We see it so often driving down the road; some poor homeowner that’s left for work has their own geyser in their front yard from a broken sprinkler head.  Unfortunately that broken sprinkler head can lead to several problems:  increased water bills, dead grass, weeds, disease and the list can go on!

So before spring rolls around and you get caught with your own national monument, you should have your Irrigation System inspected by a professional.  Make sure they check your:

• Timer box – is it set correctly for the type of sprinklers you have, watering restrictions and the amount of water your landscape needs?
• Zone pressure – is there enough pressure to each zone to ensure water is covering the entire zone? 
• Sprinkler head type – do you have the right sprinkler heads for the type of watering your landscape needs?
• Rain sensor – is your rain sensor working properly?  Do you have one installed?
• Zone coverage – are your sprinklers covering the entire zone?  Are they misdirected? Do you need risers installed?

Don’t stop there though!  Irrigation systems require ongoing maintenance and should be maintained and monitored more than once a year (our Irrigation Maintenance Program is quarterly).

Leave Old Faithful where she lies!

Cooler temperatures are here! Along with the chilly weather, you may start to see your landscape go through some changes as well.

Rain and cooler temperatures are ideal conditions for Brown Patch to pop up in your landscape and cause damage. Brown Patch is a fungus in the soil that lays dormant until the conditions are just right for it to flourish, with shaded areas that retain water being especially prone to the disease.

If you have Brown Patch damage, you will see circular patches of damaged turf with yellow, orange or purple grass blades on the outside border of the patch. The base of the blade of grass will be rotten and will slide out easily when pulled.

While Brown Patch is unpreventable, it is easy to treat with a corrective spot treatment. This will stop the spread of the disease and lawn re-growth should occur in a few weeks. Also, make sure you adjust your watering frequency – watering once per week in the cooler months is generally sufficient. Water in the early morning before 10 am so the water has a chance to reach root zones.

Have any questions or concerns? Just give us a call!

Massey Services has been committed to providing environmentally responsible services for over 20 years and constantly works to produce new initiatives to protect the environment. Being green is part of Massey’s past…and future.

Here are five simple things you can do at home to go green- while also saving money: 

1. Conserve Energy – turn off lights, televisions, radios, etc. when not in use or when leaving a room.
2. Conserve Water – turn off the water when brushing teeth and try to take shorter showers. Inspect your irrigation system frequently to ensure sprinkler heads are intact and not just gushing water.
3. Recycle – items that can be recycled include aluminum cans, glass jars and bottles, plastic soda bottles, plastic milk jugs, newspapers and magazines, junk mail, office/printer paper, plastic grocery bags and cardboard.
4. Think Before You Buy – make a conscious effort to purchase things that will last. This practice reduces the number of items that quickly break and end up in the trash.
5. Reduce – limit the amount of pre-packaged and disposable products you use. Try buying everyone in the family a reusable water bottle instead of using bottled water, soda and juice or buy snack items in bulk and package them in small reusable containers.  

We hope that your family will adopt these simple practices to help conserve our natural resources, save money and keep our planet clean.

Did you know April is Water Conservation Month? With all the ways you can save money on your water bill by reducing the amount of water you use, it should be called “How to Reduce Your Water Bill” Month.

One of the most important ways to reduce the amount of water you use is by inspecting your irrigation system frequently to make sure you don’t have any broken sprinkler heads that are just gushing water. In addition to that, here are a few other tips that will help you conserve water this month:

1. Water at the right time. Most areas have watering restrictions that tell you what days and times you can water – find out what yours are by visiting your local water management district’s website or giving them a call.
2. Set your timers. Watering needs change with each season. Make sure your system is set to provide the right amount of water by season.
3. Give your lawn the right coverage. Your sprinklers should each be spraying all the way to the next one to get proper coverage. Also, make sure the water is actually landing on plants, grass and shrubs – not the pavement or sidewalk.
4. Use a rain sensor. The best way to find out if your lawn received the right amount of water from a recent rainfall is by using a rain gauge. Plus, be sure a rain sensor is installed with your irrigation system so it shuts off when rainfall occurs.

These are just a few tips we can offer you on how to conserve water this month. For more info, check out the St. Johns River Management District website.

This weekend (April 9^th thru 11^th) is the perfect time to spring into gear and get a free, no-obligation inspection for Pest Prevention, Termite Protection, GreenUP Landscape Services (including renovation for freeze-damaged landscapes) and Irrigation Maintenance and save big!

There is no obligation to have one of our trained inspectors come to your home and provide you with a free home and lawn inspection. And to make the deal even sweeter, we are offering some AMAZING SAVINGS- this weekend only!

