Categories: Newsletter Do chipmunks do any harm to lawns?
We didn't want to answer this question! It seems everyone loves the chipmunk so when the snow goes and there are tunnels and holes in our lawns we like to blame: the voles!, the moles!, the ground hog!, but never that cute little chipmunk who has come out of hibernation from one of their short winter naps! They look so innocent but the truth of the matter is it may just be our cute "little devil"!
Chipmunks are diggers, sometimes having underground burrows up to twenty-five feet long but only a few inches wide. These tunnels are all interconnect to food storage areas and other tunnels that can be used to escape an unwanted predator. So what about the holes? These can be areas where chipmunks started a tunnel but ran into tough digging or more often it is the chipmunk searching out food. In that they are omnivores their search could be for food buried by themselves or another animal but also could be the search for a grub, worm or some other insect. The trick to figuring out if your burrower is a mole or a chipmunk is dirt! If there is a pile of dirt next to the tunnel blame the mole, if not, that cute little chipmunk is probably the culprit! Chipmunks are tidy and don't leave dirt outside their tunnels but instead carry it way in their fat, little cheeks! Now you know!
This time of year I always have to repair the
grass next to our walkway.
What's the solution?
This is a frustration for many of our customers although for some a welcomed spring ritual. If you are tired of adding loam, aerating, reseeding, fertilizing and hoping for rain then take a look at these unique but sensible approaches that some of our other customers have used to avoid this continuous struggle!
The first approach is very straight forward and easy care for the entire season. Simply cut out and remove the sod on each side of the walk, and add a four inch layer of mulch. This method is equally effective when using wood chips or pea stone for an alternative.
Another approach is to bring planting beds up to the walk and add annuals on a yearly basis or if you really want to relax use a ground cover such as creeping juniper. Of course, all of these approaches are not nearly as enjoyable as putting a pool on one side of the walkway and crushed stone with plants on the other! Whatever the approach there are a ton of ways to do away the spring ritual of reseeding walkway edges. We will be glad to provide you with the materials for success or take a leadership role in the installation and maintenance! Happy Summer!
Will you provide delivery of landscape material to my home, cottage or workplace?
Yes! We have hundreds of yards of mulch, compost, crushed stone, gravel and pea stone awaiting travel to your yard!
Now for the details. We do all of our deliveries on Saturdays and schedule those deliveries throughout the week on a first come, first serve basis. In spring it is good to call early in the week to ensure you get a spot on the schedule. If you get an answering machine leave the particulars (i.e. type of material, number of yards, location of your property, any questions you might have and your telephone number. Someone will be back in touch with you to confirm your order and to answer all of your questions. Just so you know we hate answering machines too but with the number of calls we receive during the week we have no choice. Please accept our apologies. Deliveries are made to all of the towns in our area including Skowhegan, Norridgewock, Madison, Anson, Canaan, Smithfield, Mercer, Belgrade, Rome, Oakland, New Vineyard, Waterville, Fairfield, Winslow, Pittsfield and Newport. If your town is not listed give us a call and we will see if we can make a special arrangement. Finally, our compost is organically produced on site, our mulch is natural aged softwood bark and bits and is dark brown in color, for a more complete listing of our products and delivery areas please check out our website at https://lynchlandscaping.com
Thought of the week:
There is a piece of legislation that is coming before the legislature in this session dealing with the banning of a chemical known as neonicatinoids. We have received calls from our legislators regarding our position on this, which we truly appreciate. Let us share with you what we shared with them: "Neonics", which is very effective in controlling grubs and other turf and garden insects, have for a number of years been controversial in that they have possibly been linked to a decline in the bee population. Once this was brought to our attention we felt uncomfortable in continuing their use even though all of the evidence wasn't in. Instead we went to a pollinator safe product which we explained to our customers would be more expensive but better for the planet. If we haven't mentioned this before, we have great customers, and they readily understood and agreed. Since then we have used a product, Acelepryn, which has been very effective and very safe. Our commitment to you in regards to the products we use on the properties with which we are entrusted is very simple:
We live on lakes and rivers, love our children and grandchildren, share our property with pets ranging from cats to horses, and have a commitment to the future of the earth. Our promise to you is that we will never use anything on your property that we would not feel comfortable using in our own yards and around our own children.
Thank you for your trust and confidence!