Hello again,
As I write to you today summer has returned in its usual late season form. Higher temperatures, lack of rain and soil conditions have turned the turf into its late season form. The sandy soil conditions have allowed the Crabgrass to flourish from the paving project and the past years stressed conditions. Weeds have taken over due to the stressed conditions. To reiterate Dave Faxon/s letter, Meadow Hill has endured some hard horticultural challenges over the past years. Full pre-emergent crabgrass control and full lawn care programs have not worked in the past. I am in the process of putting together a presentation that will describe how we got here and what it will take to realize the expectations for healthy turf. That will be completed within the next couple of weeks and we will be setting a date for the informational presentation. I have spoken to some of you about these challenges at my Thursday meetings. I encourage anyone to visit me at 9 am on Thursdays and I will be glad to answer any questions. Please see some updates below
- We still have the ongoing list of topsoil and seeding based on unit requests/work orders as well as identified common areas that need to be repaired. This list is being examined by me and the board and when the weather is advantageous ( late august/early September) top soil and seed will take place as conditions allow. Based on the challenges mentioned above, we ALL want to make sure that if an investment is made we have made an educated and budget conscious decision to move forward based on proper growing conditions and the ability to get water.
- There are some work orders for shrubs to be removed- this process is in progress – we are identifying plants that are stressed or overgrown to be removed that would better serve the community in the long term- If a plant that has been identified to be removed within the 4 Mike Hodges) before it is removed to discuss the reasons why and to talk about replacement if there is a need. I will NOT remove a marked plant within the 4 ft area of your unit without talking to you first. If you are on the no touch list nothing will be done! On that note, we did not have a comprehensive no touch /no mulch list this spring. This created some delays because some residents decided they wanted the service after we were complete in those areas. Going forward for next season, if you have not made arrangements to be put on the no touch/no mulch list prior to our starting services, your unit will be scheduled for service! Please, all horticultural requests must be put in work order form through APM so we can track our progress efficiently.
We are starting to see some of the efforts of these changes come to fruition. Bed weed control is working better than in pa years, This year we have made great strides in that program. We are continuing to prune ornamental plants and shade trees as possible. The fall will be busy time for us to continue to make improvements. Progress is being made.
Mike Hodges, Westside