If you are interested in purchasing one of our great services – now is the time! Spring is here and these savings only happen once a year.

To schedule your free inspection for this weekend, click here or call us at 1-888-2MASSEY (262-7739) today!

Please share this exciting news with your co-workers, family, friends and neighbors that may be interested. Existing customers can take advantage of our Pass It On referral program and earn a Publix gift card for yourself AND every new Massey customer that you refer!

Remember back in November when we changed from daylight savings time back to eastern standard time? Remember how the watering restrictions changed with the time? Well, it’s time again to change the clocks and you know what that means…yep! Time for watering restrictions to change!

First thing you need to find out is what water management district you are in. Click here to find out. Next, you need to answer this question – do you live in the St. John’s Water Management District? If you answered yes, your watering rules change Sunday with the time.

Fortunately, the only change they’ve made are the days you can water – previously you could only water one day per week, now we can water two! Check the schedule below to see what days you can water on:

• Houses ending in an odd number (1,3,5,7,9) or that don’t have an address water on Wednesday & Saturday
• Houses ending in an even number (0,2,4,6,8) water on Thursday & Sunday

In case you have forgotten (I tend to forget), these rules still apply:

• Water no more than one hour per zone
• Water only when needed and not between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. This ensures water reaches the root zone and doesn’t evaporate before it’s had a chance to soak in

If you would like to visit the St. John’s Water Management District website, click here. And don’t forget – when you reset your clocks Sunday, reset those sprinklers too!

I just received a flier at my house from the St Johns Water Management District notifying me my watering days were about to change an I wanted to be sure to pass the information along. The first step is to find out what water management district you are in, click here to find out.

Now, the next question is, do you live in the St Johns Water Management District? If the answer to that question is “yes” then there have been some important changes made to your watering restrictions. Just yesterday, Sunday, November 1st when daylight savings time changed back to Eastern Standard time something else changed too – watering restrictions for everyone in the St Johns Water Management District – including me.

Now, it seems like watering restrictions change as frequently as the season in Florida and they can be difficult to keep track of. What days can I water? How long? What time? I’m happy to tell you that the only change is to the DAY you can water.

• Houses ending in an odd number (1,3,5,7,9) or that don’t have an address water on Saturday
• Houses ending in an even number (0,2,4,6,8) water on Sunday

This means these answers still apply:

• How long can I water? Water for no more than one hour per zone.
• What time can I water? Water only when needed and not between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. This ensures the water reaches the root zone and doesn’t evaporate before it’s had a chance to soak in.

After I got the notice I was worried. I JUST got my lawn to a beautiful green. My neighbors are even envious! Now I can only water ONE day? Great, my lawn is going to turn into a tumble weed jungle! After a quick call to my Massey GreenUP technician, my mind was at ease. He informed me that these new restrictions coincide with the watering recommendations that are provided during the cooler months and watering one day per week should not affect the health of my landscape. And since I’m a Massey GreenUP Irrigation customer, they’re already adjusting my timer to the new restrictions, I’m all set! Apparently your lawn is similar to a bear, it hibernates in the winter! And while it’s hibernating you need to keep feeding it and watering it, but only in small increments. Little did I know – watering your lawn too many times during the winter can cause your lawn to “catch” a disease. Yuck! Turns out, the new restrictions are good for our environment AND our lawns! Win, Win.

To visit the St Johns Water Management District website, click here. If you have any questions about how the new watering restrictions affect you, call 1-888-2MASSEY (262-7739)

Having grown up in Florida my entire life , when school starts there are a few things I know I can count on.

1. The leaves are not changing.

2. College football is going to start… FINALLY!

3. The rain will roll in sometime after 1PM and sometime before 7PM

The first two have been always been somewhat comforting constants for as long as I can remember. But the rain is so very consistently inconsistent. As soon as you think you’ve eluded mother nature she shows up just in time for your alfresco dinner date and you’re left soaked with your umbrella marooned with stray french fries and the spare tire.

But, our cloudy old inconvenient friend does have some undeniably great side affects. We’ve managed to come out of the worst drought in history, people’s landscapes aren’t coughing up dust clouds, and a little afternoon rain can do wonders for our friends from Seattle and London’s bouts of homesickness. Now that’s southern hospitality.

Now if only the rain could help soothe these troubled economic waters. Well maybe it can. One of the unambiguous positives that our rainy afternoons bring is the diminished necessity of irrigation. They can’t give mother nature tickets for watering on the wrong days. So it’s a great time to get that old irrigation system checked to make sure it’s firing on all cylinders. Or to make sure it is not watering in the rain, on the street, or the neighbors cat. There are so many other things you could be wasting your money on… like a really sweet new umbrella!