How To Stop Animals From Digging Holes In Your Yard

Yard, ,

As much as it is great to have your own yard, it will be a real headache at times in having to maintain it. From having the grass healthy and also good to look at. But one of the most common problems yet a really big nuisance are animals digging in your yard. They seem very hard to get rid of and because of that, it is also hard for you to maintain and clean up your yard.

There are ways to stop them, and here are some of them:

1. Check for Grubs

The number one reason why animals are digging up your lawn is because of the grubs. These are insects that take up your lawn, and animals dig them up as their food. Because of that, you will have to get rid of those. You may want to call one expert for this and have them control in getting rid of them. The problem is that it might not get rid of all the grubs. Also, the animals will not care if the grub is alive or not, so they may continue digging for those.

2. Put Barriers

Ordinary barriers such as warnings or ropes will not work for them, but you can still use some to get rid of them. Examples are chicken wires or even chain links that will be put upon the fences. This may be a little bit of more physical though because you will need to have it moved to not affect the grass.

3. Repellents

There are also repellents you can use to get rid of them. You can purchase commercial ones at stores. It is available both as a liquid, where you can use it with a hose, or powdered, wherein will be sprinkled. Make sure to use it occasionally, maybe once a week, or it might affect the health of your grass.

There are also alternatives. You can use some household items which are usually something spicy such as cayenne pepper, onions, and hot peppers. 

4. Set a Trap

Another way to get rid of those animals is by setting up a trap. If they got lured into the trap, you can remove them away from your place. This may also give warnings to other animals if they plan to get to your place. You can also have something sprinkle water on them every time they enter your property.

5. Call Animal Control

If it gets too hard because there are too many of them, you can always call animal control. They can help you with trapping those animals.

6. Keep It Healthy

You will also need to have your lawn taken care of. One of the ways is having your lawn reseed. Because of this, the roots will be deep and will not be easily destroyed. Another thing is said before, and that is getting rid of the grubs. Those grubs are pests, and they will be eating the roots which will be bad for the turf. You could also say that animals digging for them is a big symptom.

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How To Level A Yard Without A Tractor

Yard,

A yard is a great thing to have as a homeowner. You will get to do a lot of things in it. It can be also a place you can relax even without going out to explore nature.

But of course, as a homeowner, you have to be responsible for it. You will have to maintain it, so not only it will look good, but it will also last long. It will also be not causing problems like weeds growing or pests taking over.

Leveling your yard is also important so that it will look good and will also ensure proper drainage. There are various ways to do that, and one of them is calling a professional. If you think it is too costly, you can do it yourself. You can invest in a tractor.

If you have the time and patience, you can also do it by hand. Here are the steps for it: 

1. Have the Right Tools

Because you will not use a tractor, you will need to have other tools for this. You will need some basic tools such as a rake, shovel, and wheelbarrow. You will also need some level to measure it up. You will also need something that will serve as your marks, and wooden stakes can do that job.

2. Remove the Turf

For you to be able to level your yard, you will have to remove the current turf or else it will be more challenging as it is. Add to that, it might be unhealthy already because of weeds. You will have to remove those from the roots to make sure they will be getting rid of permanently. 

3. Smooth It

After removing those unwanted plants, you will have to smooth out your yard. You can do this using a rake to spread and distribute the soil. 

4. Slopes

Keep in mind that slope is required from the house. The reason for this is to prevent water collection during rainy days that will cause outflow. You will still need to level the remaining. You can have stakes as your marks, so you will know where the slopes are and will not cause an accident. Then you can use your tools such as the shovel to keep up with the slope.

5. Fill Gaps

There will surely be gaps, and they need to be filled immediately to avoid accidents. Fill them up with a more solid soil or rocks so that they will be more durable. Then after that, continue leveling your yard.

6. Final Touches

To make sure that your yard is really even, you will have to check it. The tool you will constantly use with this is the rake, and it will assure the level of your yard. You will also need to check on your slope constantly if it is still intact. Then the last thing you will do is add some rich soil for the preparation of seeding or planting new grass. You will do this while leveling.

