With spring rains falling, you may be experiencing some problems with stormwater management. Are there places where the soil is eroding? Does stormwater get into your home or pool in your yard after a heavy rain? If so, here are some things that can help manage that water, so it doesn’t cause problems for you or your neighbors.
Grading Surface Water
Swales and berms work to slow stormwater down and direct it to give it a chance to absorb into the ground instead of running onto the hardscape. The swales are the valleys, and the berms are the ridges or high points. Swales and berms direct rainwater so that it does not cause a problem. In some cases when water passes along the back of several homes, you may have to work together with your neighbors to come up with the best solution that benefits everyone.
Bury Downspouts
In heavy rain, all the water that goes down the downspouts from your roof can dig a hole around your foundation, causing problems. One way to deal with that is to bury the downspout and get out from the foundation to where it can drain away from the house. You can also establish a rain garden where the downspout outlets the water. A rain garden lets the water soak in instead of running off and doing damage. The end of the downspout should be at least ten feet from the house to keep moisture from accumulating inside. Choose plants that can withstand being submerged up to six inches deep for twelve to twenty-four hours but can also do well when conditions are dry. Native ornamental tall grasses work really well for this.
French Drains
A French drain is a solution to help soak up groundwater in saturated lawn areas and is typically found in the low areas of the yard along swales & valleys. A French drain installation consists of a trench below a drainage problem with a perforated pipe and clean gravel. The first step is to dig a ditch that is 12” – 24” deep for the gravel and pipe to fit in. This ditch needs to slope down with the natural grade. After you dig the trench, place the perforated pipe with the drainage holes down in the ditch. Cover the pipe with gravel until the trench is filled in. Some people put a layer of soil and sod over the gravel, so it blends in with the lawn. Other times the decorative rock can be used to cover with allows more surface water to enter directly into the pipe and move the water faster.
Drainage Plans
Before you start making changes to the drainage of your property it is best to come up with a comprehensive drainage plan. In fact, in some jurisdictions, you are required to come up with a drainage plan if you add more than 400 square feet of impervious surface. This drainage plan will include changes you need to make to your landscape and the effects on neighboring properties. You don’t want change the drainage to direct your stormwater straight into your neighbor’s house, so make sure to think things through.
Over the last couple of months, we at Royal Creations Architectural Landscaping have been discussing how to maintain your equipment and landscape beds. You also need to maintain the lights that show off your landscape and outdoor living spaces. Here are the steps we recommend.
Total System Inspection
We recommend a total system inspection. This includes the wiring, lamps, transformer, fixtures, and timer/photocells. While this type of inspection takes some effort, once it is done you know the system is safe and will work without trouble for the next year. To do this, you need to turn on the system.
Check the Lamps & Connections
Check to see if the lamps inside the fixtures work. If they are not, or give signs they are failing, replace them. LED lights last thousands of hours, but they do eventually fail. Any easy way to test a failed lamp is to swap it with one in a fixture that you know is working. If it still doesn’t work it may be a connection that is the problem. You can trace back the wire to a connection within a few feet and resplice to make sure the wire is good or you could use a volt meter to check if you have power.
Clean the Fixtures
Over time, dust and dirt mar the light fixtures and cover the lens on the fixtures. Clean the fixtures with a damp cloth. Do not use a wet one or you can damage the fixture. Clean all the lenses with a glass cleaner so they can shine brightly. This step may need to be taken on a regular basis, probably 3-4 times a season, to keep everything looking nice all year around.
Adjust and Aim Fixtures
Storms, animals, and sometimes guests, may bump your fixtures so they are not aimed properly anymore. In addition, plants grow, and the light may not show them at their best anymore. This means they will not illuminate the feature you want to put a spotlight on. Adjust any fixture that isn’t just right so that it is aimed exactly where you want it. You may have to do this in the evening so you can see the lights the way your guests will.
Test the Transformer
The transformer takes the house current and reduces it so the LED light fixtures can use it without burning out. Testing the transformer makes sure it is properly reducing the current so your LED light fixtures will last a long time. Re-tighten any terminal blocks that have worked loose during the last year. Inspect all the internal components to make sure they are clean, do not show too much wear, and do not have any burned spots. Replace any problem components you find.
Check the Clocks/Photocells
Now that the time has changed, set the clocks for the season. If you use photocells, which turn on the lights at dusk and turn them off at dawn, make sure they are functioning properly. Clean the surface so dirt doesn’t block the lens and make the lights turn on prematurely. Use a damp cloth.
