When should I start treating my lawn after winter?
Give it Nutrients to Grow in the Spring. But you can help your lawn recover from the harsh weather with fertilizer treatment first thing in the spring. After aerating, as soon as the snow melts and outside temperatures reach an average of 55°, give your grass a healthy snack to energize growth for the spring.Feb 22, 2019
What month should you first fertilize your lawn?
Timing: Apply early spring lawn fertilizer once between February and April, when your grass is starting to green up and begin to actively grow (around the time your lawn first needs to be mowed).
What should I put on my lawn in early spring?
Apply fertilizer, pre-emergent and weed killer. Early in spring, use a combination of fertilizer, which feeds your grass, and pre-emergent, an herbicide used to prevent crabgrass. Then, six to eight weeks later, apply both products again, along with a broadleaf weed killer.
What is the first step in lawn care?
A Step-By-Step Lawn Care GuideGet Rid of Weeds. A few weeds in your lawn are inevitable. ... Dethatch. Thatch is the matted accumulation of organic debris that collects between grass blades and roots. ... Aerate. Inspect your lawn to see if aeration is needed. ... Reseed and Overseed. ... Mow. ... Water and Fertilize. ... Mulch and Clean. ... Call a Pro.Apr 19, 2019
How cold is too cold to fertilize lawn?
As a general rule, you should not fertilize your lawn when it is dormant. Lawn grass can go dormant when it's too cold, or too hot. At the cool end of the spectrum, you want to be sure that your air temperatures are consistently 60 degrees Fahrenheit or warmer.Aug 15, 2021
Should you fertilize before or after cutting lawn?
When fertilizing a lawn, it is best to apply fertilizer after the lawn has been mowed so it has a few days to absorb the fertilizer.Wait until late summer, fall or early spring to fertilize the lawn. ... Mow the lawn and leave a small bit of grass clippings on the lawn.More items...
Should you rake your lawn in spring?
Spring raking removes lingering fall leaves and grass blades that did not survive winter. Left alone, these dead blades add to your lawn's thatch layer. Raking also loosens matted grass clumps caused by snow mold, which can smother new growth. Use a spring-tine rake with a strong upward pull to remove dead grass.
When should you first mow in the spring?
Wait until your grass is, at a minimum, two inches tall before you mow. Waiting this long will help to protect the roots, just remember to never chop off more than a third of the grass blade at a time. You have to find the sweet spot between the height of the grass and a mowing height you can live with.Feb 28, 2018
What should I do to my lawn in March?
2 MarchMow lawns once grass starts growing. Cut slightly lower than standard mowing guidelines for the first few times. ... Apply soil amendments, such as fast-acting lime, according to soil test recommendations. ... Treat unwanted moss, which is most vulnerable during peak lawn growth in cool damp months.
When Should I aerate my lawn?
You want to aerate the lawn when your grass is in its peak growing period so it can recover quickly—think early spring or fall for cool-season grasses, and late spring through early summer for warm-season grasses. If you have high-traffic areas or heavy clay soil, you will want to aerate every year.
How do you apply lawn treatment?
So to ensure good coverage apply half the fertilizer in one direction and the second half at ninety degrees to the first direction. Run the spreader around the outside of the lawn first so you can use that area to turn around on more easily. For accurate application of lawn fertilizer a spreader is best.Jan 14, 2014
North: Zones 1, 5, 6
Growing season starts. Mow grass 3 inches high. Leave clippings on lawn.
South: Zones 2, 3, 4
Growing season starts. Mow 3 inches high (1 to 2 inches for Bermuda grass). Leave clippings on lawn.
When is the best time to take care of lawns?
Autumn is often the busiest time in the lawn care calendar as you help your lawn recover from the heat of summer and prepare it for the extremes of winter.
What to do after scarifying a lawn?
Make sure you employ a good recovery program after scarifying. You should also overseed to fill in bare patches left by these invasive treatments. Serious gardeners should top dress their lawns. Also, if you want to sow a new lawn or lay turf, now is the time.
