Kent County Lyme disease cases surge 1,800% as ticks spread across Michigan

/in , , /by

There is a concerning trend as we head into spring. The number of ticks and tick-borne illnesses is increasing.

From 2016 to 2020 in Kent County, there were only about 11 cases of Lyme disease a year. However, in data only completed through September, 2025 saw 216 cases of Lyme disease.

“We’re going from 10, 11, 12 cases to hundreds of cases a year now,” said Dr. Andrew Jameson, infectious disease physician at Trinity Health Medical Group. “We really think that it’s a combination of the type of ticks that are moving and where they’re moving. Much of that is being driven by climate change.”

Jameson explained the culprit is called the black-legged tick, which was not originally in Michigan. Now, it’s in almost every county, bringing disease with it.

Lyme disease is treated with an oral antibiotic. However, Jameson called Lyme a “real troublesome thing,” in that it can have lasting effects long after the disease is technically gone.

“What happens to people is they feel terrible for months,” said Jameson. “There’s something called a post Lyme syndrome, which you can have body aches, joint aches, it can mess with your immune system, it can mess with your nervous system, and that can last a year to two years. It actually has a lot of similarities with long COVID, but it’s not actually Lyme disease anymore. If you get more antibiotics, it doesn’t help.”

The early symptoms of Lyme disease include a bullseye rash, fever and body aches.

Lyme disease does not spread from human to human. It is only carried by ticks. This is why it is vital to take preventative measures when outside.

Wear long pants and tuck them into socks. Tuck in shirts to pants. Make sure to do a tick check once back inside.

“Be tick aware. There’s more coming, and so just be careful,” said Jameson.

The state of Michigan also has a tick identification program. Through the state health department, you can upload a photo of a removed tick for identification. They can tell you if it is a disease-carrying type of tick or not.

 

Expectations for your lawn in March

/in /by

After a long Michigan winter, many lawns look rough right now — and that’s completely normal. Below is what you can expect over the next few weeks and how we’ll help your lawn get off to a strong start.

Read more

Annual Bluegrass going to seed

/in , /by

Every spring, while many grass varieties are just waking up, one variety of grass is already standing out. It is an unwanted and difficult-to-control grass called Annual Bluegrass. (Not to be confused with a good grass called Kentucky Bluegrass.)  Right now it is producing seedheads and sticks out in lawns.  For a few weeks every spring, annual bluegrass goes to seed before other varieties.  The seeds it produces help this grass to spread and make it difficult to control as the seeds drop into the soil.

If you ever want to try to control this aggressively spreading grass, this short timeframe when it goes to seed is the time to do it.   We recommend digging out the clumps of annual bluegrass, adding a thin layer of dirt and fresh grass seed.  Be careful when removing this grass not to spread the seeds and to properly dispose of the removed clumps.

Maple Tree Seedlings

/in , /by

The Maple Tree seedlings are back in full force this spring.  The warm spring weather has caused them to arrive early this year.

Many customers ask if our lawn care applications will control Maple Tree seedlings. The answer is yes, but there is an easier way. Maple Tree seedlings aren’t mowing-tolerant. Once the leaves are mowed off, the rest of the tree can’t survive, and they will die on their own. Don’t lower your mowing height to eliminate them early. They will be gone soon enough.

Top reasons why reseeding fails

/in , , , /by

#4- Seeding too heavy- Most people put down grass seed way too heavy.   More is better, right?  Not with seeding.  When seeding too heavily, you get lots of small grass plants too close together without enough space for their roots to grow.  As a result, most of the plants die, and you are left with very thin grass.   Study the label on your grass seed bag for instructions on how to properly apply the grass seed. The picture above shows the correct density of seed when reseeding.

#3- Lack of sunlight- Many times, people are reseeding because their lawns are thin in the shady areas.  As trees grow taller and thicker, the Kentucky Bluegrass under these trees starts to die as it won’t grow in dark conditions.  If you don’t improve the sunlight, the new grass won’t survive.  Trimming or removing trees may be necessary to grow grass.  Take a step back and assess whether trying to plant grass is the best option for your space.   Would a mulch bed with shady-loving plants be better for this area?

#2- Poor Soil Preparation- Seeding is all about preparation.  Simply broadcasting seed over your lawn is worthless.  Grass seed needs to be touching bare, loose dirt to grow.  There are two different options for preparing your soil for seed.   The first option is to use a hard-tined rake to rake the top inch of soil.  The second option is to add a thin layer of dirt.  We like to do both; rake the top inch of soil and add a thin layer of dirt.  Doing both options will give the roots of your new grass the best chance to grow.

