at home on Fripp

Spring landscaping tips:

• Rake your yard/dethatch. Dethatching your yard is important because doing so allows water and fertilizer to penetrate down to the grassroots.

• Fertilize your yard. Joey prefers 16-4-8 as it is slow release and is good for most turf grasses. This fertilizer works well for most non-blooming green or leafy plants.

• Prune trees, shrubs, and plants. Fripp had a hard freeze this past winter, and pruning removes the dead growth and rejuvenates your vegetation.

• Remove winter weeds.

• Re-mulch or add pine straw.

• Service your mower.

• Service your irrigation system. Consider adding a rain sensor to your irrigation system. It will save you money and water.

• Remember: Less is more! Simpler lawns are easier to maintain.

• Trim trees for more sunlight and house safety.

Fripp’s cutest residents can often be a nuisance to your yard and garden beds. Some standard deer-resistant plants include:

• Vinca (plant around May)

• Lantana

• Society Garlic

• African Iris (“This is a pretty good one!”)

• Muhli Grass (turns purple in the fall)

Insider Tip: What deer eat on one side of the island might be different than what they eat on the other side of the island. Ask your neighbors, or go look at their yard for an idea on what to plant in your yard.

Deer like to sample fresh plants right out of a nursery. Joey has seen deer pull fresh Vinca right out of the ground. When this happens, just replant it. Joey remembers a Landscaping employee trying to plant Vinca on the island one time. The plants were in the back of the Landscaping trailer and the deer were eating them right off the trailer. Needless to say, the plants had to be taken to another side of the island to be planted.

Joey has been with Fripp Island Resort for almost 30 years. If he is not working his magic on the island’s beautiful vegetation, he enjoys spending time with his family, boating and camping.