Installing a hardscape like a patio or driveway on your property is an investment in your home, and more homeowners who make this investment are selecting permeable pavers as the material of choice. The pavers themselves are not actually permeable, they are the gorgeous top layer in a system of many layers of various crushed stone and sand. The pavers used in a permeable installation look very similar to traditional pavers, but are made with extra space between them so rainwater can flow back into the earth below, instead of running off into storm sewers. Storm water does not go through the paver but through the joints between them and into the system below. They’re Durable Permeable pavers are the most durable material out there for hardscapes. They can be used in a wide variety of climates and can tolerate freeze-thaw cycles. From a small walkway to large-scale driveway and parking pad, permeable pavers are great for nearly any application. They can be plowed, they’re strong, and they resist the peeling and cracking you might get from other materials. In the rare event that a homeowner needs to access underground utilities for repair or replacement, reinstallation of pavers is possible and avoids a "patched" appearance or any loss of permeability. They’re Ecologically-Friendly Permeable pavers allow rainwater to naturally filter and flow through the joints. So, ultimately, the water returns to the ground instead of collecting pollutants and debris while flowing into sewers and storm drains. Rain water absorption back into the soil below your hardscape reduces stormwater runoff flooding and erosion. It also lessens the impact on existing local storm sewer systems.Permeable pavers are more winter-friendly too, as snow and ice can melt and drain more easily with paver joints. This minimizes the chance of slippery surfaces and the need for harsh deicers. They’re Beautiful Even with all of their strength and durability, permeable pavers are beautiful. The options seem limitless, as there are selections in color, shape, and size. Different layeringpatterns can also be used and contribute to the overall appeal of your to your landscape. Different styles of pavers like a minimalist modern paver or an aged cobblestone can enhance or transform the character of your home. Proper Installation is Critical Permeable paver installation differs from traditional pavers in several ways. The pavers are thicker than non-permeable pavers. The joints between pavers will vary based upon the volume of water runoff to consider. Also, no sand is used between the joints, as water will flow through those joints. A good contractor will also understand soil type and infiltration rates since you are essentially building a solid structure that you want rainwater to filter through to groundwater. It is critical to have a trained contractor who has experience with permeable paver installation. A failure in installation wherecontractor installs the wrong components beneath the pavers or fills the joints with sand or stone dustcan lead to puddling or water runoff toward a structural foundation. Permeable pavers are a more ecologically-friendly material, are more durable than traditional stones and pavers, and come in a stunning variety of shapes, colors, and sizes. Gardenin’ Angels is an authorized contractor of Unilock and other permeable paver brands. We have the knowledge and experience in design and installation of permeable paver hardscapes throughout eastern Massachusetts.
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What Is Aeration Over time, our lawn soil can become compact. This makes it more difficult for grass roots to receive nutrients from water, air, sunlight, and fertilizer. Lawn aeration pierces holes into the compacted soil to relieve compaction and improve grass growth. Annual aeration helps open the path for essential nutrients to reach your grass roots and supports the other maintenance you put into your lawn throughout the year. Why Aerate Some people think that their lawn does not get compacted if there is little traffic on it. While heavy foot or vehicle traffic clearly is a culprit of compaction, even outdoor play by children and dogs can result in compaction on parts or all of your lawn. Depending on your soil type, your lawn may be more prone to compaction. If your turf looks stressed or you have puddles forming where water used to be well absorbed into the ground, you could probably use aeration. When to Aerate Mid to late summer is an ideal time to aerate your lawn, as it is peak time for natural grass growth. Aeration does disrupt your turf, so it is helpful if it coincides with your lawn’s most active growth season. It is never good to aerate when your lawn is dormant. Hiring a professional to aerate your lawn guarantees that it is done at the right time and in the right way. A professional landscape contractor will have a quality, commercial-grade plug aerator and operate it to ensure optimal coverage and results. Reseeding your lawn after aeration is a way to take advantage of a great situation. Your new seed will have direct access to nutrients like oxygen, water, and sunlight through the plug openings created from aeration. Aerating and overseeding each summer is like an annual health treatment for your lawn, preparing it for stronger and more successful growth. If you are interested in learning more about aeration for reseeding your lawn, give us a call at Gardenin’ Angels at 774-284-1171. Investing in an in-ground, automatic sprinkler system is a big decision. You want a long lasting, efficient system that helps you acheive and maintain an evenly lush lawn. You don't want to waste water and you don't want to have a lawn with patches or varying growth levels. Gardenin' Angels is proud to offer full-service irrigation services throughout southeastern Massachusetts. We provide clients with unmatched customer service and expert knowledge of irrigation design, installation, and