Home & Landscape

GOOD NEWS, BAD NEWS

By Randy Zellers SDL, Director of Operations

In the first quarter of 2023, Scottsdale received an ample amount of rainfall which provided much needed relief on our irrigation systems but created weed issues throughout the city. Through March, Scottsdale received 4.32” more rainfall than in 2022 and SDL used 1,172,032 less gallons than 2022. That’s the good news! The bad news is weeds have been an issue, but the hot, dry month of June will burn most weed growth. The monsoon season starting in July is the next time for applying pre-emergent to your granite to control summer weed growth.

June is typically the hottest and driest month in Arizona with very low humidity. Bermuda turf has emerged, and regular doses of fertilizer every six weeks should be sufficient to keep it uniform and green. Run your irrigation system 3 – 4 days per week to try and get water to the root systems of Bermuda which is roughly six to eight inches deep. Take a screwdriver and stick it into the ground, if you can easily penetrate to the handle, you are watering deeply enough to provide the nutrients and water to the root system. Dry spots may appear in turf areas and be sure to check coverage from the nozzles and adjust to provide even distribution to all turf areas. If you develop random dry spots, it is almost always a nozzle issue and not a run time issue. Check nozzles before increasing water times to gain efficiency with your water usage.

Trees will need deep and infrequent water this time of year. The logic is to try and get the root system deeper into the soil and away from the hottest part of the soil at the surface. Shallow watering will encourage the root mass to stay close to the surface and provide little stability during the upcoming monsoon windstorms. Tip prune elongated branching prior to July to help with additional protection from the winds. Desert trees like Mesquite and Palo Verde are susceptible to wind damage if not pruned or watered correctly. Remember, trees are the most asset to any landscape because of the cost to replace like size and species if damage occurs. Proactive watering and pruning can save costly repairs and replacements in your landscape.

Plant material in June and July should be pruned sparingly due to the heat. Focus more on separating competing plants than hard pruning tasks during these summer months. Allow your shrubs to adjust to the higher temperatures rather than stressing them by repetitive pruning. Infrequent pruning will help to save water to shrubs as well. Water plants 3 days per week at an hour if you have drip irrigation.

Summer flower beds will take some attention through June and July. Dead head flowers pinching off spent blooms and keeping the beds weed free will help save water to your beds. If flower beds are adjacent to turf area, be mindful that Bermuda grows laterally and will encroach into the flower bed if not diligently maintained by edging. Look for wilting of the leaves as a sign the flowers need water, but do not overwater as this will cause deoxygenation of the soil which can be just as bad. Only real Green Thumbs should attempt summer annual beds as they will require a lot of hand holding to get them through the summer.

Enjoy your summer and get the difficult tasks completed early in the day before the blazing sun makes it difficult to function outdoors.

CHANGING YOUR HOME ADDRESS FOR THE SUMMER?

It is important for the SRCA office to have your current contact information. If you would like to change your primary mailing address from your Scottsdale Ranch address to your summer address, please contact Ricki Stamos by email at rstamos@scottsdaleranch.org, to have your contact information updated in our property management software. By doing this, you will be able to continue to receive important letters, mailers, invoices and the SRCA bi-monthly magazines over the coming months.

ATTENTION BOAT OWNERS!

If you are leaving for the summer, please make sure to loosen your dock line. This helps protect your boat and dock in case of an active monsoon season. Also, we’d like to suggest that if you know a neighbor who stays in town for the summer, that SRCA can contact in the event we are unable to get a hold of you regarding your boat, please call the SRCA office at (480) 860-2022 to give us their contact information.

Please note that there is a Watercraft Tow Policy charge of $75.00 to homeowners who require their boats to be towed or rescued.

Lake Serena Boat Identification Sticker

Attention Scottsdale Ranch Boat

Owners:

All boat owners on Lake Serena must have a SRCA boating identification sticker visibly displayed on their boat. If you do not have an identification sticker, you will need to complete a Boat Sticker Application and submit it to the SRCA office to obtain one. You can find the application on the SRCA website at www.scottsdaleranch.org under Local Amenities / Lake Serena / Boating Guidelines.