Author Archives: Chanel Lanzara

Top Gardening Trends for 2017

Photo of gardeningAlready getting started on your new garden plan for this coming spring? It is never too early to get your lawn and garden ready for the upcoming seasons. At MDM Landscapes, we love helping our community get their lawns prepared and landscapes designed. We keep up on all of the latest gardening trends. Here are the top trends for 2017!

Our Favorite Gardening Trends For You

#1 Color Blocking

Color blocking is using contrasting colors to make a vivid and interesting look. Whether by having contrasting flowers in your garden bed or by adding a splash of color through garden features, this can take your garden to the next level.

#2 Locally Sourced

For the trendy and ecologically minded gardener, finding native plants to your climate is making a  comeback. Whether it is to match the changing weather or to bring a touch of local pride to your garden, local sourcing is a great gardening option.

#3 All Natural

Natural stone as a feature or styling option in your garden can give it a style all its own. Natural stone is an ever popular choice for gardens, lending a down to earth feel every time.

#4 Blending of Styles

Traditional or modern? Japanese garden or all roses all the time? The popular thing to do is combine your favorite gardening styles to a unique and beautiful arrangement all your own. This will catch your neighbor’s eye and lend your personal style to your flora. 

Looking to get your ground ready for your spring garden? MDM provides fertilizer and landscaping solutions for you. Call us today at 817-396-0125 to get started. 

5 Benefits of Hardscaping Your Yard

benefits of hardscaping your yardLooking to landscape your yard? Have you considered hardscaping? Unlike a softscape of grass and plants, a hardscape is one that features materials such as stone, concrete, walls, fencing, and even water features. If you like the look of these details, check out these 5 benefits of hardscaping your yard.

Create an Outdoor Living Space

Many homeowners enjoy relaxing in the great outdoors, especially from the comfort of their own backyard! Whether you have a tiny yard or a whole acre, a hardscape can beautifully extend your living space into nature. Popular choices includes flagstone patios, outdoor kitchens, pergolas, retaining walls, and custom fire pits. The options are endless!

Increase Property Value

While beautiful landscaping offers curb appeal to any home, those roses can die and soil erode. A hardscape offers a permanent, stunning appeal to any home, and it can instantly increase the value of your home. If you decide to sell, an attractive, hardscaped yard is a great bonus for prospective buyers.

Low Maintenance Style

Sick and tired of mowing the lawn? Can’t keep track of water restrictions in the summer? There’s no need to worry when you have a hardscaped yard! Ditch the brown, patchy grass for a stone patio or deck, and replace sickly flower beds with river rock or native plants for an ultra low maintenance yard.

Add Some Privacy

Whether your neighbors are 10 feet away or 100 feet away, you may enjoy some privacy when lounging outdoors. A creative hardscape can provide instant privacy and beauty. Rather than planting large hedges or trees that require frequent maintenance, a fence, wall, gazebo, or rock feature can help your yard feel more like a secluded oasis.

Correct a Slope

Tired of dealing with an uneven yard riddled with erosion? Stone steps, a retaining wall, or multi-level deck can solve all your problems! With proper installation from a reputable landscape company, you can enjoy your yard again without worry.

Interested in the benefits of hardscaping your yard? Call MDM Landscapes at 817-396-0125 for expert hardscaping in Granbury, TX and Aledo, TX!

Benefits of Soil Aeration

healthy lawnIf you are looking to boost the health of your lawn, soil aeration is a great way to improve soil and the root growth of your grass. We’ll go over the basics of soil aeration and how it benefits the look and health of your lawn.

Why aerate the lawn? Lawns can suffer from soil compaction due to foot traffic and staying dried out for extended periods of time. When this happens, the grass roots no longer get sufficient water and nutrients. Aerating the lawn loosens the soil and allows for grass to grow stronger.

Soil aeration is done using either a spike aerator or plug aerator. The plug aerator is a machine that will take out plugs of soil from the lawn while the spike aerator simply scores holes in the ground. Since the spikes aren’t removing soil it doesn’t break up thatch and relieve the compaction as well as a plug aerator will. Spikes can actually worsen the compaction by increasing the density of the soil around the holes it creates. The plug aerator removing plugs of soil will remove thatch and create space for soil to loosen up and the roots to grow.

Do you need lawncare service in Granbury or Aledo, TX? MDM Lawncare can perform all the necessary maintenance needed for a healthy lawn including soil aeration to help you achieve a beautiful lawn. Contact us now at 817-396-0125 to learn more about lawn care maintenance we can do for you.

Recycling Raked Leaves

rake-leavesMany people may just bag up their leaves after raking and leave them for trash pick up. There are actually a few different ways you could recycle or reuse the leaves. Leaves are a great way to create free compost that you can use throughout the yard, garden, or flower beds once spring arrives. You can collect the leaves, along with some soil, in a bin or under a tarp to sit through winter. If you have a vegetable garden, you can rake leaves directly into the soil bed. Another option is to mulch the leaves as an alternative to wood mulch for your flower beds.