maintenance. We provide new system design and installation, additions, and sprinkler system maintenance. We work with each property owner to address the unique needs of his or her property to achieve lush, hydrated turf while conserving water. Check out our website devoted specifically to our irriggation services: www.GardeninAngelsIrrigation.com or call us for more information at 774-284-1171. Gardenin' Angels has expanded and is opening a second location in Marshfield! We are excited about our growth and having an additional space in Marshfield. We have been delivering quality landscape design, construction, and maintenance services to residents throughout southeastern Massachusetts for more than a decade. Many of our clients are in and around the Marshfield area, so it is with pride that we open this location to better serve this region. Our new office is located at: 130 Clay Pit Rd Marshfield, MA 02050 Our location in Brockton remains open and thriving as well. We are committed to and grateful for our longstanding customers who have watched and helped us as we have grown to be one of the premier landscape construction companies of southeastern Massachusetts. Whether you're in Brockton, Boston, Marshfield, or somewhere else in southeastern MA, you can always find us online, or contact us at 774-284-1171. Fall in New England is so beautiful. The leaves are stunning and the temperatures are ideal for getting your hands in the soil. If you're up for it, take advantage of this time to get outside and plant bulbs for spring and summer blooms next year. If you're looking at your property and feeling overwhelmed by the leaves and debris that seem to blanket the ground, consider hiring the pros for a fall cleanup. A professional landscape contractor typically has a crew of experienced landscapers and high-quality, commercial equipment to get the job done quickly and hassle-free. What might take you a full day or two of work, takes our team just a few hours, and we remove every, single leaf. Fall cleanups include
Late November tends to be a busy time for us, as most folks like to have a professional fall cleanup of their property around this time. Even though there are still some leaves to fall from the trees, we recommend you call to schedule a fall cleanup, as we book up fast. We have time slots available for fall cleanups throughout the south shore now through December. Get your preferred fall cleanup date by calling us at 774-284-1171. As the summer heat starts to peter out and temperatures get a bit more mild, we might be inclined to step out of the air conditioning and enjoy our outdoor spaces. It's not too late to incorporate one of these landscaping trends of 2018 into your property. Water Features Including more natural elements in your backyard can help you and your guests relax more easily while providing beauty to your space. Water features have been gaining in popularity for their soothing sound and aesthetic appeal. A small trickle of a fountain or a shallow reflecting pool is a great addition to a garden retreat. It’s an investment that can easily make you the envy of your neighbors. We recommend having a water feature with constant water movement or a filter to avoid standing water, which can attract bugs. Conversely, moving water detracts bugs and enhances your space. Tiered Outdoor Living Spaces Creating a multilevel outdoor living space is a great way to define different areas of your outdoor property while creating an easy flow to the entire space. Many homes are built on sloped properties. Multilevel patios or decks are perfect for this type of property. Instead of having one large staircase leading from your backdoor to the yard below, breaking it up with tiered patios or decks will keep your yard and outdoor living areas connected. Custom Landscape Lighting Custom landscape lighting adds emphasis to your already beautiful landscape and to your architecture, well-selected plants and ornaments. Professionally installed residential exterior lighting adds ambience to your outdoor gatherings and overall elegance to your home. A well-lit home also makes it harder to break in to your home. An intruder would be hesitant to get in to your property, as hiding spots are hardly present in a well-lit landscape. Custom outdoor lighting is an investment in your home as well as your your safety and security. Outdoor Kitchen & Dining A hot trend this year is creating usable kitchen and dining space outside. You can create a functional and beautiful space by adding a built-in grill with integrated outdoor counter space and dedicated patio for an outdoor "dining room". Adding luxury outdoor dining furniture and a pergola step it up to the next level. If you'd like a free estimate on creating any of these outdoor landscaping trends into your home, give Gardenin' Angels a call! Many people like to add trees into their landscape. Trees can add beauty and dimension to your yard, curb appeal to the front of your home, cool shade in hot summer months, and privacy. They can also add a sense of longevity to your home, as trees are often enjoyed for generations after they've been planted. For a tree to reach full maturity and last generations, it needs to be planted properly with care and have a healthy start. If you’re going to plant a tree on your property, here’s a bit of advice to help you. 1. Carefully select the area where you want to plant your tree or trees. Depending on the type of tree and how large it can get, make sure your planting spot is 15 - 20 feet away from your house, street, driveway, utility poles and power lines and any other structures. Insert a stake or flag into the ground at this spot and call Dig Safe at 811 to get approval to dig in the spot you've selected - you don't want to start digging and hit a utility line! It's the law in Massachusetts to contact Dig Safe prior to digging. (More info HERE). 