Okay – here is a quick tip, not a full show.

Lawn Aerating

Fall and Spring are a great time to aerate your lawn. An aerator will break up hard compacted soil and allow water and nutrients to better reach the roots of your grass. We all know that, that’s not the quick tip. The tip has to do with when you rent an Aerator.

Lawn Aerating Problems

When you rent an aerator there is often the previous users bits of dirt and grass embedded in the plugs inside tines. Those plugs can contain weeds, weed seeds, other varieties of grass, etc. When you run the aerator over your lawn you essentially will plant whatever the previous user had in their lawn in your lawn. Not good.

Lawn Aerating Best Practice

Avoid spreading of weeds and take a moment to hose off the tines before you begin aerating your lawn.

In this video episode of The Handyguys we discuss some common tractor and mower maintenance for your John Deere.

We discuss changing oil, checking air filters, the location of spark plugs, grease points and fuel filters.

John Deere sells a Home maintenance kit specifically for your tractor. It contains most of the items you will want for DIY maintenance of your tractor. One thing the kit does NOT contain is a grease gun and grease. This Grease Gun from Amazon is similar to the one used by The Handyguys in the video and works nicely. .

John Deere has provided The Handyguys the products used in this evaluation. However, the opinions of The Handyguys are entirely our own and we have not been paid to make positive comments.

Our friends over at John Deere sent us some great lawn care information that we wanted to share with everyone before Labor Day. There is no audio or video with this post. A survey with Harris Interactive found out that 79% of homeowners and renters in the U.S. are planning to mow their lawns in preparation for entertaining at home this Labor Day.

Here are some quick do’s and don’ts from the experts at John Deere for an envious lawn this holiday weekend:

Pre Labor Day Lawn Care Do’s

• Adjust the height of the mower deck to mow only the top one-third of the blade of grass. This helps encourage a deep root system and keeps the lawn looking and feeling healthy.
• Mow in the mid to late-morning, when it’s cool and dry. After the morning dew dries off is the best time for the grass–it isn’t suffering from afternoon sun stress, but it isn’t so damp that grass clumps form in the blades.
• Water your lawn if you notice curling grass blades or “footprinting.” If you’re dealing with drought, mow on the high side.

Pre Labor Day Lawn Care Don’ts

• Fertilize just yet. It can help revitalize a stressed lawn but it takes time, and the lawn should stay clear of activity for several days to allow the fertilizer to penetrate.
• Cut your grass too short. Higher heights usually look better, provide for a deeper root system, and help prevent from invading weeds.
• Mow the same direction every time. This will leave streaks and striped lines that grow back irregularly and look rather unsightly.

Avoiding skunks in your yard and an answer to “Does a handyguy need a trailer?” We cover both topics in this show.

Skunks

Skunks, how do you get rid of them?

Don’t give them a reason to come into your yard. Make sure you don’t leave anything around for them to eat, dog or cat food, garbage, etc. Make sure they can’t nest under your shed or house. Skunks will eat most anything. They are particularly partial to eating grubs. Grubs are the larvae of Japanese, and other types, of beetles.

So, treat your yard for grubs. Keep the food and shelter sources buttoned up and the skunks will visit somewhere else. If you have them living under your house then its time to call an exterminator.

Grubs

Grubs can really damage your lawn and trees, you may want to treat for grubs.

Thanks to Winterthur Garden Blog for the grub picture

Trailers

Does a handyguy need a trailer? They sure would be useful. Brian and Paul discuss what to do if you don’t have a good place to store one. Can a fold-up trailer fit the bill? Maybe. What The Handyguys found was that in Pennsylvania its a HUGE hassle to get tags and registration for a trailer you assemble or build yourself. If you have the stomach for it listen to the podcast as Handyguy Brian details the bureaucratic nightmare to register and tag a “kit” trailer in Pennsylvania.

The Handyguys Discuss John Deere Residential Lawn Tractors

The Handyguys are busy mowing and evaluating John Deere’s LA115 Lawn tractors this summer. In the first of our 5 part monthly series on residential Lawn tractors from John Deere, the Handyguys expose some of the differences between the entry level Deere 100 series and the higher end x300 select series of tractors. The differences are not always obvious so be sure to listen to the podcast for all the details.

John Deere 100 Series vs x300 Select Series of Lawn Tractors

John Deere has an extensive lineup of Lawn Tractors. Click this image to see it larger.

Comparing the first two levels of residential lawn tractors from John Deere is a tricky task with subtle differences accounting for the costs when moving up the product line. We had a couple weeks last year to review the X324 select series and now we have completed three weeks mowing our lawns and a field behind Handyguy Brian’s house (2-3 acres) with the LA115 model.

The LA115 mower is highly rated by a leading consumer magazine, and it proves why by cutting a nice even path across our lawns at a brisk 5.5 mpg pace. The LA115 does a great job, but understanding the feature sets across the Deere product line is essential for selecting the best model for your needs.

So what are the differences between the LA115 tractors and the more expensive x300 series? Brian suggests that the x300 series must have bigger engines or go faster. But the differences are more subtle. You will find higher quality engines as you move up in the John Deere lines but not necessarily more powerful or larger engines (the 100 series uses Briggs and Straton while the X300 uses Kawasaki engines). Both the x324 that we used last summer and this year’s LA115 model max out at 5.5 mph so you can move just as fast in your LA115 as the X300 series tractors.

