Lawn Care Calendar

Creating and maintaining a beautiful lawn is like so many maintenance jobs:  everything goes easier — and you get better results — with proper planning.  While grass lawns require care throughout most of the year, there are certain items that should be done at specific times.  Here’s a rundown on year-round lawn care.

Spring is a good time to get ready for the lawn maintenance season. The long cool days of spring and spring rains make roots grow quickly. Warmer temperatures in the summer and the lack of moisture usually means slower grass growth. Than as fall approaches with the cooler temperatures and good moisture plants store food in the roots which speeds the growth of the grass.  (While we missed this post in time for this season, make a mental note for next year.)

  • Early spring:  Be careful while cleaning up winter debris and branches to give your turf’s roots a chance to grab hold. Wait for the ground to dry out before you start raking. Early raking traumatizes the grass roots and allows the weeds to get ahead. In April start repairing damaged areas with a lawn repair kit to patch it, or seed the bare spots early to crowd out warm season weeds. Apply crabgrass preventer to stop crabgrass before temperatures reach 55° F, three days in a row.  In May seed the lawn, unless crabgrass preventer was used. Sod can be laid. Fertilize the lawn and start mowing with a height of 2 ½” and no lower.
  • Summer:  In June apply fertilizer (if it wasn’t done in May) to the established lawn. Start mowing regularly and raise the height of the mower. In July only irrigated and highly managed-lawns should be fertilized. A lawn needs at least 1” of water per week either through rainfall or an irrigation system. In August plant seed or lay sod from mid to late August. Repair damaged areas with a lawn repair kit to patch it, or seed the bare spots. Irrigate if there isn’t any rainfall.
  • Fall:  In early to mid-September you can still lay sod or seed new lawns. Fertilize using a weed killer to get rid of perennial weeds.
  • Winter:  You’ve got a few months to rest from lawn care chores, so now is the time to plan changes to your landscape for next year.  Perhaps it’s time to add some hardscaping or other landscape solutions to cut down on all that lawn care.  We’ve got lots of suggestions to offer – give us a call!