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How To Train Your Dog To Stay In The Yard

Yard, ,

It is great to have a pet dog. If you are tired from a long day of work and really stressed out then you came home and find your dog greeting you and really happy to see you, it will all fade away.

Of course, as a dog owner, you will also have the responsibility. You will have to feed them and also take them for walks. Another responsibility is to train them. No, your dog does not have to do some tricks but they have to be disciplined. And being disciplined means not being messy in the house and knows where to do their business. Being disciplined also not running away from your home and harassing your neighbors.

Another kind of discipline they should know is staying in your yard even if you do not have any barriers. By this, they will not cause chaos and also will be good for their safety.

So, what are the ways they can be trained?

1. Boundary Training

As the name suggests, it is when a dog will be trained to stay within boundaries. And this boundary would be within your house. This will let them know where they will be free to roam and not. This will also have them guarding your property.

For you to do this, you will need to have some items for your dog to recognize the boundary. One of the things you can use is flags. With those, you will also need a clicker. This clicker is essential for their training. Every time your dog recognizes the flag, you will use your clicker and also give them a treat. Practice this in different ways. You can start easy like keeping them near then have them further in your yard as time goes on.

2. Perimeter Training

Another method is the perimeter training. This involves walking your dog around the border so that they will know the boundaries. You will have to do this several times. If you are busy, you will have to set a schedule for this.

This method involves more on command. After introducing your dog to the boundaries, let them walk around it and see if they got familiar with it. Then you will have to do some commands around those perimeters, and this includes the stay and sit. You will have to also introduce a new command which is “leave it.” It is the command you will say when they go to a place outside of boundaries.

3. Extension Leash

This involves putting your dog in a long leash. This will still involve training them with the commands mentioned above. Then you will have to walk them around your property but this time, they will have a leash. With this, you will use those commands but if they do get to cross boundaries, you will have to tug the leash gently. If they managed to obey or stop, you will give them a treat.

This method also involves having someone else. Their role is to go around the perimeter and having your dog not chase after them. If they do, you tug the leash. Another thing you will do is having toys tossed outside the boundary line and let them have restrained in taking it. Do this until you get your desired result.

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How To Turn A Yard Of Weeds Into Grass

Yard,

One of the best things you could have in your home is your own yard. With it, you will get to do a lot of activities such as games and sports. You can also invite some of your friends for a barbecue party. It is also a great space for you if you have kids and pets. The possibilities are endless in what you could do with it.

The problem with it is maintaining it. It is not exactly easy. Then add to that the other problems such as weeds. It is one of those pests that ruin the beauty of your lawn.

The great thing is that you can still save it albeit not an easy task. Here are the ways you can do it:

1. Start Removing

If you will not start immediately then the work will just be added and will get too many as the time comes. That is why you will have to remove it right away. If you also will not be able to do that, it might cause further damage to your lawn. You can do it manually or by hand. An easier way to do it is to apply some weed killer, but keep in mind that it will affect your grass, so you might want something safer.

2. Check the Soil

The reason why your lawn has many weeds is because of the soil. Because of that, you can call on an expert to check your soil. There are also tools available at hardware stores to check it yourself. This way, you could also know if your soil is good enough for the type of grass you would like to have. 

3. Aerate the Soil

To aerate means to freshen or allowing the oxygen to be in and deeper. To do this, you will need some tools. You will need to till your soil and make them loose. You will also be going to open some holes to allow the air in the soil. Because of it, the roots of the grass will be deeper. This will also make fertilizer and water go through easily and deeper.

4. Reseed

After doing all of the above, you will need to plant new seeds for the new grass. You will have to spread the seeds all over the lawn. You can use a tool for this which is called the broadcast seeder. Make sure that the seeds are really in the soil so that it will go deeper and grow right.

5. Take Care of It

It does not stop with the planting. The growing of grass is a process. And even if they grow great, you will still need to continue taking care of it or else it will look bad again. The first thing to do is to water them regularly, at least twice a week. To make your job easier, you can invest in a sprinkler. Then to avoid the spreading of weeds again, remove them immediately with any chance you got. Another way to keep them healthy is by putting fertilizer on them.

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