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30 Dec

Posted at 14:09h in Landscaping, Sprinkler System

As winter arrives and freezing temperatures follow, preparing for those frigid winter days becomes increasingly important. There are plenty of tips for preventing pipe freeze inside of your home, but what about your outdoor sprinkler system? Do you even need to winterize it?

Truthfully, the answer to that question depends on where you live. If you live in an area with a cold climate that regularly sees temperatures below freezing, or you see harsh weather often, winterizing your sprinkler system is essential. Failing to do so will lead to the need for a new system when the season ends.

In this article, we’re going to cover when you need to worry about winterizing your sprinkler system and how to do so.

When to Winterize Your Sprinklers

The general rule for winterizing your sprinkler system is at least one week before the first freeze of the winter. Doing this will avoid potential damage to your system from freezing water. When winter is approaching, it’s important to pay close attention to the forecast and winterize your sprinkler system as soon as you see temperatures of 32 degrees Fahrenheit or lower.

32 degrees Fahrenheit is also known as the freezing point for water. When you see this temperature in the forecast, you know to drain the sprinklers completely to keep the water from freezing.

How to Effectively Winterize Your Sprinkler System

Winterizing a sprinkler system sounds like a lengthy, time-consuming process. However, it really just refers to the draining of your irrigation system before the first freeze of the year. This is a vital process in sprinkler system upkeep as failing to do so will cause your system to sustain damage that will sit until everything thaws in the spring.

When water isn’t drained entirely from your sprinkler system, it expands when it freezes. If there’s enough water still in your pipes, it has the potential to explode. So, if you want to save your money, taking the time to winterize your sprinkler system is a must.

To properly winterize your sprinkler system, follow these steps:

  1. Shut the water off. This means shutting off the main water supply to the system and any pipes leading to your backflow device if you have one.
  2. Make sure the timer is off. Most sprinkler systems run on a timer, so it’s important to make sure that’s switched off so water won’t flow to each release valve anymore.
  3. Drain the sprinkler’s water supply. Although you no longer have new water flowing through the system, you still need to get rid of any standing water in the pipes. This can be done via manual, automatic, or blow-out draining.
  4. Insulate anything aboveground. Cover any valves, pipes, and backflow preventers with insulating material like foam covers or insulation tape. Take care not to cover any air vents or drain outlets on your backflow preventer.

Draining Methods

There are three different ways to drain your sprinkler system. Some sprinkler systems have a manual draining option where you empty the system at each valve, one at a time. Other systems have an automatic option where they drain once you shut off the main valve.

Blow-out draining is an option with some systems that let you connect an air compressor to the system to blow out any residual water.

08 Dec

Posted at 08:50h in Landscaping

A tremendous amount of effort goes into landscaping. When you care about the landscaping of your home, every detail matters. You curate the positions of plants, the additions of ornaments, and the watering schedule to keep everything healthy. One of the ways to showcase this work is by installing landscape lighting.

When placed properly, landscape lighting highlights the beauty of your home’s natural features in the dark. It can make any lawn or garden feel magical, and it makes it a good space to spend time in after the sun has set. If you’re considering landscape lighting for your home, these are the areas you should consider installing it.

Along Walls and Barriers

If you’ve got beautiful wall structures as a part of your home’s landscaping, consider using lights to highlight them. Lights on top of walls help to illuminate the area underneath them, providing light to the grounds themselves. You may also consider putting lighting at the bases of walls, shining up and illuminating them in the dark. This provides a gorgeous effect on textured surfaces, like stone or brick walls.

Lining Paths and Walkways

The way you approach this depends entirely upon the kinds of walkways you have on your property. For straight paths with hard intersections, consider only lighting the corners, where walkways intersect. For winding paths, line the sides of the path to illustrate where people should be walking. This helps guide people as they walk, as well as their attention to the plants surrounding the paths. It can also be considered a safety feature, helping to prevent stumbling, or tripping at night.

At the Bases of Plants and Trees

The plants and trees you have in your garden are the showcase of your landscaping. This is true both during the day and at night, should you choose to highlight them with lighting! Illuminating the base of larger trees creates a variety of attractive features, like shadow casting and outlining.

