreaks of red tide, causing massive fish kills, and the weed control we apply to the turf is polluting our gfround wter, so installing  vegetables in many of the landscape beds at the same time removing nitrogen hungry turf grass is a win win for us and the environment.

Tip two, growing your vegetables from seed can save you alot of money, this years already started plants in your local garden center is the highest Ive ever seen them.  Paying $3.00 for a tomato plant is jsut too much for me, there is so many good books on starting your plants from seed.  Remember growing vegetables is not hard at all and the more yu garden the less stressed your life will be, gardening is Dr. Recommended, and the vegetables you will grow are so healthy, no pesticides or dirty water, and it may take a season or two to get your garden just right but all the planning and work will be a great pay off.

For more information visit us at www.stateoftheartlandscaping.com

Caring for frost damaged sod at spring time, detahtching thick turf will do a lot of good.  Fertilize apropriatly, remember never ove fertilize, it just runs into the gutter and ends up in our water ways.  Fertilizing lightly several times in Venice through the growing season, this will alow the turf to use the fertilizer.  Dont get ahead of your self and cut the yard before it need it and do not cut to short.  For more information on landscape care in Venice Florida visit www.stateoftheartlandscaping.com

After the freeze you should irrigate the plant regularly to make sure the soil doesn’t freeze also if there’s high amounts of salt in the soil you will need a lot of water because that salt will cause root burning  therefore killing the plant. Pruning right away should be avoided until you see new growth because if you prune right away it will injure the plant more then you think.

For more helpful tips please visit www.stateoftheartlandscaping.com

To learn more please visit www.stateoftheartlandscaping.com

How they damage plants is their saliva that get injected into the plant has toxins  that can cause roots to swell and stop growing.  Their saliva also has growth-regulating chemicals that make roots knotted making it so they don’t grown right.

How you can tell you have nematodes in your Venice lawn. You will see wilting, slow growth, the plants leafs will become yellow, loss of leaves or fruit when the plant is in stress, weird shapes, knotting of the roots, dark colored roots, decaying roots from bacteria the nematode has made, some round bodies on the roots may be white, yellow, goldish, or brown and they are very tiny.

How you can manage nematodes in your Venice lawn. You need to choose the proper place in your yard to plant your plants. You also need to prepare those sites the right way how you can do that is, when planting a tree make the hole wider but not deeper so the roots can spread through loose soil. Also when you’re planting new things you should remove all of the old roots. Organic soil will help nematodes not come into your new plants.  Treating the soil will also help nematode infestation to reduce. During the summer you should cover your soil for atleast 4 weeks. Make sure before covering your soil with a tarp thet the soil is moist because the nematodes are more likely to die if the soil is hot and moist.  You should use clear polyethlene, make sure its thin, Don’t mess with the tarp after putting it in place, and most importantly don’t bring contaminated plans or soil into the new bed.

For more information on nematodes please visit www.stateoftheartlandscaping.com

Interesting ideas for your Sarasota outdoor kitchen would be using a lot of different textures to add that extra touch to your outdoor kitchen. Examples would be large stone around your grill, brick pavers for the patio aspect, and maybe even mexican tiles to add your touch to your space. Some accent marks you can place around your outdoor kithcnen in Sarasota would be colorful flowers with a hint of fragerance so your geusts will enjoy it. You can also add an arbhor with a vine growing through it, maybe add some lighting  to brighting things up at night.  Other lighting that will be needed are spot lights over your grill/stove area so when your cooking/grilling you can see whats going on easily.

For more information please visit www.stateoftheartlandscaping.com