Welcome to Omaha Lawn Care Association: An Association for Omaha's Premier Lawn Care Professionals

Why join the Omaha Lawn Care Association of Nebraska (OLCA) ?

Mission Statement

Serving the Omaha professional lawn care and landscaping industry by providing necessary resources for its active members.

Education

In order to increase professionalism and the ability to compete in the competitive lawn care and landscape marketplace, we provide our members with educational services, continuing education, and resources.

Communication

OLCA is the standard of the professional lawn care and landscaping industry in Omaha through all means available. We continuously reviewing these medians for improvements.

Research

OLCA is proactive in recommending and leading research specific to the lawn care and landscaping industry.

Member Benefits

OLCA seeks to enhance professional services, and to research and create new services to benefit its members.

Article of the Season

Omaha Spring Lawn and Landscape Guide

Great looking lawn & landscapes in the spring starts with you! This simple guide will help you save money on expensive treatments by eliminating problems before they happen!

Fixing Snow Mold & Mole Damage

After all the snow melts from another tough Mid-At-lantic winter, most people get to see the damage caused from the snow resting on the grass. Most common forms of damage are Snow Mold and Mole Trails.

Snow Mold is easily recognized by small to medium, circular, light tan patches of what appears to be dead grass. This condition is caused by fungi that grow and thrive underneath the heavy snow blanket.

As ugly as it seems, these spots of dead looking grass are confined to the blades of the grass, and have not affected the growing part of the plant. Avoid the expensive treatments, and lightly rake the infected area. This will allow oxygen to circulate and speed up the natural recovery of your lawn.

Mole damage is identified by narrow, twisting ridges throughout your lawn. The small, mouse-like rodent hides underneath the snow blanket during the winter, causing a “tunnelling” effect in your lawn. Lightly rake these areas, and the problem will correct itself.

TIP: Be Gentle! Don’t rake too hard in the Spring, this can cause damage to the plant.

Preventing Weeds in Your Landscaping

Early spring is a perfect time to prevent weeds from establishing themselves in your landscape beds. The key to effective control is preventing the weeds from germinating.

Putting down granular herbicide in your beds before you mulch will prevent weed seeds from germinating throughout the year. This, coupled with an occasional spray treatment quarterly, will save you a lot of time on your hands and knees pulling those pesky weeds!

Plant Pruning & Perennial Care

Before your landscape begins to bloom, take some time to perform some basic maintenance on your plants. Cutting back last season’s dead foliage and pruning your shrubs/trees can help keep a clean, neat look to your landscaping.

Perennial grasses should be cut back and any dead bloom stalks removed. Early spring is also a great time to separate perennials, creating more plants. Using a spade shovel, divide the perennial in half, creating 2 plants.

Early spring is also a good time to transplant any existing trees or shrubs that you want moved. The key to transplanting is removing the plant with a sufficient amount of soil around it containing feeder roots. Insufficient soil around those roots could kill the plant.

The general rule of thumb is that with most small to medium size shrubs, dig a root ball 20 times larger than the trunk. This allows for ample feeder roots and will prevent the plant from going into shock.

Prevent Harmful Tree & Shrub Insects

Insects and their eggs, such as spider mites, hide in your plants just below the surface, sustaining themselves on your plant’s nutrients.

An inexpensive dormant oil spray before your plants bloom will kill these intruders and prevent you from needing an expensive treatment later in the season.

TIP: SAVE MONEY!!!!!!! Dormant Oil can kill those insects on plants before they become a costly problem!