Other significant differences between these lines include features such as 4-wheel steering (found on the the x304 and x324), bigger gas tanks (than model 100 series mowers), and a longer warranty on the x300s.

Brian makes the point that if you have open areas that require mowing in long straight lines, get the cruise control. It will save your leg from getting tired. You can find this feature in both the 100 series and X300 series but it is not on the LA115 model (sorry Brian!)

Selecting and Ordering An appropriate Tractor

First of all, try out John Deere’s tractor selector. Use this tool as a guide to compliment your research. Be sure to talk to an expert at your closet JD dealership to zero in on the model that best fits your requirements.

If you are leaning toward the 100 series line, you can probably find them at your local home center or hardware store. Typically, the X300 series and higher tractors are purchased at a local John Deere dealership. The mower selector tool will guide you to your closest dealers. If you don’t have a truck or trailer, you will need a dealership that can deliver the mower to your location. The nice thing about working with a  dealership is that they can also pick up your mower if it requires servicing.

As usual, listen to the podcast for more details!

Accessories For Your Lawn Tractor

Be sure to consider what accessories you desire for your lawn as this might effect which model tractor you choose.  Both the 100 series and the 300 series support many of the same accessories, but certain accessories may require the performance characteristics delivered by specific models. Your JD expert can steer you to the correct model based on your accessory requirements so be sure to consider accessories along with your mower even if you will not be purchasing those accessories up front.

The Handyguys will continue reviewing our LA115 mowers and provide further information on initial setup, mowing, maintenance, accessories usage and end-of-season shut down procedures during our 5-part monthly series on JD Lawn Tractors.

The Handyguys address the soon-to-come fall lawn care season.

Before The Handyguys talk about fall lawn care they address a listener question.

TerBeek sent us the following message -

How can I remove a broken drill bit from the window moulding without damaging the moulding? We were drilling a pilot hole for hardware to hang a custom sized window blind when the bit broke.  The molding area isn’t large, limiting the area in which we can install the window treatment hardware.  (i.e., we need that bit out, because the hardware can’t be moved up, down, forward or back from the initial pilot hole position.) The bit was very thin, and about half of it remains in the window frame/moulding.  It broke off flush with the surface, so we can’t grab it with a pliers.  Help!  We’re getting sick of the temporary blinds but don’t know what to do to reclaim our pilot hole.

The Handyguys Brian & Paul have some ideas. Listen to the show for their possible solutions.

Now on to Fall lawn care.

We know that this is not a popular thing to say this time of year, but the fall season is just around the corner!  And with Fall, comes the most important time in lawn care.  It is the time when you need to feed, de-weed, and pamper your lawn to make it strong and healthy for the winter season.  For cool season lawns, this is the time for the handguy get to work your yard.

What do the Handyguys recommend?  Good fertilizer, a good core aerator, a rake and some new grass seed will be your main tools.  In addition to fertilizing and aerating your lawn, you will want to remove all the leaves and possibly over seed some of the weaker areas of your lawn.  But before you start, get those kids off the grass and listen to our podcast!

Lastly – We have a winner!

During our show on Glue we announced a contest sponsored by Eclectic Products. We have concluded the contest and drawn a winner. Congratulations to Condoblues… We will contact you directly and send you your prize.

The Handyguys talk home improvement and keeping a green and weed free lawn.

Now that you have your mower ready for the new season (after listening to show #14), it is time to discuss proper lawn care. Anyone can hire a lawn service, but the Handyguys prefer the DIY method. Get down to the home center, buy your weed and feed, and start fertilizing before the summer heat strikes. Listen to the podcast for all of the details.

Before beginning your lawn care program (or even if you have already started), it is good to conduct a soil test to determine that status of your soil. The results from a soil test will reveal what nutrients your lawn requires and whether you need to add lime or sulfur to achieve the proper pH.

You can add specific ingredients in your fertilizer plan or just follow a seasonal plan from a company like Scotts or Vigoro. These products should be designed for your region of the country.

Some folks prefer more organic methods of lawn care. More information on organic products can be found here:

Dirt Doctor

Richsoil

The fertilizer programs will only address weeds and nutrients. You may also have specific pests or disease. A healthy lawn is the best defense against lawn disease. Lawn pests include moles, grubs and even mold. Controlling grubs will eliminate a food source for the moles. Watering properly will prevent mold and fungus.

Both Handyguy Brian and Handyguy Paul recommend a broadcast spreader for DIY fertilizer applications.

So, how much should you water? The Handyguys, and their expert advisers, recommend about 1” of water per week. This means watering the entire inch at one time in early AM or late afternoon. Do not water at night as this can promote fungus. How do you determine you have applied 1” of water? You can use a rain gauge, a fancy timer, or you can just put out a soup can when you water and when it has an inch of water in it you are done. The rain gauge in the picture is only $1.99 in our store and comes with a separate sprinkler gauge. Just click here for the rain gauge. Don’t forget to factor in the water from the rain. A deep soak like this will help promote deep root growth.

What is the proper height to mow for a health lawn? It depends on the type of grass. Generally speaking you want to mow at 3” and never cut more than a third of the blade at one time.

But if you really want to get lawn care right… listen to our podcast.

Please note an error in the podcast: Paul incorrectly states that your second fertilizer application should occur before “Labor Day”. He meant to say “Memorial Day” and that is what he thought he said… but I guess recordings don’t lie!