(Continued on page 2)

Fertilize Appropriately

Fertilization is important for a plush

and healthy lawn, but the wrong mix

at the wrong time could lead to more

harm than good. This is because ill-

timed fertilization efforts (especially

applications rich in nitrogen) lead to

new growth—which is particularly

susceptible to low temperatures.

Deans’ lawn fertilization program is

tailored to the environmental condi-

tions in your area so that your

lawn gets a balanced delivery all

year-round.

Water Properly

Over-watering can increase

the damage caused by a

freeze or severe frost, but not

watering at all can present

problems as well. Your irri-

gation schedule should be

adjusted in response to

rainfall and tempera-

ture, but until the

temperature reach-

es 45°, water should

still be applied to

keep your lawn from

d r y i n g u p . R e f e r t o t h e

‘Recommended Watering Schedule’

on the next page to help determine

when and how much to water during

cool months.

Remember, Deans’ AquaCheck irri-

gation maintenance program pro-

vides year-round monitoring to en-

sure that your system is applying

just the right amount of water at

just the right time.

W hile Florida may

not have the

brutal win-

ters of our

northern neighbors, our

grass may still need a lit-

tle more attention as the

cool season approaches.

This is because, like so

many Floridians, warm-

season grass simply is-

n’t used to the bitter

cold.

Most grasses of the

south, such as Zoy-

sia and St. Augus-

tine, will sustain

some discoloration

at the onset of

cooler tempera-

tures. Though not

as attractive as their usual shade of

green, this is a natural defense

against the cold and occurs in antic-

ipation of a recovery in spring. How-

ever, in some cases, when the freeze

is too severe, or when proper pre-

cautions haven’t been taken to pre-

pare, or “winterize”, the lawn, low

temperatures can lead to lasting

damage. Consider the following tips

so you can look forward to a green,

healthy lawn come springtime.

Watering

Schedule

Adjust Your Watering as

Temperatures Change

Page 2

Seasonal

Reminders

Get Ready for Cooler Weather

Page 3

Customer

Questions

“Could Your Products Damage

My Trees or Shrubs?”

Page 3

Bedbug

Prevention

A Few Tips to Help You Avoid

Any Holiday Hitchhikers!

Page 4

Volume V, Issue 1

Is Your Lawn Winter Ready?

Reduce Shade

Because shade prevents the sun from warming the

soil, grass in these areas stays colder longer. Ex-

treme shade also slows the turf’s production of car-

bohydrates which are needed to tolerate cold. Re-

duce this risk by trimming trees or bushes in ex-

cessively shady areas.

Freeze/Frost Prep

Even with all the aforementioned preparations, a

frost or hard freeze can still damage your turf. In

the event of a frost (that is, when it’s just cold

enough for ice crystals to form on the surface of

your lawn…but not quite cold enough to freeze) be

sure to run your irrigation immediately to rinse

away this layer of frost and prevent damage to the

grass blade. About 5 minutes per zone should suf-

fice.

If a freeze occurs, your action is simple: Don’t wa-

ter. Watering in freezing conditions will only inten-

sify any damage to your grass. By having properly

prepared your grass for this weather, your turf

should shed any dead tissue and rebound nicely in

the spring.

(continued from page 1)

Generally, January and February are the coldest

months here in central Florida, however, cold fronts

have been known to come in as late as April, so keep

these tips in mind and keep an eye on the forecast. As

always, if you have any questions about your lawn or

would like more information on our fertilization pro-

gram, call us at (352) 787-5300.

Proper fertilization in the months leading up to winter will help

prepare your turf for the cooler weather.

“Could Your Products Damage My Trees and Shrubs?” Joe Tomasiello; General Manager; CPCO

Got a Question? We’ve Got an Answer!

Submit your question at deansservices.com/contact

With cooler weather here, we thought it’d be a great time for a few quick reminders about your lawn and irrigation system. If you have any questions, call (352) 787-5300 or visit DeansServices.com and enter “Watering FAQs” into the Search Field.

Timer Adjustments During the cooler seasons, lawns are more susceptible to various fungal infections. To reduce this risk, make sure your irrigation is set to stop watering just before sunrise, thus ensuring the evaporation of any excess water.

