YardApes Landscaping

Expand your home living space into your backyard! Carefully planned landscaping is like adding a room onto your house. We can survey your property and assess your lifestyle to come up with a landscape plan that best brings you & your landscape together. We can add value and enjoyment to your property.

Paving stones can make your Patio and Walks exciting and attractive features of your home. Paving stones have thousands of aesthetic and practical applications. Brick and stone are low maintenance high value investments for your home. Please see our photos section for some pictures of our work.

Looking for some backyard tranquility? Maybe a soothing stream or peaceful pond? YardApes can design and install the waterscape of your dreams.

We will take care of all your lawn maintenance needs including spring clean-up, fall clean-up and regular (weekly) lawn maintenance. Our Lawn Care Technicians give your lawn the TLC that it requires. We use only the best mowing equipment available and sharpen our mower blades every night. We always mow your lawn at the proper height to ensure a quality lawn cutting. Some of our customers have been known set their clock to our reliable weekly mowing routine.

We will start in the spring by fertilizing your plants with high quality organic fertilizer. We will also edge all of your ornamental plant beds and spread fresh pure bark mulch. Mulching has many benefits besides its obvious aesthetic value (please see our Mulching Service for benefits). We will then visit your property on a weekly basis throughout the growing season to perform necessary weeding, pruning, and watering. We will also scout for any disease or insect problems that may begin to invade your plants. Early detection of plant problems is critical to successful treatment and can lead to fewer pesticide applications. Pesticide treatments will only be applied if intolerable insect or disease thresholds have been reached and if cultural practices (pruning, removal by hand, fertilizing etc) are not practical. This practice called INTEGRATED PEST MANAGEMENT is a philosophy that all of us at YardApes, Inc. strongly abide by.

We use only the best quality pure bark mulch. Spreading fresh bark mulch around your ornamental plants has several benefits:

1. Mulch enhances the appearance of the plants and your property.
2. Mulch helps to control weeds by blocking sunlight that causes weed seeds to germinate.
3. Mulch helps to reduce the amount of evaporation from the soil, which means your plants will require less watering.
4. Mulch helps insulate plant root systems during the winter and keeps them cool during the summer.
5. Mulch is organic and will slowly decompose adding organic matter to the soil.

We at YardApes, Inc. practice what is known as Integrated Pest Management. Integrated pest management (IPM) is an affordable approach to controlling yard pest problems while minimizing environmental impact. Our IPM program is curative rather than preventative. We only use pesticides in targeted areas after determining if disease or insects have reached intolerable thresholds. In doing so, we avoid the unnecessary and costly spraying of your entire landscape.

Traditional methods which attempt to eradicate all pests from a landscape also kill bacteria and insects that are beneficial and even essential to the long-term health of the plants.
YardApes uses an IPM approach that strives to control pests in an intelligent, balanced, and economical way. In addition to using good cultural practices with watering, pruning, mowing, etc, our IPM system utilizes the following steps:

1. Planning. Healthy plants should be placed where they normally thrive in nature, giving them a natural advantage against pests and disease.
2. Monitoring. Early detection of pests is very important to maintaining a healthy landscape. We perform regular inspections to look for symptoms that may indicate emerging problems.
3. Proper Identification. Differentiating between beneficial organisms and pests is essential in making treatment decisions. If we find a problem area we will make sure to identify the specific cause for the symptom so that we can treat accordingly.
4. Implementation. We consider many factors before implementing an action. Knowledge of the site, the pest involved and the options available form the basis for our IPM decisions. Decisions are tailored to minimize risk to the environment and at the same time maximize benefits. We first consider natural approaches such as pruning or proper sanitation. Finally, we’ll apply targeted chemical treatment to any areas that require further attention.
5. Evaluation. We follow up to make sure the treatments are working properly.

Because IPM keeps plants healthier and reduces our impact on the environment, we have found it to be the best solution to maintaining healthy landscapes.

The YardApes Lawn Care Program is based on nurturing healthy soil and using pest control only if necessary. We take an integrated pest management approach to our lawn care program. We start with a complete analysis of your soil, which will help us to identify any nutrient deficiencies or soil PH problems that may exist. We next recommend any corrective measures that may need to be taken and adjust your fertilization program if needed. If no adjustments are needed for your soil, our standard fertilization program can be broken down into the following steps:

1. MAY – Broadleaf Weed Control and Crabgrass Pre-emergent Application. Timing of this application is critical in suppressing crabgrass seed germination. Equally important is the eradication of weeds that may have invaded the lawn during the previous growing season. While we use pesticides in a curative role, experience has shown that this combination application is important to lawn quality.
2. JUNE – Organic Based Lawn Fertilizer Application. A controlled release organic based fertilizer applied in June will continue to feed your lawn for three months. A fully organic product (100%) can be substituted but at a higher price point. (Please see the benefits of organics in our ape advice section.)
3. JULY & OCTOBER – Lawn Inspection. Inspection for insects and/or disease. After notification and following your approval, necessary corrective action is taken.
4. AUGUST – Aeration. One of the most important maintenance practices we can employ to help maintain the health of your lawn. Aeration will prevent a number of problems, including compaction and thatch build-up. It opens passageways in the soil, allowing better air, water, and nutrient movement. During drought conditions, aeration helps water reach thirsty roots. (Please see our Aeration Service)
5. SEPTEMBER – Organic Based Lawn Fertilizer & Broadleaf Weed Control Application. The second- and most important– controlled release organic based fertilizer application is performed helping your lawn to recover from the stresses of the long hot summer. Treatment for broadleaf weeds that may have developed during the summer occurs at this time.
6. PEST CONTROL – Integrated Pest Management. IPM is defined as “a process consisting of the balanced use of cultural, biological, and chemical procedures that are environmentally feasible, and socially acceptable to reduce pest populations to tolerable levels.” Knowledge of both pests and plants–and the monitoring of each– is critical to landscape health. Proper management practices (ie. fertilizing, mowing, watering, and aeration) greatly reduces pest problems. In accordance with our IPM approach, pesticides are used only when insect and/or disease levels reach intolerable levels. Early intervention allows for fewer pesticides and reduces our impact on the environment. (Please see Insect & Disease Control Service for more information).

Aeration is the practice of creating small evenly spaced 3″ deep holes in your lawn and is beneficial to your lawn in several ways. Most importantly it helps to relieve compaction of your turf. (Please see “Benefits of Aeration” in our ape advice section for more information). We offer this service as part of our Fertilization program, because we have found that aeration greatly improves the quality of the turf. We believe that late Summer to early Fall is the best time to perform this task.

Since 2002, Connecticut has had the highest reported rate of Lyme Disease in the country. The tiny ‘deer tick’ is responsible for transmitting Lyme Disease to humans and pets. Lyme Disease is the most commonly reported tick-borne disease in the United States. Deer ticks are much smaller than dog ticks, often no bigger than the head of a pin, and are much more difficult to detect. Children aged five to nine have the highest rates of Lyme Disease, but it can strike anyone of any age.

One of the best disease-prevention methods is reducing exposure, including reducing tick populations in the outside areas around your home where you spend time.

We can safely treat your shrubs and the perimeter of your property with out spraying of pesticides. We also can educate you on other ways to make your property safer from ticks.

Click here for more information about Lyme Disease and tick control.

Battle this elusive lawn destroyer! We are also proud to be certified applicators for the effective Talpirid® Mole Treatment System. To learn more about the treatment system click here and if you have any further questions, feel free to contact us.

Are Deer constantly eating your plants? We can provide you with the protection that you need.  Click here for some quick self help tips.

We provide both commercial and residential snow removal service to our valued customers.