Spring

Starting your lawn care routine at the beginning of the growing season sets the stage for easier maintenance in the summer and fall seasons. Here’s what to do as soon as the snow melts in your area.

Get Your Mower Ready

Make sure to prepare your lawnmower before the season begins. Take it in for any repairs or maintenance, like blade sharpening, to avoid the rush. Sharpening the blade at least once per year ensures clean cuts and a healthy-looking lawn.

Start a New Lawn from Seed

While fall is ideal for sowing seeds for a new lawn, spring is a good alternative. Be sure to start this process early; your grass needs plenty of time to establish before summer arrives.

Prevent Crabgrass from Being a Problem

Annual weeds like crabgrass sprout from seed every spring. To prevent them from growing, apply a preemergence herbicide at the right time—when the forsythia blooms in your area start falling.

Aerate Compacted Soil

Lawns often struggle in compacted soil, which weeds can thrive in. If you need to aerate, spring is the perfect time to do it, since this is a period when your grass is actively growing.

Begin Mowing

Start mowing your lawn when your grass reaches 3 inches tall. Generally, keep most grass types at least 2 inches tall to help ward off weeds and withstand drought. Avoid cutting more than a third of the grass height at once, since this stresses the grass.

Apply Fertilizer

If you fertilize your lawn a couple of times a year, apply a light dose of lawn fertilizer in spring for a great start. Wait until your lawn needs its first mowing of the season. Opt for a slow-release or organic fertilizer for best results; quick green-ups can harm your grass.

Attack Grubs

If grubs are troubling your lawn, you can prevent damage by applying a grub-control product that lasts throughout the season. The ideal time for this process is in early June during your regular lawn maintenance.

Summer

Summer is about maintenance: mowing, watering, and pest control. Stay on top of mowing for a healthy lawn.

Mow as Needed

Because most grasses in this region like it cool, they won't grow as fast when temperatures go over 80 degrees F. During hot, dry periods, it may only need mowing once every two or three weeks. Wait for it to grow about 3 inches tall. In cooler, moister weather patterns, mow enough to keep it from getting more than 3 inches tall—that could be every week or more than once a week.

Water Wisely

During hot, dry weather, you can allow your grass to go dormant if you don't mind it turning brown. When the rains come again, it will go green and start growing again. If you don't like a brown lawn, select drought-tolerant types such as buffalograss or plan on giving your lawn about 1 inch of water a week.

Fall

Use the fall months to clean up your yard and prepare for the next year. Continue all the maintenance tasks you've been doing all growing season, too.

Fall Feedings

If you only fertilize your lawn once a year, autumn is the best time to do it. Your lawn can benefit from a light application of fertilizer in early fall and again in late fall.

Aerate

If you didn't aerate in spring and your lawn needs it, fall is a great time. Aerating helps loosen compacted soil and allows your lawn to thrive.

Continue Mowing

As temperatures cool, your lawn will grow faster again. Keep mowing as part of your regular lawn maintenance through the end of the season.

Fall Cleanup

Clean up fallen leaves. If you don't want to spend time raking them, run your lawnmower or leaf vacuum over your lawn two or three times. This will chop the leaves into fine pieces; they quickly decompose and add to your soil's structure. Alternatively, rake up and compost the fallen leaves.

Overseed Your Lawn

Most Pacific Northwest lawns will have cool-season grasses, so autumn is the best time to overseed or grow a new lawn from scratch. Plan carefully; your new grass needs at least a month before your first average first frost so it can get established.

Attack Perennial Weeds

Most perennial lawn weeds, such as dandelions and ground ivy, are most susceptible to attack in the fall. Treat them as part of your lawn maintenance with a broadleaf herbicide or pull them by hand.

By following a lawn care calendar, you can stay on top of maintenance and give your lawn the best chance throughout the seasons. Both fall and spring are vital to the success of your lawn in the future.