However, lighting doesn’t need to be so strategic. Simple flood lights to show the beauty of your plants can be just as effective, and lets your guests see what you’ve cultivated after the sun goes down.

Around Water Features

Some of the most desirable landscaping features in a home may be the water features that people install. As with any other part of your landscape, these can be properly showcased using good lighting. There are underwater lighting options available, as well as directional lighting options. When you shine light on the surface of the water, especially if it’s moving, you create a gorgeous dancing effect with the reflections.

Create Outdoor Livability with Lights

You don’t have to stop spending time in the garden just because the sun has gone down. When you add good lighting to the garden, you create an enchanting space that you can enjoy in the dark. Great outdoor lights can illuminate a small gazebo, or even just a bench in the garden that you can relax at. Add some lights to your landscape today!

08 Dec

Posted at 08:47h in Landscaping

Lawn care is a lot of work. You have to worry about weeding, keeping the grass cut, and taking care of any decorative or ornamental plants. There are various layers of difficulty, but when you put them all together, it still takes time and effort. One of the biggest parts of taking care of your lawn is watering. To keep suitable grass on your property, you have to dedicate time to watering and feeding it, in addition to pest control.

One way to make this easier is by investing in a sprinkler system. Sprinkle systems take all of the labor out of watering your lawn. Many can be timed, and will only provide water to your grass when it needs it. However, a sprinkler system isn’t for everyone. Check out some reasons that you may want a sprinkler system, and why you may not.

Reasons to Install a Sprinkler System

A sprinkler system takes planning and work to install. However, once it’s been put into place, the benefits are huge. Take a look at them below!

  • Lawn maintenance becomes easy, with almost no manual labor having to do with watering.
  • Sprinkler systems make sure that your grass is given the right amount of water. Often, homeowners deprive their grass of the full amount of water it needs to thrive.
  • In terms of longevity, a properly installed sprinkler system will outlast a hose with ease. Hoses are subject to dry rot, as are the attachments you buy for them,
  • Overall, sprinkler systems are more water-efficient. This means that you’ll be able to conserve water, as well as reduce the amount of money you’re paying for your water bill each month.

Reasons to Avoid Installing a Sprinkler System

While the benefits a sprinkler system provides are great, they aren’t for everyone. There are a few reasons to avoid installing a sprinkler system for your home.

  • The initial cost of a sprinkler system may be too great for your household. When irrigation is done right, it can be expensive. It can also be higher in cost depending on the conditions of your lawn. If it requires more labor, it will require more money.
  • Your lawn may be too small for a sprinkler system to be effective. If that’s the case, avoid installing a system. It won’t save you time or money in the long run.
  • Additionally, your lawn may not be grassy! Xenoscaping, or creating landscapes with low-water needs, is popular in some areas. These lawns may need occasional watering, but it’s unlikely that you’ll need a sprinkler system to do so.

Should You Get a Sprinkler System?

If you find that you’re having a hard time keeping your lawn healthy, or just don’t have the time to manually water, you may want a sprinkler system. Installing a sprinkler system will help keep your grass healthy, and it will put time back into your day! It may be a high initial cost, but it’ll likely save you money in the long run.

02 Nov

Posted at 16:07h in Landscaping

Trying to keep a colorful garden in the unpredictable weather of Texas should be considered an extreme sport. With some days seeing all four seasons in a 24 hour period, it’s hard for colorful flora to thrive in the Lonestar State.

Thankfully, some flower species can withstand the ever-changing weather patterns of winter in Texas. Snapdragons, marigolds, and pansies are among the most common winter flowers that grow well here and some have more than one function too.

In this article, we’ll explore five of the best Texas winter flowers to add to your garden landscaping.

Texas Winter Flowers

Whether you’re worried about hard freezes or wild weather phenomena, the five winter flower species highlighted below are resilient enough to put your mind at ease. Read on to find out how these plant species can add the wow factor to your landscaping.