Freeze Preparedness Though grass growth will slow in the cooler months, watering is still important to prevent your lawn from drying up—that is, until the temperature drops to 45°. In the event of a frost (when ice crystals form on grass blades), be sure to rinse off the grass for about 5 minutes per zone. If a freeze occurs, don’t water at all.

Year-Round Fertilization Fertilization is crucial for a green lawn; but when grass color fades naturally in cool months, nutrients are still re-quired for the less visible parts of your turf, like the root system. By focusing our fertilization program on this area,

Deans not only helps your lawn survive the winter, but ensures a healthy resurgence in spring. If you’re not using a company that fertilizes year-round, consider calling us for a free estimate.

A Few Friendly Reminders from

It’s true that some household chemicals are ‘phytotoxic’, or, harmful to

plants (bleach springs to mind due to its common use in home pressure

-washing services). However, you can rest assured that no such prod-

ucts are employed by Deans as a means of residual maintenance on

your home’s exterior.

By choosing products manufactured by reputable companies such as

Bayer, BASF and DuPont, Deans ensures that all of our products used

on a regular basis have been carefully formulated for application near

plants commonly found around the home. In fact, most of our products

are labeled specifically for direct application to such plants.

It’s worth adding that although we do have access to chemicals that—if misapplied—could damage foliage, such prod-

ucts are used only for rare instances such as bee or wasp infestations, and in such cases, care is taken to avoid overspray

onto surrounding plants wherever possible.

The truth is, disease, nematodes, drought, nutritional disorders and other environmental factors are the most common

causes of ornamental discoloration or defoliation. To help determine the cause of any such symptoms, call Deans any

time, and always be sure to save a sample of the affected plant.

Know Your Enemy Bedbugs are small, but by no means too small to be seen. The bullet-points of this outline are the actual size of a fully grown bedbug (they’re bigger than most people expect). Also look for small reddish-black dots staining walls or mattresses—these droppings indicate bedbugs are present. Bite marks most commonly appear as three or four small red dots placed in a row, but everyone reacts to bedbug bites differently with a minority of people showing no reaction at all.

Inspect When Travelling The most commonly infested sites include hotels and dorm rooms, so always take a moment to inspect your bed when traveling. Bedbugs are generally hidden during the day, but you can find them around headboards, baseboards, and mattress seams. Also inspect new furniture or bedding, since these can also transport infestations. Avoid refurbished mattresses and box springs, since they’re often rewrapped, which can conceal an infestation.

Wrap Your Beds Using bedbug mattress and box spring encasements will reduce the chance of infestation and make remediation much easier. Protect-A-Bed is generally the brand most trusted by professionals. Watch out for cheap imitations which may tear over time.

Avoid Snake Oil Salesmen Since the return of bedbugs, many products have appeared on the market claiming to be completely safe while offering immediate eradica-tion of bedbugs without “toxic” chemicals. Don’t fall prey to these claims. As any honest pest professional can attest, completely ridding a home of bedbugs may at times require both chemical and non-chemical approaches. As Entomologist Gwen Pearson said, “You can spray your bedbugs with “Essential Oils”…but they’ll just smell minty.”

Contact a Reputable Professional Though there are DIY kits available, most are either ineffective or potentially unsafe if applied without adequate training. If you suspect activi-ty, be sure to contact a reputable Pest Management Professional. Even if you choose a company other than Deans, just be sure they have the same extensive experience with bedbugs and also offer a 100% elimination guarantee.

G oodnight. Sleep tight. Don’t let the bedbugs bite!”

If you’re familiar with that old rhyme you may

have grown up thinking that was just an innocent

lyric; but in reality, it originated during a time

when the warning was quite valid.

That’s because until the late 1940’s, bedbugs were a common

pest in the U.S. These blood-sucking pests infested homes

by hitchhiking on clothes, luggage, and furniture. For a

time, bedbugs were nearly eradicated and thus rele-

gated to folklore esteem for nearly 50 years; but

that’s all changed, and pest control companies

have reported a significant increase in bedbug

remediation in the past several years.

While Deans has developed a

comprehensive bedbug reme-

diation program, bed bug

prevention is invaluable. Con-

sider these tips and keep

those bloodthirsty bugs from

bunking in your bed!