Oh those beautiful spring landscapes, so natural and effortless. Don’t we wish! Alternating days of sunshine and rain brings the yard and garden to life. That includes unwanted weeds, insects and messes leftover from winter. Our spring yard and garden maintenance tips will help you turn that wild field into a manicured landscape in no time.
General Maintenance
Complete these general items first to make your environment safer and more attractive.
- Check landscape lighting, replace bulbs and batteries as needed and check timers
- Repair any drainage problems that occurred during winter
- Inspect hardscape areas for heaving and other damage, and repair as needed
- Remove weeds and winter debris
Pruning
The right type of pruning in spring helps trees and shrubs look their best all summer long.
- Prune dead branches from small trees and woody and evergreen shrubs
- Prune to shape flowering and decorative shrubs such as viburnum and boxwood
- Perform reduction pruning—removing up to 1/3 of the old wood--from shrubs like Dogwood and Red Twig
- Remove root suckers, crossed branches and dead or diseased limbs from trees
Flower Beds
It takes more than April showers to make those May flowers grow. It takes a bit of planning and a lot of dirt under the fingernails.
- Cut bedding edges
- Spread fertilizer around flower clumps, never on the crown
- Cut back groundcover plants
- Divide decorative grasses, perennials and bulbs as needed, replant divisions in bare areas
- Spread no more than two inches of mulch around plants. Never spread mulch closer than 1 inch to a plant or on top of the crown
Lawn Care
Forget roses, lawns are the divas of the landscape. Follow our lawn-care tips and your yard will be the envy of the neighborhood.
- If you’ve never done it, test your soil’s pH level this spring. Knowing exactly which amendments are needed will help you grow a thicker, healthier lawn
- Dethatch to remove dead and dying grass and other debris that collected over the winter
- Aerate to loosen soil and allow water and nutrients to penetrate to the lawn’s roots
- Pull weeds. If you must apply chemical weed killer, use sparingly. Too many chemicals can stress the lawn when temperatures rise
- Feed the grass with a slow-release fertilizer if needed
- Reseed bare spots
The list may seem long, but most of these spring yard and garden maintenance tips are chores that can be completed in just a weekend or two, depending on the size of your property. Taking care of these items now will save time and yard-work headaches later, not to mention your landscape will have that “effortless” look every homeowner desires.
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