Thank You & Happy Holidays!

From all of us here at Peerless, thanks for a great 2025 season! We’ll see you next year.

 Be on the lookout for the end-of-the-year newsletter!

Farmer’s Almanac Predicts “Chill, Snow, Repeat” for Winter 2025-26

The extended weather forecast for winter 2025-26 is predicting cold temperatures and frequent snowfalls. New England is told to prepare for cold snaps and biting temperatures, particularly in mid-January and mid-February. We are also predicted to get frequent snowfall throughout the season. Keep those shovels handy!

In other seasonal news, a pest update for Berkshire County from the UMass Extension Landscape, Nursery and Urban Forestry Program shares that up until recent frosts, the most common complaints have been the abundance of jumping worms in lawns and garden soils, and deer ticks (a.k.a. black legged ticks). Pets, especially dogs, running around outdoors have picked up countless ticks and brought them indoors. This greatly increases the chance that the ticks can transfer to a human.

Plant diseases, mostly foliar diseases, have quickened the defoliation of infected plants. It is recommended to rake and dispose of the debris. Vole activity has also increased, and there is an excess of tunneling in lawns and landscapes. Browsing by deer and rabbits on evergreen plants has been on the rise as well.

Finally, the high wind gusts have resulted in severe damage to some trees. Trim and remove dead or broken branches throughout the year to avoid winter destruction.

Lawn Care Tips

Summer heat may have your lawn stressing, but you don't have to!

Here are some helpful tips for keeping your lawn healthy:

• Sharpen mower blades- dull blades create blade stress that will openly encourage various fungal diseases- especially in the heat of summer

• Alternate mowing patterns from week to week (although sometimes difficult- it is very beneficial to keep the turf from “getting into a rut”)

•  Never mow more than 1/3^rd of the blade off a time

• OK to leave clippings on- they add nutrients and water to form healthy thatch

• OK to mow frequently, but especially in sunny, hot areas, try to keep the height at 2 ½ - 3”. This will also help to “shade out weeds”, especially late-season crabgrass!

• Water infrequently and heavily

• Lawns need about 1” of water per week

• It is best to do a heavy soaking every week or so- 6 inches deep into soil

• Frequent light sprinkling causes compaction and promotes a shallow, weak root system (avoid)