When is the best time to cut worm casts?
November marks the winding down of the lawn care calendar. Keep on top of worm casts by brushing them back into the lawn and removing fallen leaves to reduce their surface activity. If the weather is still good (neither frosty or wet) then set the lawn mower high and give your lawn its last cut of the year.
What is summer lawn maintenance?
Summer lawn maintenance is about keeping on top of the work you did during spring and is really a time to enjoy the longer days in your garden as you relax, with friends and family.
Does lawn take up more time than other plants?
Your lawn takes up more time than any other plant in your garden. So much time in fact, that many people are put off by the work load. By breaking that workload down into a lawn treatment schedule it becomes much less intimidating. Follow this lawn care calendar and you can have a beautiful looking lawn all year round.
How to cut grass at the highest level?
2. Mow High. Double-check your mower deck height, and position it to cut grass at the highest possible setting for your grass type. Cutting high encourages grass plants to grow thicker with deeper roots, which creates a lawn of healthy grass that will help to crowd out weeds. 3.
How to keep grass green and healthy?
3. Water. To keep grass green, healthy, and growing, provide at least 1 inch of water per week, either through irrigation or rainfall. Time irrigation for early morning (between 6 and 10 a.m.) to minimize water loss to evaporation. 4.
How to get rid of leaves in the fall?
Mow Short. In late fall, drop mower height and cut your lawn 1 to 2 inches shorter than normal. In areas with falling leaves, a shorter lawn prevents leaves from matting down the grass.
How to start a cold mower in spring?
Note, too, that a cold mower can be hard to start in early spring. Warm it up by placing it in the sun for an hour or two prior to starting. Kick it up a notch by placing a dark trash bag over the engine while it’s soaking up some rays. (Don’t forget to remove the bag before you start the mower!) Clean up.
How to prevent weeds in a garden?
Toss any weed-free material you might dig out onto planting beds as mulch or add it to your compost pile. Apply mulch. Once the soil has warmed, refresh your mulch. Shredded mulch provides a polished finish to planting beds, but it also helps prevent weed growth by blocking access to the sun.
What is the best blade height for a lawn mower?
Most turf types thrive with a 3- to 4-inch blade height, which usually corresponds to a mower’s highest setting. There are a few exceptions: Bermuda grass and creeping bentgrass like to keep a low profile, while Zoysia grass and Centipede grass enjoy a happy medium.
Is it hard to do spring lawn care?
Spring lawn chores aren't difficult, but they do play a vital role in getting your grass on track for a healthy, productive growing season. Tackling spring lawn care provides a just-right dose of fresh air, sunshine, and exercise—and sets your lawn on its way to season-long glory. Spring lawn chores aren’t difficult, ...
When should I fertilize my lawn?
However, many experts recommend a lighter feeding in spring and a heavier one in late fall for cool-season grasses. Too much fertilizer in spring can lead to disease and weed problems. And, if you fertilized in late fall, then your lawn still has fertilizer to feed on in spring. The Spruce / David Karoki.
What to do when your lawn is bare?
Overseeding is the process of sowing seed over existing grass. Apply a slow-release nitrogen fertilizer (starter fertilizer) when you overseed.
Why is aerating the lawn in spring not recommended?
Generally, though, spring aerating is discouraged because the aeration holes provide a perfect spot for weed seeds to germinate. Lawn weeds (especially crabgrass) are the first seeds to germinate in the spring, and aerating the lawn stirs them up and gives them an ideal home.
What does spring mean on a lawn mower?
Spring also means it's time to get out the lawn mower and give it a once over. Start it up; stubborn start-ups are a sign that it might be due for a tune-up. Give your mower a tune-up once a year. In three easy steps, you can get your mower back in tip-top shape.
What to do if your lawn mower needs a tune up?
