Raise Height of Mower Blades to Reduce Heat Stress

Sugarloaf Park Entry Island redesign

Consider the Lawns

Based on the scalding temperatures that metro-Atlanta has been experiencing,  the Crabapple LandscapEXPERTS Team has adjusted mower heights to reduce the stress of hot, dry temperatures on the lawns of the properties we manage.

State-of-the-Art New Mowers!

Choosing the Turf that's Best

New Turf Tracers

Fescue looks great during the cool season but struggles each summer, and although Zoysia, Bermuda and Centipede lawns luxuriate in the heat, even they can experience heat stress  when temperatures climb above 100 degrees F. this summer. To keep the turf in pristine condition, we raise the heights of the blades our new, state-of-the-art Turf Tracer lawnmowers, thus allowing the leaves of grass to grow taller during the summer. 

This strategy has several great consequences! 

• Taller grass plants in turn produce larger root systems that lead to increased drought-resistance, as the roots can find water in a greater root run.  
• Taller grass blades can shade the soil, conserving moisture already in the ground. 
• Weed development is slowed due to more fierce competition by vigorously growing turf grass.

Need professional lawn maintenance but don’t think it is affordable? Or think you may not have the right type of grass for the lawns on properties you manage? Contact CrabappleLandscapEXPERTS at 770-740-9739 for a consultation and learn more. We have been satisfying and delighting customers for twenty years! 

Crabapple is a Georgia Certified Landscape Professional Company

We cut grass like we mean business (because we do!). 
You may not always need landscape maintenance, but when you do, call Crabapple LandscapExperts, celebrating 20 years of customer satisfaction in the metro-Atlanta area. The LandscapEXPERTS Team has earned the right to be recognized as a Georgia Certified Landscape Professional. The (GCLP) program is a voluntary testing program through the University of Georgia Cooperative Extension Service that certifies companies and people in the landscape profession who have mastered a thorough knowledge and understanding of job skills required to be successful in the industry.

The test is a big deal and consists of four written components and eight hands-on components. Applicants are provided a 400+ page printed study manual and access to a internet study site developed by the University of Georgia.

Savvy property managers and Homeowners Association Reps  wishing to locate a certified landscape professional company  will find Crabapple LandscapExperts on the UGA website and we are proud to be listed here. 

The GCLP program  is endorsed by the Georgia Green Industry Association and by the Georgia Urban Ag Council, formed in 2011 by a merger of The Metro Atlanta Landscape and Turf Association (MALTA), the Georgia Turfgrass Association (GTA) and the Georgia Sod Producers Association (GSPA). Rest assured, your landscape is in experienced, knowledgeable hands with your LandscapEXPERTS team at Crabapple. 

Water Diet: 5 Waterwise LandscapExpert Tips

Crabapple LandscapExperts know that waterwise landscaping will save one of our precious resources. Let us help the properties you manage to gain water independence.

Retain water in the plan and design of the landscape. Include storm runoff and sprinkler system flow. This attention to detail saves you a lot on watering bills and time, plus it helps conserve the community’s water resources.

Consider a Rain Garden. This is a shallow swale or depression planted with adaptable plants that normally looks like a garden. When it rains, the rain garden collects runoff and excess water, and allows it to drain off slowly and to evaporate.

Schedule watering of ornamentals during the day and only when needed. When there is no rain, about an inch of irrigation per week keeps the plants and soil in good shape. Crabapple pays special attention to irreplaceable trees.

Limit fertilizer, pesticide and weed-killer applications. Crabapple’s Georgia- certified crew practices responsible application of chemicals to decrease phosphorous run off and supply exactly what lawns and ornamentals need, conserving the property budget as well.

Call your Crabapple LandscapExpertsRep to schedule a Water Diet for the properties you manage. 

Top 10 Landscape Design Uses for Ornamental Grasses

CrabappleLandscapExperts know there are many benefits of using ornamental grasses in landscape design. Grasses are low maintenance and they provide year-round interest. Grasses are fast-growing and drought-tolerant. They attract wildlife and gently move in the wind.

There are grassesfor any type of landscape situation, from drought tolerance, shade resistance, or beautiful ornamental inflorescence.  