Repair and Re-bury Wire
Check the wire you can see for any cuts or nicks in the wire. Repair any you find. Re-bury any exposed wires that should be buried. Make sure the wires are deep enough to avoid damage during the year.
Trim Plants That Block Lights
As plants grow, they may begin to block the lights set around them. Trim any plant material that is causing a problem by blocking the light. Be careful not to trim more than a third of the plant, including any pruning you have done in the last two months, or you will damage the plant.
Make Changes as Needed
Lighting innovations are continually being developed. Update your lighting fixtures and lighting system as new and better components are available. As an example, you can find some new things for 2022 in this article.
In addition, your needs may change. Perhaps a plant has died, so there is no need for that light. Or, you have planted another tree and need new lights to show it off. New hardscape features need lights, too. Expand your lighting system to illuminate all your landscape and outdoor living areas.
We Can Help
Royal Creations Architectural Landscaping can tune your lighting system for the year. We will run through this checklist and make sure all parts of your landscape lighting system are working correctly. Schedule a consultation or call (816) 825-2524 to get on our schedule today. Hurray, our schedule is filling up fast.
Spring starts March 23rd this year, and Royal Creations Architectural Landscaping gets really busy this time of year. What are we doing? Spring maintenance for the landscapes we manage.
Freshen Bed Edges
Defining the edges of the landscape beds is very important. We use a shovel to cut a four-to-six-inch edge along the landscape bed. This makes the landscape bed look crisp and shows off the sexy curves in it. The edge also helps keep the mulch in the landscape beds instead of letting it creep into the lawn.
Mulch
Now is the time to place 1” to 2” of new mulch on all your landscape beds. We do this because this much mulch will break down and compost itself each year, so it needs to be replaced. We use a dark-colored mulch that really sets off the landscape beds. The dark mulch contrasts nicely with the green plants, too.
Slow-Release Fertilizer
As the landscape plants wake up and start to grow, they need lots of nutrients. We apply a slow-release fertilizer to the landscape plants to give them this burst of nutrients. Because it is slow release, this fertilizer application will last all spring and summer.
Pre-Emergent on Top of Mulch
Mulch will usually keep weed seeds from growing in the landscape beds. However, some weed seeds will germinate on the top of the mulch. These are usually windborne seeds or are brought by animals or birds. We apply a pre-emergent on top of the mulch to keep those seeds from germinating. The pre-emergent will not hurt the plants that are already in the beds. It only prevents new seeds from sprouting.
Check Irrigation
Finally, we check the irrigation system and bring it to life after it has been drained all winter. Some of the sprinkler heads may have broken, pipes may leak, and the controller needs to be plugged in and set for the year. We check every valve, every sprinkler head, and emitter, and set the system controller up for the spring season.
We Can Help
Royal Creations Architectural Landscaping is enrolling people in our Garden Care Program. We will take care of all the maintenance items mentioned above. After all, it takes a lot of time to get everything ready for spring. If you don’t put in the time to put in now, you won’t have a nice landscape later. We can take care of that for you. Call us today at (816) 825-2524 to set up a free estimate for your planting beds garden care and get on our schedule. Our schedule is filling up fast.
It is time to spruce up your lawn equipment for spring. At Royal Creations Architectural Landscaping, we spend a lot of time in the winter and all year maintaining our equipment, so it is ready when we build your landscape or maintain it.
Home Maintenance Recommendations
Here is some of the lawn equipment you might have and how to maintain it.
Hedge trimmers
If you have gas-operated hedge trimmers, remove any fuel left over from the fall. Check your spark plug and replace it if the plug is fouled. Be sure to put the correct fuel in your hedge trimmers. They typically use a 50 to 1 ratio of gasoline to oil mix. You buy the mix for the size gas can you have and pour it in. Fill up the can with gasoline and mix the two substances well. Put this into your fuel tank. Using just gasoline will ruin the engine.
Fortunately, a lot of newer hedge trimmers are self-sharpening, so you don’t have to worry about dull blades. However, oil the blades before each use with a spray lubricant to keep the sap from the shrubs from gumming things up. Use your hedge trimmers to trim hedges, not for trimming anything else. Electric hedge trimmers are becoming more widely used and do not require much maintenance. Keep the batteries charged and you may want a spare if you use it often. Then spray down the hedge trimmer blades with lubricant, and you are ready to go.
