FAQs

A: Water times vary depending on drainage, sun exposure, and turf type. The average established lawn should be watered for 30 minutes every other day.

A: The best time to water is during the early morning hours (before 11:00 am). This will allow moisture to soak deep into the soil before evaporation can occur.

A: We apply a dry granular fertilizer but we use liquid weed controls so 2 hours would be more than enough time for the liquid to dry. Note: Pesticide flags are required to stay up 24 hours after treatment and should be removed within 72 hours.

A: Aeration reduces soil compaction, allows for air, water and fertilizers to reach the roots and decreases thatch build-up.  It also promotes deeper root growth and more drought tolerant lawns.

A: We generally recommend aerating in the fall, after the stress of summer.  Aeration, along with fertilizing will enhance root growth and improve spring green-up.

A: Overseeding at the time of aeration is a great way to thicken up a lawn or just to introduce better grass types to a lawn. By aerating first, the soil is loosened and the majority of the new grass will grow in the aeration holes. This is a great method for creating a thicker, healthier lawn.

A: Massachusetts lawns are cool-season grasses (bluegrass, ryegrass, and fescues), so they do most of their growing in spring and fall — and that’s when they need feeding most. A typical program starts in early spring to support green-up and root development, continues with lighter feedings through late spring and summer, and finishes with fall applications that many turf professionals consider the most important of the year.

Early fall feeding helps your lawn recover from summer stress, thicken up, and store energy in its root system. A late fall application, made just before the lawn goes dormant, fuels root growth well into early winter and gives you a noticeably earlier, greener spring — without a flush of top growth you’d have to mow.

Just as important as timing is what your lawn actually needs: soil conditions, turf type, sun exposure, and irrigation all affect the right rates and products. That’s why our applications are timed and adjusted to each property rather than run on a fixed calendar. If you’re unsure where your lawn stands, we’re happy to take a look and recommend a program — call us at 508-238-4455.

A: For Massachusetts lawns, early fall is the best window to aerate — generally late August through October. Summer heat, drought, and foot traffic leave soil compacted and turf stressed; aerating in the fall relieves that compaction right as cool-season grasses enter their strongest growing period, so the lawn recovers quickly and roots deeply before winter.

Core aeration pulls small plugs of soil out of the lawn, opening channels for air, water, and nutrients to reach the root zone. It also helps break down thatch and encourages deeper, more drought-tolerant root systems. Aerating along with fall fertilization enhances root growth and improves spring green-up.

Fall aeration is also the ideal time to overseed. The aeration holes give grass seed direct soil contact and a protected place to germinate, which is the most effective way to thicken a thin lawn or introduce improved grass varieties. Spring aeration is possible in some situations, but fall gives new seed the longest run of favorable weather without competition from crabgrass and summer weeds.

A: As a rule of thumb, an established lawn needs about one inch of water per week — from rainfall, irrigation, or both — to maintain color and active growth. Rather than frequent light sprinklings, water deeply and less often: for the average lawn that works out to roughly 30 minutes per zone every other day, though drainage, sun exposure, and turf type all affect the right schedule for your property.

Timing matters as much as quantity. The best time to water is early morning, before 11:00 am, when moisture can soak deep into the soil before the heat of the day causes evaporation. Evening watering is best avoided — turf that stays wet overnight is more prone to fungus and disease.

Deep, infrequent watering trains roots to grow down in search of moisture, producing a lawn that stands up better to summer heat and drought. During extended hot, dry stretches, cool-season lawns may still go partially dormant — that’s a natural protective response, and a healthy lawn will green back up when rain and cooler weather return.

A: Grubs are the larvae of beetles — in Massachusetts, most commonly Japanese beetles, European chafers, and Oriental beetles. The adults lay eggs in the lawn in mid-summer, and the white, C-shaped larvae that hatch live in the soil and feed on grass roots through late summer and fall.

Because grubs eat the roots out from under the turf, damage shows up as irregular brown patches that feel spongy underfoot — in heavy infestations, damaged turf can be pulled back like a piece of carpet. A second telltale sign is animal activity: skunks, raccoons, and birds will tear up sections of lawn digging for grubs, often causing more visible damage than the grubs themselves.

A few grubs in a lawn are normal and nothing to worry about; it’s when populations build past a handful per square foot that turf starts to suffer. Preventive treatments applied in early summer, before eggs hatch, are the most effective way to protect a lawn with a history of grub problems. If you’re seeing suspicious brown patches or dig marks, we can check the lawn and confirm whether grubs are the cause.

A: In Southeastern Massachusetts, mosquito season generally runs from late spring through the first hard frost — roughly May into October. The most effective approach is a seasonal barrier program that starts in late spring, before populations build, with treatments repeated through the summer to maintain protection during peak activity.

Barrier treatments target the places mosquitoes rest and breed on your property: the undersides of leaves, shrubs and plant beds, shaded damp areas, and vegetation along the edges of the yard. Treating these harborage areas knocks down the adult population and keeps new mosquitoes from settling in, which is what makes a real difference in how usable your yard is on a summer evening.

Homeowners can help the program work even better by eliminating standing water — clogged gutters, plant saucers, toys, tarps, and birdbaths are all common breeding spots that can produce mosquitoes in less than two weeks. If you have an event coming up or a season-long problem, give us a call at 508-238-4455 and we’ll build a schedule around it.

A: Trees usually give warning signs well before they’re in serious trouble — the key is knowing what to look for. Common indicators of a stressed or declining tree include a thinning canopy, leaves that are smaller or paler than normal, early fall color or premature leaf drop, and dead branches, especially in the upper crown.

On closer inspection, look for cracks or peeling bark on the trunk, cankers (sunken or discolored areas of bark), mushrooms or fungal growth at the base, and small holes or sawdust-like material on the trunk that can indicate boring insects. Sticky residue on leaves or on the ground beneath the tree (honeydew) often points to sucking insects like aphids or scale at work above.

Many of these problems are very treatable when caught early — and far more difficult and expensive once a tree is in real decline. If something about a tree or shrub on your property doesn’t look right, it’s worth having a professional evaluate it. Our tree and shrub care team inspects for exactly these issues as part of every seasonal visit, and we’re glad to take a look at a specific plant you’re concerned about.