Preparing your lawn for spring is important to the health and beauty of your turf. Follow these steps to ensure that your outdoor area will be in tip-top shape as the weather warms up.

Clean Up

Spring cleaning isn’t just for the inside of your home- your lawn will need some tidying as well. Clear the yard of any leaves, twigs, or debris that has accumulated over the winter. These items can get caught in your mower, causing damage, as well as block sunlight and nutrients from reaching the roots of your grass.

Tree Care

Before the showers can bring spring flowers, they often bring heavy downpours, high winds, and sometimes damaging conditions to Nashville. Prior to the arrival of spring storms, take inventory of your trees’ health. Peeling bark, heaving soil at the base, and split branches can all be indicators of structural weakness. Weak trees during severe weather can pose a threat to your home, cars, and surrounding landscape. If any trees need attention, now is the time to act.

Pre-Emergent

The biggest mistake that one can make when it comes to defeating pesky weeds, is not getting a head start on their prevention. Apply a pre-emergent in early spring- before the ground reaches 55 to 60 degrees- to prevent crabgrass from germinating. An herbicide is effective to prevent crabgrass, which is a prevalent weed in Middle Tennessee.

Maintenance the Mower

Don’t wait until the first beautiful mowing day to find out that your lawnmower is broken. Be proactive by doing your maintenance ahead of time. This includes:

  • Draining any old gasoline and replacing with fresh
  • Change the oil
  • Replace the spark plug
  • Chang/clean the air filter

Tuning up your mower can take a little time, but you’ll be thankful that you did it come mowing time.

Fertilizer

Depending on the type of grass that your lawn consists of, spring may or may not be the ideal time for fertilizer. The rule of thumb is to apply fertilizer twice a year during your lawn’s peak growing season. This means that warm-season grasses will benefit from a fertilizer in the spring as they flourish during the summer, and then again in late summer.

Check on Irrigation

The simplest way to ensure that your lawn is well-watered throughout the warm months is with an irrigation system. There’s a good chance you won’t need to use it much during Tennessee’s rainy months, but by prepping your system now, you’ll be ready when the time comes.

Many irrigation systems have built-in rain sensors, so you can leave the system on a timer and it won’t waste water during a downpour.

Take Care of Hardscapes

Spring in Nashville is typically mild, with wonderfully cool nights. It’s the perfect time to enjoy outdoor activities! Don’t miss taking advantage of this ideal season because your outdoor living area isn’t up-to-par. If you’ve always wanted an outdoor fireplace, outdoor kitchen, patio or deck, or other luxury hardscapes, now is the time to install. Don’t look back on this warm season wishing you could’ve enjoyed your outdoor area more!