Page 73 - Senior Link Magazine Summer 2024 - Online Magazine

SENIOR RESOURCES SENIOR RESOURCES

LOVING

YOUR LANDSCAPE

by Sam A Foncham, PhD

our home consists of the 3) “I have dead spots on my lawn.” water. Too much water in the soil
structure in which you live, • Gasoline or engine oil may have can have the same effect as too little
Yplus the surrounding space up spilled. (Oils are herbicides.) water.
to your property boundary, which • Clumps of fertilizer may
we term “landscape” or yard. Your have fallen on the turf. (If too 6) “My lawn or trees are doing better
landscape, particularly your front concentrated, a fertilizer may on one side than the other.”
yard, which in most cases is exposed become an herbicide. Watering may Sunlight, slope, and soil type may
to the public, often reflects your help to dissolve it.) vary, even on a small property,
personality. • Grub worms may cause patches on resulting in growth differences.
the lawn. Consult a specialist.
Many rules are in place for those 7) “My driveway is cracking.”
who occupy a home. For example, 4) “My lawn has built up over the Roots of trees may be the cause.
if half of your property has weeds years.” Also, even a well-compacted soil
above one foot, you may receive a Dust is usually the cause. This can expand and contract at different
citation from the city to bring it to is more common in yards on the rates, so driveways (just like streets)
compliance. Also, if your trees or outskirts of the city or near farms. cannot be guaranteed to be crack-free
bushes are blocking traffic, you may Lawns can be regraded, and sprinkler over the years.
be required to remove or trim them. heads adjusted.
Sam Foncham has been in business
Most Lubbock homeowners take 5) “I can’t get anything to grow in for 29 years and holds graduate
pride in their lawns, but they face a my yard.” degrees in Plant and Soil Science
few common problems: The urban environment is complex. as well as in Family and Consumer
• Salts used in melting snow may Sciences Education. He can help you
1) “I have too many weeds.” splash with the rains onto the lawn. resolve many of these issues and
Routine maintenance should be a • Asphalt in road construction may more.
year-round activity. Some companies affect trees and lawns. Call him at Sam and Company
provide a year-round weed control • During home construction, diesel 806-786-5284.
package which may or may not and other
include mowing. For established oils may
lawns, routine fertilizer and watering cause the
usually reduces the chances of a soil to be
weed problem. barren.
• Some
2) “My yard isn’t level anymore.” soils
Soils may be leveled during are just
construction, but the soils don’t settle infertile.
uniformly because some may have • Some
more organic matter than others. lawn areas
Also, the soil type may be different may be
and heavy equipment used may low and
compact the soil more in some areas. saturated
with

Lubbock Senior Link 73