Pansies

These whimsical flowers come in a variety of colors and are distinctive by the “faces” on each flower head. Pansies are perfect for Texas growing in the winter because they prefer cool weather and struggle when it gets too hot. They’re known to survive frosts and grow back to normal shortly after a thaw. They often bloom multiple times during the winter.

Snapdragons

Snapdragons are short-lived perennials that are more commonly grown as annual flowers. They bloom quickly and cycle through life rather fast. With that being said, they also bloom incredibly vibrant flowers and do well in cooler weather. These flowers can also come in a variety of sizes depending on the seed. While some only grow a few inches, others have been recorded at up to four feet.

English Marigolds

English marigolds, also known as calendulas, are a common flower in many Texas gardens. The flowers on this plant grow quite large and are typically orange, yellow, apricot, and cream-colored. In some cases, the petals may be a mix of these colors. They’re incredibly easy to care for and they also come in dwarf and tall varieties. Marigolds are a popular Texas plant in the winter because they do well in cool climates. Although Texas doesn’t normally see heavy snowfall, it can still get pretty cold. Because of that, it’s important to make sure you have floral varieties that are hardy against the cold.

Petunias

Petunias are by far the most common garden flower around the U.S. However, it’s more preferred during Texas winter because the stems get leggy when exposed to excessive heat. Petunias have one of the longest flowering periods of any flowering plant and come in a plethora of colors.

This flower is typically divided into five different groups depending on its length and how it grows: multiflora, grandiflora, floribundas, millifloras, and spreading or trailing petunias.

Rosemary

Rosemary is a fragrant herb that is commonly grown in outdoor gardens. It’s evergreen too, which means it grows year-round, including the winter. Rosemary is a handy plant to have in your garden not only because it’s an easy ground cover and provides a pleasant aroma, but also because it can be used in everyday cooking too.

01 Nov

Posted at 16:07h in Landscaping

Winter is a time of greyscale in nature. The ground is covered in a blanket of white while the deciduous trees are bare and the conifers are sleeping. But what does that mean for your landscape at home?

There are certain precautions you should take with your landscape before the winter months come and throughout the cold season. While failing to take caution during this time won’t automatically result in dead greenery, it can help increase a plant’s chance of survival into the new year.

In this article, we’ll cover what the proper precautionary measures are. We’ll also explain the difference between dormancy and death in plants to avoid possible confusion.

Precautionary Measures to Take

The winter months are a good time to break out the pruning tools on your trees. Most trees go dormant in the winter and the healing process goes much smoother when the tree is asleep. Winter is also the best time for pruning because most of the pests and bacteria that like to prey on bare wood are also dormant for the winter.

When it comes to trimming, it’s important to consult a professional if you aren’t a seasoned arborist. StreamLine offers tree pruning services that are guaranteed to be done correctly.

Beyond annual pruning, there are a few other things to keep in mind:

  • Fertilize during the winter. Texas soil doesn’t normally freeze during the winter, which means tree roots continue to soak nutrients up from the ground all year. Fertilizing in the winter ensures roots will grow healthily in the new year.
  • Plant new trees. While many people may not consider winter a good time to plant new growth, the answer is on the contrary. Planting new trees in the winter allows the tree’s root system to grow longer.
  • Wrap trees that need more warmth. Some trees can’t handle temperatures that are too cold. By wrapping their trunk, you help the tree keep in heat and avoid freezing to death. Keep in mind though, the wrapping should fit snugly but not so tight that it chokes the tree.
  • Lay some mulch. Mulching gives the ground a blanket to protect itself from the dry and cold winter air. One layer of mulch should lay flat and measure at 3-6 inches deep depending on the plants being mulched.
  • Water if necessary. If you notice some shrubbery or trees are looking a little sad, check the soil. If it’s dry, your landscaping may need a drink of water.

Dormancy vs. Death

When greenery goes dormant, it’s just a fancier way of saying the plant is sleeping. Most trees will go dormant in the winter, as well as grass and most shrubbery. If you’re concerned with how your landscaping looks and whether or not it’s dormant or dead, there’s something you can do. To test the life of your landscape, just water it for a few days. If the vegetation turns green again, it was only dormant. However, if it remains a dead yellow-brown color, it’s more likely to be dead.