(left) Exceedingly fine and delicate Mexican Feather Grass

Top 10 uses for ornamental grasses in the landscape: 

1. Add texture –light and filmy contrast to large leaf perennials and geometric shrubbery  
2. Soften hardscaping- mobile waving of grass in contrast to solid buildings dramatic effect of mass planting
3. Dress up decks, pools and patios- formal repetition in containers or casual groupings
4. Edging- short tufty grasses loike blue fescue, grassy substitutes like Liriope, sedge or carex
5. Fill containers colorfully- formally repeated containers or casual groupings 
6. Fall and winter interest- tough stalks last through several seasons and bleach in sun
7. Attract wildlife- with grass seeds and grains
8. Groundcover – turf grasses, mondo grass and Liriope
9. Create a garden accent- specimen plant in a perennial border
10. Add privacy- tall grasses like switch grass, reed grass, miscanthus, pampas grass can provide a quick-growing screen 

 Beautiful pink flowering spikes of native Muhly Grass (left)

(right)  Zebra Miscanthus has striking transversely-striped foliage

photos courtesy Wiki Commons. 

Updated Containers New for 2012

A trend so new it is just now emerging, the new design vibe for large containers is to plant each with a single type of ornamental, then arrange the containers in a group. For many years (since before 2000) containers used for garden accents have been stuffed with loads of different kinds of plants. For example a Crabapple blog from last year explored the “Thrillers, Fillers, Spillers technique” of combining many types of plants into one container. But there are several advantages to mono-plantings. 

Clusters of pots offer immediate impact
The reason to group containers is because the total effect is greater than the sum of the individual pots. By concentrating on a single flower type or color, the impact is magnified. Beautiful color and texture effects are easy when grouping individual plants selected for bold and dramatic design.

Container groupings provide unrivaled flexibility

The design element of repetition is added to the landscape by planting a number of matching containers with a single type of plant. A variety of complementary containers also make an attractive grouping for patio, poolside or deck. By varying heights, tall background plants and cascading plants for the foreground add multilevel detail. 

Horticultural Advantages

Another advantage is that plants requiring different moisture levels can be watered according to their needs, instead of taking “pot luck” in a mixed container. Broad, waxy succulents that need little watering can co-exist with delicate flowers or ferns that require more water, and both can thrive. 

Whether an ensemble of colorful annuals and bold tropicals for summer, a utilitarian planting of herbs, or a high-impact planting of winter hardy shrubs, perennials and bulbs, your Crabapple Rep can design and select the best containers to match your architecture and reflect the   style of the properties you manage. Make an appointment to discuss an exciting grouping of pots to emphasize and enhance your community.

Photo Credits: GardeningGarden.com, DesigningOnline.com, RealSimple.com, and iherb.org 

Sundials and Armillary Spheres as Garden Ornament

Public landscapes are made more interesting by the addition of garden ornaments, and the sundial is both a fun and useful addition. The archaeological record indicates sundials have been in use since 3500 B.C. They use shadows thrown by the position of the sun in order to tell the time of day.  The position of the sundial must be aligned with the earth’s axis to give the correct time. Today, adjustments for daylight savings time, usually an hour off true solar time, are used during the summertime.  

A straight rod called a gnomon throws a shadow onto a flat dial of hours. The dials are often decorated with witty or humorous mottoes such as “Tempus fugit” (time flies),“I only count the sunny hours”, or “Grow old along with me, the best is yet to be”.

Most sundials are laid flat, although some are mounted on buildings or walls. One really fun type of sundial is laid out on the ground with the hours as stepping stones. A person stands in a designated spot becoming the gnomon, and the his or her shadow falls on the appropriate hour. Your Crabapple LandscapExperts Rep can consult on installing such a feature for the properties you manage. 

Other sundials are formed like a three-dimensional, spherical globe, and these are called an armillary spheres. The armillary sphere is set on a plinth and forms an excellent garden ornament or focal point.

Often thyme is planted beneath the sundial and plinth as a pun on the subject.

Hours fly, Flowers die; New days, New Ways, Love stays. . .

Landscape Features and Garden Ornaments

Crabapple LandscapExperts often work with property managers and Homeowners Associations to enhance the grounds we maintain. One way to upgrade a landscape is to consider adding appropriate garden ornaments. These can complement, organize, embellish, adorn, and/or protect garden spaces within the community. Above and beyond well-grown, beautiful lawns, flower beds, trees and plantings, Crabapple can help lower the costs of urban congestion in terms of mental and physical well-being by assisting you to provide a beautifully ornamented landscape.

There are a number of categories of landscape features and garden ornaments

• Personal expression – mosaics, bottle trees, window frames, containers
• Utilitarian statements– walkways, stepping stones, edgings, fire pits, dining areas, fences, gates, stairs
• Artistic features –statues, fountains, ponds, wind chimes, gazing balls
• Relaxation – benches, patios, gazebos, porches, hammocks, swings, play structures
• Meditation – mazes and labyrinths, sundials, walls, wells, seating

These types of landscape features and garden ornaments are best coordinated with the architecture and scaled appropriately to seamlessly fit into the landscape.  Consult your CrabappleRep about adding any of these garden ornaments.