Creating Gardens

Maintaining Gardens
Standard GardenCare Executive GardenCare Premier GardenCare Seasonal GardenCare GardenCare Extras GardenCare Organics “I was delighted and amazed by the extraordinary service we received from Garden Gate.” W. Fisher	GardenCare Extras
	-Enhancement Plantings -Color Program -Irrigation Monitoring -Lighting Monitoring -Water Garden Program -Perennial Bed Management	-Rose Garden Care -Lawn Renovation -Gutter Cleaning -Deer Netting/Fencing -Structural Pruning -Pressure Washing
	Enhancement Plantings •Your spring cleanup will occur between mid-February and mid-April. • Removal of debris and weeds from plant beds. • Fertilization of shrubs, small trees under (15) fifteen feet, perennials and ground covers with an appropriate organic fertilizer. • Plant beds will be re-edged. Pruning of shrubs, small trees under (15) fifteen feet, perennials and ground covers in order to maintain a natural growth habit and appearance. • Mulching of bed areas to maintain a depth of a nominal (2) two inches of mulch coverage. Our standard mulch is shredded hardwood bark. Specialized bed areas may be mulched with compost or pine bark fines where appropriate and at a mulch depth of a nominal (1) one inch. • Larger bed areas will receive a pre-emergent herbicide application to discourage the germination of weed seeds. Pre-emergent application does not control perennial weeds. Perennial weeds can only be controlled by hand weeding and/or the application of a chemical herbicide directly to the weed. Color Program Annual Flowers: Annual color may be installed in your flower beds and/or containers in the garden per your request. Spring annuals are planted between the second week in May and the second week in June. Fall pansies will be planted between the second week in October and the second week in November. The timing of planting is based on weather conditions, frost warnings and market availability. In order for us to service your annual needs we will need to know your particular color pallete requirements and your acceptable or non-acceptable varieties of annuals. We cannot guarantee a particular or specific color since color is subjective and the market availability varies day to day during the annuals season. If you desire a very specific color we recommend you purchase your own annuals and we will be most happy to plant them for you. Flower Spacing: 4 ½” annuals will be spaced 6-9” on center and 6” annuals will be planted 12-15” on center in annual beds. Container plantings generally are planted pot-on-pot. Fall Planting of Spring Flowering Bulbs:Tulips may be combined with pansies during your fall annual planting. Daffodils and other spring bulbs may also be planted in areas other than your annual flower beds upon request. Bed Preparation: The annual flower program includes annual plant materials, supplemental amendments and tilling of the beds between crop rotations, installation of flowers, topdressing the mulch with organic compost or pine fines. Additional flower beds can be built and prepared when needed upon request. Floricultural care: Ongoing care for your annuals includes appropriate fertilization (bi-weekly for containers and monthly for flower beds), weeding, and deadheading to encourage continued blooming. The annual plantings will be thoroughly watered upon installation. The annual flowers will require watering throughout the season -- please consult with your GardenCare horticulturist about specific watering requirements for your annuals. Debris removal: At the end of the growing season, spent annual flower plants will be removed and recycled in our Green Waste recycling program. Garden Irrigation Monitoring and Servicing Program • System start-up in the spring is performed between mid-April and the end of May. • Fall shut-down and winterization will be performed in November. • Irrigation head repair or replacement is included for up to (2) two heads during the spring system startup. Additional head replacement occurring after the spring start-up will be billed as an extra. • Your system will be tested and monitored two times during the irrigation season -- once in early summer and once in late summer or early fall. At these monitoring visits we will check and reset your program clock as needed. • Additional monitoring visits can be added upon request. Irrigation system modification, adjustments and major repairs are offered as a separate service upon your request. Garden Lighting Monitoring and Servicing Program • Your 12-volt lighting system will be monitored and serviced twice annually -- once in the spring and once in the fall. • Your system lamps will be checked and replaced when needed. • An inspection of visible wiring will be made and any necessary adjustments will be made. Underground wiring will only be inspected if there is a breakdown in the system. Underground wiring replacement or repairs is not included in this program and will be done as an