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It is my sons graduation on the 21st so I will be taking the day off. I have already done a deep service last week on most properties affected but I will try to use any spare time on the 20th to double check any that I feel may be growing and need a quick trim up. Regular service will resume next week….. and no more graduations :(. That’s will be it – I will officially be an empty nester as of August when James heads off to college in New Jersey!

Unfortunately due truck issues our planned start to weekly season has to be pushed back a week. We won’t commence weekly service for those on Monday and Tuesday routes until W/C April 13th. We hope to have the truck baack on the road by Wednesday and not to impact the rest of the weeks servicing.

We are only just coming out of the dormant season so things are not growing too quickly and we will get to everyone asap. We appreciate your patience in this matter.

We will be taking the following week on a day by day basis as this cold front pushes down into Florida. Whilst it’s not unusual for us to feel a chill in the air this time of year – it is unprecedented for us to have sustained cold weather predicted for such a long period of time.

This all means that we need to do what we can to protect our lawns and see that they can thrive in the spring. As a result we will not be blindly mowing just for the sake of it. I’m sure by now you know that is not how we operate – you pay for care rather than clockwork service regardless of cost.

Our advice would be to NOT water on those nights you know the temperatures will fall into the 40s – this will lessen the impact of any ground frosts. If you would rather us cut – regardless of advice – then please do let us know and we will arrange a visit accordingly.

It may also be prudent to insulate and overground backflow systems you have. These are usually plastic pipes coming out of the ground at the side of the house a foot or so – they go into a brass valve – and back into the ground. these are prone to failure under cold temperatures and are costly to fix/replace.

Thanks

We will be off the road from today to allow us to prepare for the incoming storm. We will be back out as soon as it is safe to do so and we will follow our regular schedule so that no one is missed or prioritized over someone else. Please be patient and if you have debris please don’t assume we will move this. Storm clean-ups need to be scheduled in with us prior and they are chargeable. If we can not safely service your yard we will move onto the next.

There will be some minor service disruption today and tomorrow as we work to at least provide a quick service to yards before the bulk of the rain and winds force us off the roads. We may not get to everyone.

As we return to a post Christmas schedule we are aware that this week may see temperatures drop close to freezing.

Local weather is predicted to offer up rain early in the week, ushering in a cold snap by Tuesday PM.

This combination is not ideal for lawns – and is especially harmful if they have just been cut. All clients were serviced last week and yards are tidy (and we don’t expect to see much growth this week anyway). However we will still be servicing, but we are being selective about what we cut (especially closer to the middle of the week when the temps drop). If you would like the lawn cut regardless of weather this week just let us know and we will be happy to oblige.

TIP : If you haven’t already done so make sure you prepare for any cold weather by ;

• Turn OFF irrigation if you know frost is expected
• Insulate your above ground backflow. These are expensive to repair and will shut the water off to the house if cracked. Old towels and/or pool noodles work well.
• Consider running your pool pump continuously – moving water is less likely to freeze in the pipes.
• Wrap delicate plants in cloth / sheets. Avoid using plastic as this makes the plants sweat. Usually anything that doesn’t have a woody stem is prone to frost damage.

We have watched the incoming storm over the last week or so and have altered some services in the lead up to predicted landfall. Some customers will notice we managed to service earlier in the week in order to then be able to reschedule others whose service would have been today.

The storm luckily hasn’t directly hit us but we are seeing widespread rains hamper any work today. If you are among the few we didn’t manage to get to earlier this week I apologize and we will endeavor to make this up as soon as possible.

Weather permitting we will be responding to clean up requests on later in the week. This will be on a first come first served basis and will be separately charged (up-front).

We are not expecting this event to impact the schedule for next week and if you are scheduled for service please refrain from asking the crews to do anything extra as this impacts other customers down the line. Any additional work will need to be scheduled with the office and is subject to charge – Thank you for your co-operation.

General advice

Weather warning. A hard freeze is expected for florida over the Christmas holiday. To help protect plants and shrubs wrap them with sheets to try and insulate them. Small date palms (robellini) are very susceptible to cold so you may see some withering and in some cases the damage may be irreparable. Shrubs with softer stems – those holding more water – are prone to freezing so prioritize these. 