If your lawnmower needs more than a tune-up, then consider getting a new one . Among the key tune-up tasks is sharpening the mower blade. A regular sharpening will ensure the blade severs, rather than tears, the grass plants, leading to a nice green lawn rather than one with ragged brown tips.
Why is my lawn getting compacted?
If your lawn gets heavy traffic, such as lots of running and playing in the same spot, this can cause soil compaction. If you see moss, which thrives on compacted soil, you can get rid of it, but you need to look deeper into its root cause. In this case, it's usually compacted soil that needs aeration .
How long after grass sprouts can you fertilize?
Five weeks after the grass germinates and sprouts, you can begin a normal fertilization routing using quick-release nitrogen fertilizer. It is possible to apply seed only to the visible bare patches, but it is also quite common to overseed the entire lawn to ensure that the lawn remains thick and healthy.
When is the best time to fertilize?
Determining the Best Times to Fertilize. Homeowners who prefer organic fertilizing methods might do a single "turf-builder" application in the early fall to build root systems. In the spring and summer, most may omit all fertilizers and rely on the nitrogen from mulched grass clippings to feed their lawn.
Why is my lawn dark green?
A lawn that is a deep, almost blackish green, has been very heavily fertilized. The dark green color comes from a lot of nitrogen-based fertilizer used on the lawn. It is highly likely that some of that fertilizer has run off into the streets, storm sewers, and has made its way into local streams and rivers.
What is a pre-emergence herbicide?
Pre-emergent herbicides are a combination of fertilizer and crabgrass control herbicide applied in the early spring. This combination product does not have a full feeding of fertilizer.
Can you use organic fertilizer on lawns?
2 You can also use organic fertilizers made from natural materials instead of refined chemicals.
Do you need to water your lawn before a storm?
If not, when you apply the fertilizer, you will need to supply your lawn with at least a quarter-inch of water. However, do not apply fertilizer before a massive storm. A rainstorm increases the risk of fertilizer nutrients flowing into storm drains and streams. 3.
Can you return your lawn to the green of summer?
You are not looking to return your lawn to the green of summer. Heading into winter, you can expect a natural slowdown of your lawn's growth and the loss of its green luster. Article Sources. The Spruce uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles.
Can fertilizer run off into the water supply?
The main concern is the fertilizer run-off can enter the local water supply. There is good evidence that shows phosphorus and nitrogen from lawn and agricultural fertilizers are contaminating streams, rivers, and groundwater supplies, creating a pressing environmental problem. 1 .
What to do with lawn in spring?
Part of spring lawn care involves clearing away the ravages of winter. Equipped with your rake and pruning shears, take an exploratory stroll around the property. Look closely for any plants that didn’t survive. Prune damaged or dead branches from trees and bushes, and remove twigs or leaves you find lingering on the grass.
How to dethatch dead grass?
Dethatch the lawn by giving it a good once-over, using either a lawn rake with stiff tines or a special dethatching rake ( view on Amazon ).
Is it important to cut corners in spring?
All are important. Remember that cutting corners now could mean that at the peak of summer, you’ll be spending your weekends making up for spring lawn care oversights. In other words, it’s in your best interest to act now.
What temperature does crabgrass need to germinate?
Eighty percent of germination will occur when the 0- to 2-inch depth soil temperature is consistently reaching 60-70 degrees Fahrenheit.
Can rolling lawns cause soil compaction?
Be careful rolling lawns. Following the recent rains, many areas are still very wet and rolling might actually do more damage than good. Rolling saturated soils can result in soil compaction. Rolling is popular this time of year to flatten out mole tunnels and lumps and bumps from frost heaving during winter, but it’s better to wait until the soils dry then to do it now and risk making a problem worse.
Can you fertilize crabgrass with preemergence?
Many early season fertilizer applications are made in combination with crabgrass preemergence herbicides. If you have fertilizer on hand and are thinking of making an application, wait until the turf has fully greened-up and grown enough that mowing is necessary. Soils are still very cold and until they warm, the turfgrass is not going to be actively growing nor taking up nutrients.
