This time of year, irrigation systems are getting a lot of use. With the rising temperatures, keeping your lawn watered is crucial. While there are many irrigation system repairs you can do yourself, there are some meant to be handled by a professional to ensure your irrigation system is getting the servicing it needs.
While it’s tempting to tackle any household repair yourself, do-it-yourself irrigation system repairs should be limited to nozzle replacements and rotor adjustments. Nozzles tend to get clogged over time, and won’t spray as much water if filled with debris. To replace your nozzle, simply use a flathead screwdriver to lift the riser. While keeping the riser lifted, twist to remove the nozzle. Check your screen to ensure it is still clear, or replace if needed. Screw on the new nozzle, adjust to the desired spray pattern, and drop the nozzle back into place. Depending on how many you have, replacing these can be time consuming, but are well worth it in keeping your lawn hydrated.
Rotor adjustments can be made while your water is turned on or off. Most brands can require a certain tool for the adjustment, but some can be done with a flathead screwdriver. The two most common brands, Rain Bird and Hunter, have their own special tool. Their tools are much like a screwdriver and can adjust the arc, spray radius and more.
Whether you are using a special tool or flathead screwdriver, you will turn the arc clockwise or counter-clockwise to increase or decrease the arc. It’s important to only turn the screw in the direction the rotor is already turning. Going against the current direction can strip the gears and damage your rotor.
Other repairs (sprinkler head replacement, valve replacement/location, broken lines, etc) should be repaired by a professional. Locating lines and valves can be very complicated and time consuming without the right knowledge and equipment.
Contact us today to see how Outdoor Solutions can assist you with your irrigation system repairs!
The 2016 Membership Golf Extravaganza was a fun event and one of the great ways Outdoor Solutions connects with people in our community. Over 300 people attended this annual event held at the beautiful Maple Ridge Golf Course. We attended this year as a tee sponsor, as we also did for the event in 2015.
We appreciated the opportunity to meet everyone who came out and spoke with us about the great landscaping, lawn maintenance and lawn fertilization services we have to offer. Be sure to contact us today and request a quote!
Ornamental plants and shrubs are decorative plants. These are grown to enhance landscape and garden designs. They are also plants that are grown for flowers to be cut for decor. These include various trees, plants, shrubs and flowers. These plants require routine care to stay attractive and keep them healthy. It is important to have a regular fertilization, pruning, watering and pest control program for these added in with your regular lawn maintenance.
Treatment of ornamental plants can be more difficult when they are not well suited for your soil or when they are not planted correctly. Outdoor Solutions serves as your trusted landscaper to select the best decorative and ornamental plants for your landscape design. We examine which plants work best with your soil, space and our southern climate, then install them for you.
Many ornamental plants require special treatment. It is important to know how to care for these, as their sole purpose is to be aesthetically pleasing and make your lawn look great. Outdoor Solutions offers ornamental treatments as an addition to your regular lawn maintenance program. This is done in two fertilization applications. The initial application is done in the Spring, typically in April. The second application is done in late summer, around August.
It’s important to know when to fertilize your lawn, and how often.Fertilize your lawn when it isn’t actively growing, and you could be wasting your money. Apply the fertilizer in unsuitable time spans, and your grass could grow great for a while, but then slow down.
The first thing you need to consider is the type of grass you grow. Grasses that grow better in warmer seasons and in our Southeastern area, such as St. Augustine or Bermuda grass, need to be fertilized from late spring to early fall. It is best to not apply any nitrogen to the soil before the 4inch depth is consistently 65F and rising. Apply the fertilizer too early and you could be promoting rapid weed growth.
Other types of grasses are known as cool weather grasses, such as Kentucky Bluegrass and Tall Fescue. These also thrive in the Southeast, and stay looking great even through the cooler months. The prime times to fertilize these grasses are in the fall and spring, and possibly event the winter depending on the specific climate. The only times to refrain from fertilizing these are in the summer heat. Growth will naturally slow down, and if you apply fertilizer then you could weaken your grass.
For the best results, you should have your lawn fertilized around once every six to eight weeks during it’s active grown period. Determining the type of grass you have is an important first step in knowing when to apply the fertilizer. Outdoor Solutions offers fertilization and weed control programs. We also offer different lawn treatments, such as ornamental fertilizations, as additional services to the normal lawn programs. We use brands such as Harrells, Bayer, Lesco and BASF, just to name a few. Contact us today for a free quote!
We would like to say a huge thank you to the Columbus, Georgia Chamber of Commerce for naming Outdoor Solutions the Small Business of the Month!
Check out this video they showed at the Eye Opener Breakfast last month!