2. Once you have your spot selected and approved, stand the tree upright and untie the burlap from around the base of the trunk, but not beyond the top of the root ball at this point. Use a garden trowel to carefully remove the soil from the top of the root ball. Remove just enough soil to expose where the trunk starts to spread out into the individual roots (this is the root flare). 3. Measure the height of the root ball and subtract 2 inches; then dig your planting hole to this depth. DO NOT go deeper than this measurement! A hole too deep will bury the root flare and prevent your tree from taking root and growing successfully. Dig your hole 2 – 5 times wider than the size of the root ball as well to allow roots to spread once planted. If you’re shoveling through grass, discard any removed grass and avoid using it to back-fill your hole. 4. Accurately measure the depth of your hole and once you reach the appropriate depth, scrape the bottom of this hole so that it's flat. You can sprinkle some superphosphate around this flat bottom of your hole which will help promote healthy roots (refer to the packaging for how much to use for your size/type of tree). 5. Carefully carry or roll your tree into the hole. Take a step back and view your tree as another person slowly rotates it. Ensure that the trunk of the tree is straight and look for the nicest side of the tree to face in the direction where it can be seen most. Carefully remove the wire, twine and/or burlap from the root ball. If some burlap is hard to reach at the bottom of the root ball, you can leave it there. Loosen the soil around the root ball to expose the many tiny roots. 6. Add superphosphate and fertilizer onto the pile of native soil you shoveled out (be sure to use the amounts recommended for your size and type of tree). Mix up the soil, then start backfilling your hole and avoid burying the root flare. Once the hole is full, use the blade of your shovel to create a 4-8-inch curb around the tree, making somewhat of a crater that your tree is in. Use a garden hose to fill this crater with water. As the water is absorbed into the soil, push in your curbing to fill the crater and smooth out the soil. 7. Spread 3 inches of bark mulch over the exposed dirt around the tree, but keep it away from the trunk of the tree (this could retain excessive moisture and encourage rot). Water the tree every day for at least six weeks. Good luck with your tree planting! If you'd like assistance in selecting or planting trees on your property, feel free to call us at Gardenin' Angels for professional help. Most people want a lawn that is covered in healthy, weed-free grass. Hydroseeding is a fantastic way to achieve a lush lawn more effectively than traditional hand seeding or sod applications. But what is it exactly? Hydroseeding combines grass seed, fertilizer, lime, moisture retention polymers, mulch and water into a mixture that is sprayed onto ground to establish grass growth. This hydroseed mixture is prepared on site to create a fresh and even combination that is sprayed over prepared ground in a uniform layer. Hydroseeding has advantages over traditional seeding with quicker and more uniform seed germination. Hydroseeding is typically more effective because mulch in the mixture acts as the growth medium for the seed. When the appropriate type and rate of mulch is applied, it provides moisture retention for faster germination, insulation from temperature extremes, contains no weed seed, and sticks to the ground to prevent seeds from blowing away or being eaten by birds or pests. The Hydroseeding mixture can be adjusted with various additives to create the ideal growth environment for the seed. The other big advantage versus conventional seeding methods is the labor savings. This is because all of the ingredients that you want to apply to the seed bed are combined into the slurry and applied at the same time. The conventional seeding process usually requires each item to be applied one at a time in layers. BENEFITS OF HYDROSEEDING
If you are interested in hydroseeding your property, give us a call at Gardenin' Angels - 774-284-1171. We are excited to share with our friends and customers of Gardenin' Angels that we have a new sister company, Prime Irrigation! Prime is poised to deliver the best irrigation, landscape lighting and Christmas lighting services throughout southeastern Massachusetts starting this April! We encourage you to explore our new Prime website for more information. Prime Irrigation will also have its own blog soon with articles and information regarding irrigation, sprinkler maintenance, lighting ideas and inspiration, and updates on our work projects. We are truly excited about delivering these services with the highest quality workmanship and customer satisfaction. Check out www.PrimeIrrigationAndLights.com and contact Prime for your next irrigation or landscape lighting project at 774-381-5000. You can also follow us on our Prime Irrigation Facebook page! The nor’easter storms we’ve experienced these past few weeks have left a mess of our landscapes, but spring is just around the corner. The snow is sure to melt and the warmth is sure to follow. But the recent damaging weather left us with broken trees, fallen limbs, crushed shrubs, moldy piles of leaves, squashed grass, and other debris. A professional spring cleanup by a landscaper will help ensure your property not only looks tidy, but provides a healthy start for the spring and summer seasons. Gardenin’ Angels can help your lawn and landscape recover from this winter and look pristine. Schedule your spring cleanup now, as we book up quickly. Spring cleanups may vary based on the unique features and conditions of each property and what each client’s needs are. A comprehensive spring cleanup may include:
A spring cleanup can be vital to the health of your lawn and landscape. Call is today to schedule your spring cleanup. Gardenin’ Angels: 774-284-1171. |
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