Happy New Year to all! And welcome to our December 2021-January 2022 start-of-winter newsletter.

This is the perfect week for a fireside chat, as we are truly "Walking in a Winter Wonderland." What a beautiful snow Mother Nature gave us Sunday night and through the day Monday. Some of us love the snow. Some of us hate it. Either way, there's not a thing we can do to bend Mother’s will to ours, so let's all appreciate the blanket of white while it’s here.

What may not be such a wonder are muddy paws tracking across the kitchen floors of Morgantown as our canine pals travel in and out the doggie doors we installed to make them happy. Muddy Dog Syndrome is a common frustration for pet owners every December, January, and February. You can read about it in our February 2021 newsletter, and again below for a new angle on this eternal saga.   

Our number one call over the past year was not about armyworms (surprise!) but about ground ivy and violets in our lawns. If you read on, you will learn the truth about weed control with native plants. You will also hear about some of my joyous moments with a very special girl, Maddie, who was owned by one of my very special clients, Jenny Digon.

Snow Outside, Mud Inside

If you went to the above-writing on dogs-versus-grass, you will have noted that the owner's dogs I describe were in the 50-pound range.

Last month I got a call from a wonderful mom who has five Siberian huskies. Five!  

Her question leading in was, "Do I install sod?" Of course, that's not my gig anymore, but I can't help trying to guide her to a sod person. Which leads to questions. Which lead to the discovery that she is another frustrated dog owner.   

For the record, there are plenty of good uses for sod. However, curing Muddy Paw Syndrome is not one of them.  

Why? Because most sod has plastic netting running through it that allows it to stay together so it can be cut up and moved. It's inevitable that our dogs will wear through the grass, and now, in the mud, they will forever have trip lines sharp enough to cut their pads.

Most of the things you can do to live with the problem of tracking wet dirt in and out are in the above-referenced newsletter, even if you do not have the basement water problem. However, this caller came up with one I haven't addressed, which is, "What about artificial turf?"

I have had some experience with artificial turf in my career, so here's the short list on why that doesn’t work, even if we forget about the tremendous cost of the project.   

One, dogs go outside to play, yes, but they also go outside to potty. It takes very little time to create odors that, on a 90-degree day, can clear a neighborhood.   

Two, in my fortunate career before it became almost impossible to do weed control on school property, I killed poison ivy for most of the county schools. That included on the artificial turf at Morgantown High. It took a lot of my time to keep that turf looking nice, plus all the other things they had to do to maintain it.

So, we are back to the same place. Restrict activity unless the ground is frozen or growing grandly. And with five huskies, reseed constantly.  

Reality isn't so bad once we accept it.

Ground Ivy and Violets

Understand that weeds are just plants growing where we do not want them and that Mother Nature has a grand scheme to maintain the flora. Whether you have a forest fire, a flood, or a chemical kill, there are seeds in the soil ready to spring into action when the conditions are right.   

Ground ivy and violets exist, as do most of the other weed grasses, in every ounce of soil in your lawn. Turn over a shovel full of dirt and count the days until it starts growing something green. It's not long.   

Therefore, we have to learn ways to control, not eradicate, native plants. It’s us that says "good plant" and "bad plant." If we accept the fact that "weeds" will always be here, what can we do to minimize the problem that bothers so many of us?

The most important thing is mowing high. At least three and a half inches. If you build a home, someone will live in it. If you create an environment, it will be inhabited by the plants that like those conditions. Grass likes three-and-a-half inches. Ground ivy and violets like lower.  

If you're mowing lower than the magic number, there is no way for medicines to overcome the conditions you create. Medicine only keeps the population decreased, and it can't fight the numbers you're getting. Not reason to hire me, or to read further.

If you are mowing at the proper height, the next step is timing your applications. We can control these weeds early in the year, and then again late in the year. Treating during the warm part of the year is like fertilizing. They just get stronger.   

We spent November and December applying medicines in the pre-winter chill. We'll start again this coming spring before temperatures rise too high. When we're done, if you cut high, the grass and violets will still be there, but they'll stay well-hidden.

Miss Maddie Mae

The most fun I have on any given day is interacting with my wonderful clients and their pets. Jenny Digon and I were reminiscing about her husband, Larry, and their Maddie this fall, and it would seem that one of my favorite memories is one of hers too.   

Jenny and Larry lived adjacent to Lakeview golf course, so you would think Maddie stealing golf balls shot onto her lawn would be that story. Now, it was fun to watch a golfer hunt for a ball knowing it should be there. But Maddie knew it was there too (and that the golfer was trespassing), so it would be long gone. She had a use for her own supply of balls after all.

You see, the driveway pad leading into the 3-door garage where Larry was always working on a fun project was about 40 feet wide. And it had a slight grade.  

Maddie would move back and forth, eying the slope like Tiger Woods. Measuring wind speed. Gauging the elements. Finding the perfect spot.  

Then she would put the ball down, gracefully push it with her nose, and watch as it rolled this way and that, meandering to exactly where Larry was working. Then Larry, stifling a grin, would grab up the ball, cuss Maddie out, and throw it as far as he could.   

Honestly, I witnessed this countless times, as it was a game for Larry too. Thank you, Jenny, for sharing the memory and allowing me to make this a gift to you.

I hope we can all spend a moment, take a deep breath of brisk mountain air, and think about little Maddie and the joy brought with this story.  

We can all count our blessings, no matter the time of year. Make a memory and have a wonderful winter 2022! 

See you soon in your lawns.

Jay Benson