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The Top Choice Austin Landscaping Blog

Why is there a part of my yard that is always swampy and wet?

By The Top Choice Team / September 17, 2020

Possible Answer: Broken Irrigation – If a portion of the yard is swampy and wet, the first thing to check is the Irrigation system.  Run the sprinklers for a few minutes per zone and walk around and check things out.  Sometimes there is an obvious problem that isn’t noticed because your irrigation runs early in…

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Why do I have a large brown spot in my yard when it gets hot?

By The Top Choice Team / September 17, 2020

Possible Answer: Too Little Water – As our heat increases, the grass needs more and more water to stay healthy.  If only a single portion of the yard is struggling simply turning up the water may not be enough.  Something could be wrong with the irrigation system. A common problem is bad sprinkler head coverage. …

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My lawn is getting thin and fading. What is wrong?

By The Top Choice Team / September 17, 2020

Possible Answer: Shade – Shade is an incredibly common problem in our area.  Our wonderful Live Oaks and other native trees generally make our lives better, but they can literally murder a lawn.  The tree canopies spread and capture as much of the sunlight as possible, often leaving little light under the tree.  The canopy…

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5 Best Shade Trees for Austin

By The Top Choice Team / September 2, 2020

Best Shade Trees for Austin Texas Here are 5 of the best shade trees in Austin and Central Texas. It is hard to say that one is better than another, it really depends on the micro-climate and your specific needs. This is meant to be a quick overview. If you want more information, we are…

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Plants for Hummingbirds in Austin

By The Top Choice Team / August 25, 2020

Hummingbirds – Facts and Plants Let’s start with some facts about hummingbirds.  10 Hummingbird facts If you grew up in Austin or Central Texas, you may take hummingbirds for granted, but interestingly there are no native species in Europe, Africa, Asia, Australia or Antarctica.  You think you have a high heart rate? The little hearts…

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40,000 Lawns Mowed?! Rogelio and Chuy

By The Top Choice Team / August 20, 2020

The Power of Great People Top Choice was founded in 2005. A lot has changed since then – people, competence, size, and ownership. But we had something cool happen recently and we want to celebrate. This year two of our foremen reached their 10 year mark with the company. And they are brothers. One of the…

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Types of Grass

By The Top Choice Team / August 17, 2020

Central Texas Grass Though we do not think about it much, our climate has a big impact on our life, and your grass is a big part of your personal climate!  In Austin (the southernmost state capital in the US of A!), we have a lot of benefits from our temperate weather.  Sandals and Shorts…

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Ice Bucket While Explaining Lawn Basics

By The Top Choice Team / July 22, 2020

Lawn Basics – Delivered a new way In this video we explain four basics for your lawn.  Maintenance – Focus on height and correct consistency.  Cultural Practices – Watch out for compaction (kids or pets) and pet waste Location – Don’t try to grow grass that needs 6 hours of sun in full shade. Nutrients…

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Core Value: Have Fun and Tree Trimming

By The Top Choice Team / July 13, 2020

Doesn’t this picture make you happy? Real smiles are the best. This is Eleazar (we call him Laser) and he is one of our fantastic, long-time foremen.  Core Value: Have Fun At Top Choice one of our core values is to”have fun”. We define fun as: laughing, winning, working hard and serving. We don’t really…

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More Water = Better?

By The Top Choice Team / June 30, 2020

More isn’t always better: Years ago I really wanted my lawn to look great so I decided to add more water. More = better. That is always the right answer…isn’t it? So, I watered every day (this was before I understood water restrictions). Let’s avoid the obvious first issues (money, waste, regulations). But this is…

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