#1- Not watering enough- For grass seed to grow, it needs to stay moist for 21 days in a row.  That usually means watering at least twice a day.  If you have an underground sprinkler system, we recommend setting your sprinkler system to come on four times a day for 4-6 minutes per zone.  You want the seeded area to stay moist, but you don’t want water to puddle.  At 10 days, ryegrass and fescue will start to germinate, but don’t stop watering!  If you stop watering at 10 days, the Kentucky Bluegrass won’t grow, and it is the most desirable variety of grass.  It doesn’t start to germinate until 21 days.

Grass seed needs three things to germinate:  It needs to be touching bare loose dirt, it needs sunlight and water.  If all 3 of these elements are present, you will win at seeding.   But if you are missing any one of these, your seeding will fail.  

How to check your mowing height

/in , , /by

There is one free and easy change that you can make to improve the health of your lawn.  Are you ready to do it?

For a great lawn, you must mow your grass at the proper height. For the summer months, your grass should be mowed at 3.5 inches.  Grass that is mowed below 3 inches lacks good color, has more weeds, and needs more water.

Here is how to check that you are mowing at the proper height:  After you mow your lawn, take a credit card and hold it sideways in the grass.  Your grass blades should be cut at the height of the card or slightly higher.  If you are cutting below the height of your card, (like in this picture), you need to raise the mowing height of your lawn mower.  Don’t trust the markings on your mower for height as they are rarely correct. Click here for more information on the benefits of a higher mowing height.

Spring Lawn Mower Maintenance

/in , /by

Spring is a great time for some lawn mower maintenance. Follow these 5 steps and you will be ready to mow!

 

  1. Change the oil. This is one of the most important steps. Also, check the oil periodically during the season to make sure it’s at the correct level.
  2. Check the air filter. The air filter typically doesn’t need to be replaced every year. If it is slightly dirty you can clean it, but if it is very dirty or damaged, it is a good idea to replace it.
  3. Check the spark plug. If you are having trouble starting your mower, this can be a common cause. If the plug is very dirty or dark on the end, then it may be time to replace it.
  4. Sharpen your blade. You can sharpen the blade on your own with a metal file or a bench grinder, or you can have a pro do it. Either way, a sharp blade is vital to having clean-cut grass. This practice should be done a couple of times during the season. It may be a good idea to buy a spare blade to use while your other one is being sharpened.
  5. Setting the mower height. For the best results, set the height at 3 inches during the cooler times of the year, and 3.5 inches during the summer months. A higher mowing height can aid you in keeping the weeds and crabgrass out of your lawn. This will also result in thicker grass and a lawn that will not dry out as quickly.

Click on the link below for a video at lawn mower maintenance.

Spring Lawn Mower Maintenance

Quackgrass vs. Crabgrass

/in /by

Each spring, we receive questions regarding an ugly, wide-bladed grass growing in lawns. Customers are mistakenly identifying this grass as crabgrass. It is a easy mistake to make because they look so similar, but this ugly grass is actually quackgrass, not crabgrass.

Quackgrass in the spring

Quackgrass is a perennial grass that is one of the first grasses to come out of dormancy each spring. Many homeowners confuse this thick-bladed “junk grass” with crabgrass.

Quackgrass has a huge root system so pulling it out is not a long term solution. Because quackgrass is a variety of grass, there aren’t chemical products available that know the difference between quack- grass and the other good varieties of grass in the lawn. Round-Up is good at controlling quackgrass, but applying it will also kill desirable grass around it.

We have heard of customers who have applied Round-Up in an interesting way. They will put a rubber glove on their hand with a cotton glove over the rubber glove. Then dip the gloved hand into Round-Up, and coat the quackgrass blades with the liquid. The Round-Up kills quackgrass roots and all in about 10 days.

Crabgrass in the summer

Crabgrass is a summer annual. It is similar in appearance to quackgrass because it grows in clumps and faster than the grass around it. It germinates in mid-May and starts appearing in lawns in July. Our first lawn care application includes a crabgrass pre- venter which is our best defense against this un- sightly grass. The second best thing to help prevent crabgrass is a high mowing height. We see less crabgrass in lawns that are mowed between 3 and 3.5 inches than lawns mowed below 3 inches.

Moles vs Voles

/in , /by

Mole or Vole Damage?

Over the winter months, moles and voles continue to work in your lawn.  These two pests damage a lawn in different ways and identifying them is key in controlling them.

Click here for more information on identifying Voles vs Moles

Snow Mold – Gray & Pink Patches

/in /by

What are the gray or pink spots in my lawn?

Snow mold. There are typically two kinds of snow mold: Gray and pink. This disease is usually noticed as the snow melts in the spring. It is commonly found in those turf areas of greatest snow accumulation, such as along driveways or over the brink of a hill where snow drifts tend to accumulate. The most notable symptoms are white crusted areas of grass in which blades are dead, bleached, and matted together. Although this disease looks unsightly, it rarely causes permanent damage to your turf. A light raking of the affected areas will speed up the recovery. In most cases our spring application will stimulate enough growth to heal these areas.