Michelle Galloway
Owner, Woodlands Exterior Designs/Houston Grass[/caption] The owner of a local landscaping company offers best practices for summer lawn care in the Tomball and Magnolia areas. Michelle Galloway Owner, Woodlands Exterior Designs/Houston Grass What tips might you have for taking care of a lawn during summer? Make sure you water it very well and [apply] your pre-emergence [herbicides]. ... Watch out for fungus starting in the yard and keep an eye on that. Make sure you follow through on your directions for fertilizing and pre-emergence. What should residents avoid when caring for a lawn? [Avoid] overwatering. That’s a big issue, especially since we have such [a] humid climate. Especially after it rains and we get a lot of soggy, wet conditions, try to lay off the sprinkler systems and that type of thing because it could create a fungus. It’s always helpful—a lot of people don’t think about it—if you have a lawn company, [to] just make sure they’re cleaning their mowers, because they can spread fungus that way, too. We see a lot of that in the summer months, especially when it’s hot and sticky. What makes a lawn healthy? It’s well-rooted, [and] there’s not a lot of missing pieces. When it’s sparse in some parts, that can be a sign of an unhealthy lawn. [A healthy lawn] has nice, green color [and a] good root system. You can’t see a lot of dirt. You shouldn’t really see any dirt; you should see mostly thick grass. How can Tomball and Magnolia residents conserve water while considering lawn care? Make sure that [you’re] watering before sunrise, early in the morning. Don’t run your system in the afternoon or when the sun is shining, especially not in the [heat] of the day. If [you] have to hand water or use a sprinkler, try to do it after the sun goes down or after it sets. How can residents find information about watering restrictions? Normally, their water district will put out some kind of information on it. Normally, they put it on the [water] bill. … Anybody who services their water will know those types of things. And of course if they have a well—I know a lot of people out in Magnolia and Tomball have wells. The Lone Star [Groundwater] Conservation District [is] really good. They always have that info.