Leaf Blowers
Gasoline-powered leaf blowers need much the same maintenance as hedge trimmers. They use the same fuel mix, too. Make sure you store your leaf blowers in dry conditions. The wiring around the starter and the choke can corrode in wet conditions. Check spark plugs and air filters before the season starts, and you should be good to go.
Mowers
We at Royal Creations Architectural Landscaping don’t do mowing. However, your push mowers need annual maintenance. If there is any gasoline or oil in the mower, drain it out and dispose of it responsibly at an oil change place or mechanics. Power wash off any grass or other plant material stuck to the mower. Once the mower is clean, replace the mower blade and spark plug. Many lawn and garden departments sell kits with a new blade and spark plug for each make of mower. Finally, refill the oil and gas tanks. Now your mower is ready to run this spring.
Our Equipment Maintenance Routine
Our equipment maintenance routine is a little more complicated. We take care of our equipment, so it doesn’t break down and delay your construction project or maintenance of your landscape.
We have trucks, bobcats, excavators, trenchers, and hydraulic dump trailers that we keep in top condition. Each month, we check the oil, grease, electrical systems, oil blades, and change the oil if needed. We keep machines greased at least every 8 hours of use.
Before the equipment leaves the shop, we make sure it works, is greased, and has all the oil and hydraulic fluid it requires. We also fill the fuel tank. We also check trucks and trailers for safety to make sure all lights, trailer breaks, wheels, and tires are safe for the road as well as double-checking that our load is secured.
Less Delay, Faster Projects
We at Royal Creations Architectural Landscaping keep our machines in tip-top condition to make them last longer. We also keep them well maintained so they do not break and delay our projects. While no amount of maintenance can prevent all breakdowns, we minimize them with our regular maintenance program. Better maintenance allows us to build hardscapes and landscapes faster with less waiting. If you want a superior product with less delay, schedule a consultation with us today. Our spring schedule is filling up, so don’t delay.
At Royal Creations Architectural Landscaping, we are getting our customer’s plants and landscape beds ready for spring. We want our plants to be ready to grow when the weather warms up and our landscape beds to look sharp. Here are the steps we take this time of year.
Ornamental Grasses
Ornamental grasses need to be trimmed each year in late winter or early spring. Cut your grass back to six to eight inches tall. If the center of the grass is dying out, you need to divide the grass clump. Dig the grass up and clean the dirt off the roots. Divide the grass into sections with some roots and grass attached to each section. Discard the dead center. Plant each section or give a few sections away to friends. Trading these sections with other plant lovers is a good way to get new plants for your garden!
Perennials
Perennials also need to be cut back to stimulate new growth. Our team will cut back spent herbaceous perennials to the ground to prepare them for the new spring growth to come. These types of plants have typically died back from the cold winter frost already, and we are simply removing the old growth to make room for the new growth to appear.
Removing Leaves
Leaves have a tendency to accumulate over the fall and winter. They do not look very good and can be overwintering sites for pests and diseases. To keep your landscape beds looking sharp, we remove all these leaves. Doing so while it is still cold allows you to destroy any pests hiding in them before the pests wake up and start eating your plants.
Removing Weeds
Weeds steal sunlight, water, and nutrients from your plants. Some weeds serve as reservoirs for pests and diseases that can negatively affect your plants. Remove any weeds now to prevent them from causing problems in the future. We also like to use a pre-emergent to help prevent new weeds from sprouting.
Edging Landscape Beds
After trimming ornamental grasses and perennials and removing leaves and weeds from a landscape bed, we like to redefine the edges of the bed with a natural spaded edge. Although this can be labor intensive, this natural spaded edge really makes the bed look sharp while keeping the mulch from spilling into the yard.
Mulching
Mulching is the final step of getting your beds ready for spring. With our garden care clients, we will typically begin with the clean-up and prep work the first visit and then return with a larger team to help get the mulch spread efficiently. We may apply another round of pre-emergent at this time to further help prevent weeds. We typically aim to get all of our spring mulching completed by Mother’s Day if possible.
We Can Help
Taking care of your landscape beds can be a lot of work. Royal Creations Architectural Landscaping can help with that. We will come to trim your ornamental grasses and perennials, remove the weeds and leaves from your landscape beds, and redefine the edges of them, so they look sharp for the coming season. If you are interested in having us do the late winter maintenance for your landscape, schedule a consultation with us today. Our list fills up, so don’t delay.