Do not run sprinklers overnight when the temperature is lower than 40 degrees. Whilst not a freezing temperature if you add in wind chill it could still freeze water on the ground and cause damage to lawns and plants at this temperature. 

Wrap backflow pipes. A pool noodle is a good make-shift insulator. Back flow systems are usually found at the side of the house or near the water meter.  A pipe will come up out of the ground at least 12 inches and into a brass valve and then back into the ground. The brass valves are notorious for freezing up so wrap them well. 

Run pool pumps continuously to stop pool pipes and equipment from freezing and components from cracking.

Internal pipes – whilst you can’t get to these to wrap them you can leave a faucet or two dripping. Moving water is harder to freeze so this can help protect pipes. Finally – know where your water shut off valve is located and have the required tools ready in case you need to shut water off due to a burst pipe. An adjustable wrench can be used to shut off mains water at the meter. A quarter turn is all that is needed usually to close the valve.

We have taken every effort to ensure all scheduled properties have been serviced early this week as storm Nicole heads our way. Mowing is currently every two weeks so this will not effect some properties. Weather permitting we will be responding to clean up requests on Friday. This will be on a first come first served basis and will be separately charged (up-front).

We are not expecting this event to impact the schedule for next week and if you are scheduled for service please refrain from asking the crews to do anything extra as this impacts other customers down the line. Any additional work will need to be scheduled with the office – Thank you and stay safe friends

As at this time we are monitoring the incoming storm and its path. Whilst we may not get a direct hit within our service area we will, without doubt, experience heavier than normal rainfall and winds. Schools are now scheduled to be closed until Friday and all signs point towards Tuesday PM onwards for the majority of damaging weather to be arriving.

With this in mind we plan to continue normal service until Tuesday mid-day. This gives us time to complete as much work as possible whilst allowing time for ourselves to get home to families and to make our own last minute preparations. We will obviously continue to monitor the situation and if the storm shifts and rains clear then we will continue to push through.

Please keep in mind that we can not service in the rain OR directly after a rain event (even if it is dry). Ground water and/or soft ground would mean we cause too much damage to lawns. We ensured that all yards were cut slightly lower last week in readiness for any missed service call and no yards are going to suffer from missing a week. Customers are reminded that such ‘rain-days’ are factored into pricing as we don’t charge for 52 weeks per year – only 48 (we don’t charge extra for the five week months of the year).

We will be happy to help clear any debris on our next visit if there is any but only within our allotted time on property. Any additional time will be charged for. Stay safe.

We continue to operate as normal during this outbreak but we are following some basic safety measures to protect ourselves and the public. We are trying to work individually at properties and we disinfect the trucks and equipment each evening.

We politely ask that you refrain from providing water during this time and to limit contact to a distance of 6 feet or more. We fully understand those not wishing to have any contact at this time.

The counties in lockdown we continue to service as, per para 21 in the Governors article, we are deemed essential services.

Please keep checking back for further updates.

In an abundance of caution we will remain off the roads today as the storm track slowly approaches our coastline. We are expecting 30 plus MPH winds later today and feel it is prudent not to have high sided trailers on the road during this time. We aim to reschedule visits for later in the week should the weather allow.

We continue to monitor the storm as it approaches. All models suggest that this may not make landfall but even so it will bring with it a major rain event so we are planning for outages in service.

We have been working the weekend to service what we can in advance. If you are on our Monday route especially you may have noticed crews on site today instead. We will be shutting down on Monday for Labor Day definitely and we will make a call Tuesday if it is safe / prudent to work.

Please don’t ask crews to do any extra work. They will only spend the allotted time servicing what they can – this is only fair on everyone.

Please check back frequently over the coming days. We are working to make sure all routes are serviced as normal but please be patient – we may be delayed getting to some people if this storm makes landfall. We continue to monitor the situation and will post updates here as and when we know anything. Thank You in advance.

We are expecting cold temperatures overnight on the 1/17.  Please consider covering small/soft vegetive plants to protect them.  Also wrap your backflow pipes to protect from freezing and if your irrigation is set to come on turn it off.