additional charge. • Once per year all tree-mounted fixtures will be checked and adjusted as needed. Water Garden Program A healthy, self-sustaining pond should contain a mixture of plants, animals and bacteria. Your GardenCare horticulturalist will evaluate your water garden and establish a seasonal water garden management program which will basically consist of the following: Spring and Summer: • Fertilize pond plants by late April. • Clean organic matter from the bottom of the pond. • Remove filamentous algae. Fall and Winter: • We will cover your pond with plastic netting to catch the fall leaf drop. The netting will be removed after the fall leaf drop is finished in early January. • Hardy water plants will be removed from the pond in order to remove excessive root growth from the plants and to cut back their tops. Afterward the plants will be returned to your pond. Non-hardy or seasonal water plants will be removed and recycled in our GreenWaste program. • As a general rule, the water in your pond should continue to circulate through the winter. We will supply and install a small heater to maintain a small opening in the pond surface to allow harmful gases to escape and oxygen to enter when the pond surface is frozen. Perennial Bed Management • Perennial beds will be monitored for plant health care and will follow our plant health treatment regimen. • Perennial beds will be visited weekly during the growing season. • The perennial beds will be hand weeded. • Perennial plants will be dead headed, and/or pinched to encourage re-blooming. • Stakes and or ties will be provided and installed to help train your perennials. • The perennial beds will be winterized and any resulting debris from cutting back perennials will be recycled in our GreenWaste program. Rose Garden Care • All hybrid roses will be monitored for plant health care and will follow our plant health treatment regimen. • All hybrid roses will be fertilized at the beginning of the growing season with a slow release fertilizer. • Roses will be deadheaded throughout the season to encourage re-blooming. • Weeds within the rose gardens will be pulled by hand. Any debris around the roses will also be removed by hand. • Rose gardens will be visited weekly by the GardenCare horticulturist. • At the end of the growing season your roses will be pruned and winterized. Lawn Renovation • All lawn areas to be renovated will be cleared of debris prior to the renovation. We will need access to your irrigation control in order to locate lawn irrigation heads. If your garden has an irrigation system, we will flag the sprinkler heads in the lawn areas to avoid damaging them. Any damaged heads will be repaired. • The lawn will be aerated with a mechanical aerator to a depth of approximately (3) inches in order to provide access for oxygen and water to penetrate more deeply to the root system of your turf. • Any bare soil areas will be top-dressed with a special lawn soil mix. Seed-Aide fibrous mulch will be used to help accelerate seed germination. • All lawn areas will be over-seeded at a rate of 3 lbs. per 1000 sq. ft with the appropriate seed mix. • An appropriate fertilizer will be applied to ensure the recovery of your lawn. • The success of lawn seeding in primarily dependent on a continuous source of moisture. The objective is to not let the seed every dry completely, however, excessive moisture can caught rotting of the seed. Please consult with your GardenCare horticulturist regarding specific watering requirements for your lawn. Gutter Cleaning Gutters will be cleared of leaf debris once in the early spring and twice in the fall during leaf drop. Please consult your GardenCare horticulturalist if you would like additional cleanings. Deer Netting/Fencing • Shrubs which may be damaged by deer in the winter months will be netted using black ¼” poly netting. • The netting will be installed after all leaves have fallen from surrounding trees. The netting will be removed from the shrubs in early spring before any buds begin to emerge from the shrubs. • The netting will be anchored to the ground with staples and tied together using dark colored twine. • The netting will be periodically checked and any repairs will be made as necessary. Structural or Specialized Pruning • Your GardenCare Horticulturalist will review your small trees and shrubs requiring structural or specialized pruning to develop an appropriate schedule for your garden’s plants. • Small trees and shrubs 15’ or less will be pruned to maintain natural growth habit and appearance. • Shrubs which require specialized pruning (i.e. shearing, pollarding and espaliered) are maintained to your specifications. • Pruning practices include removal of dead or diseased branches, crossing branches and sucker growth. Pressure Washing Specified hard surfaces will be pressure washed to clean the area of dirt and grime buildup. Note: We cannot pressure wash wooden decks and/or house siding.