If you don’t want to re-use the leaves in your own yard you could look into recycling them. Check your local community to see if anyone is looking for bagged leaves for composting. Your local schools may even need it for educational projects. Depending on where you live, the municipal waste services may collect landscape waste and take it to be recycled into mulch.

Raking your leaves helps ensure that your grass and landscaping gets enough moisture and sunlight during the winter season. If you want your landscape to looks its best and give it a jumpstart for optimal growth in the spring, check with MDM Landscaping to find out which services are best to help your grass come in green and full next year. Services such as soil aeration and tree trimming can benefit your landscaping prior to cold weather setting in. Call us today at 817-396-0125 for more information about the landscaping and yard services we provide in Granbury, TX.

Lawn Preparation for Winter

autumn leaves

Summer has come to an end which means less as the weather gets colder, plants stop growing and the leaves start falling. Give your lawn a little TLC so you can have a healthy grass once spring comes around. Get your yard prepped for the coming cooler weather with these preparation tips for the fall and winter months.

Soil Aeration
Removing cores of soil in your lawn will break up compacted dirt and allow more water, oxygen, and nutrients, to reach the the grass roots. This improves the growth of your lawn and makes it look much healthier. If you choose to use an aerator that removes plugs of soil, using it in early fall gives the soil time to settle back down by spring.

Tree Trimming
This is a great time to prune shrubs and trees to remove extra growth and dead limbs. If icy weather occurs you have less risk of damage to your yard and home if those dead limbs and branches aren’t there to break under the pressure of ice accumulation.

Raking Leaves
Collect the leaves that have accumulated on your lawn. It isn’t a good idea to allow the leaves to pile up and cover the grass all winter. This keeps the grass from growing and can actually cause mold growth from the cold, wet weather in winter. Tip: There’s no need to throw out those leaves. Keeping the dead leaves in a compost bin over the next several months will leave you with plenty of mulch to use once spring arrives.

Maybe yard maintenance isn’t your forte or there just isn’t time to get it all done on your own. If you are in the Granbury, TX area, there is no need to do it yourself! Call MDM Landscapes at 817-396-0125 for all your lawn care and landscaping needs.

Which Is The Best Grass For My Lawn?

If your lawn isn’t growing well, you may need a different type of grass. Certain grasses grow better in shade, sun or sandy soil. Follow these tips to find the best grass for your North Texas lawn.

Lawn grassHeavy Shade

The best grass option for heavily shaded yards is zoysia. It is fairly hardy, resistant to bugs, disease and shade. However, it will turn brown as soon as the mercury drops. Zoysia grows slowly and needs little maintenance, so it is a good option for shaded lawns. If you don’t want to struggle with patchy grass beneath your trees, consider a colorful flower bed, groundcover or stylish landscaping instead!

Sandy Soil

If you have an especially sandy soil, St. Augustine grass may work best for your lawn. A thick-bladed variety, it thrives with lots of sun and water. It does not grow well in shaded areas, but there are shade-tolerant varieties available. While St Augustine is one of the most affordable varieties, its upkeep can be be costly. It can also be prone to disease.

Low Maintenance

Buffalo grass is ideal for North Texas lawns. Native to the area, it needs very little watering once it is established. With its deep roots, it can survive with just an inch or two of rain each month. You don’t have to worry about fertilizing it either!

Still have questions? Call one of our expert lawn care specialists today at 817-396-0125 and we can help you design the perfect lawn.

What Did I Do To My Lawn?!

Not everyone has a green thumb when it comes to lawn care and that is OK. That’s why there a professionals that you can turn to, like MDM Landscapes. We’ll help guide you through how to keep a nice, healthy lawn or we’ll take care of it ourselves, if that’s what you prefer!

Mistakes with lawn care

Here are some of the most common mistakes people make when caring for their lawns:

Applying fertilizer incorrectly – A majority of synthetic fertilizers on the market that contain nitrogen are “hot” and can potentially burn your lawn. If you’re using an older spreader or one that is not at the proper setting, you could be applying your fertilizer unevenly which can cause burning or discoloration. Always handle your fertilizer with care.
Mowing too low – The rule of thumb is to never cut more than 1/3 of the blade of grass at any time. Stress is caused by the lawn being mowed too short. Stressed grassed needs time to recover and there is a possibility that it won’t regrow correctly.
Not focusing on the soil – The soil is the base of a healthy lawn. So regardless of the time, money, and effort you spend on your, if the soil is bad,the lawn will reflect as such. We recommend having you soil tested.
Wrong type of grass – There are different species of grass that are specific to certain locations of the country. They require different amounts of light, various temperature, and types of soil.

These are just  small few of the many things that you could possibly doing to harm your lawn opposed to helping it. But like we said before, we’re here for you! Call us if you have any questions or concerns about your lawn. Contact MDM Landscapes at 817-396-0125.