As winter transitions into spring here in North Raleigh and Greenville, it’s time to start thinking about your lawn. It’s very important to start treating your lawn early in the spring to give it the boost it needs to grow strong before the warm weather brings rapid weed growth. Below, we’re going to discuss some key lawn care prep tips to make sure yours looks amazing this summer season.
Remove Debris
One of the first things you want to do to prep your lawn for the upcoming summer season is to remove unwanted winter debris. Using a simple rake, you can gather leftover twigs and leaves that are on the surface of your yard. You don’t want these to remain on your lawn as they will decrease lawn health.
Dethatch Your lawn
Another great first step to take is to dethatch your lawn. Thatch is a layer of dead grass, roots, and organic matter that builds up between the soil and the living grass blades. Too much thatch can prevent water and nutrients from reaching the roots. It can harness moisture and lead to many lawn diseases if left unchecked. You can remove light thatch with a rake, but for more thorough results, our team uses power dethatchers suited to warm-season grasses like Bermuda or Zoysia, which are common in North Raleigh and Greenville.
Aerate
It isn’t uncommon for clay-heavy soils to become compacted over time. Things like heavy foot traffic can cut off nutrient supply and moisture to the roots of your grass. Lawn aeration is a great tactic to use to break up that compaction and allow more moisture and nutrients to reach the roots of your turf. Aeration involves using a core aerator, which pulls small plugs of soil from your lawn. This method is especially helpful for compacted clay soils common in this region. By creating little divots in it, we’ll allow your lawn to grow healthier and stronger in the coming year.
Overseeding
Overseeding simply refers to the practice of spreading new grass seed over your existing lawn. This works well to fill in spots that are bare or thin due to the rough winter season. Overseeding is great for increasing the density of your grass and its overall appearance. It’s best done just after aeration.
Water Appropriately
It’s very important to note that you’ll want to do short, consistent waterings after overseeding. Keep up with this watering style until your new grass gets about three inches tall. This helps to ensure that the grass seeds receive the moisture they need to grow. Once your grass is up, switch over to intermittent deep watering to encourage deep root growth. Aim for watering around once per week, and when you do, give your lawn a good one to one and a half inches of water. Be sure to pay attention to the rainfall and adjust your weekly watering accordingly.
Fertilize
Early on in the spring after the soil has reached about 50 degrees Fahrenheit for a few days, it’s time to think about fertilizing your lawn. This will give your grass the initial boost of nutrients it needs to start rapidly growing to crowd out future weed growth. Opt for applying a balanced fertilizer and avoid using excessive nitrogen as it can weaken your grass. It’s best to have one of our experienced lawncare professionals apply fertilizer for you to ensure that your lawn gets what it needs without any prospective damage.
Treat Diseases Promptly
Taking a few moments to look over your entire lawn will allow you to easily identify spots where there is damage. Typically, dead grass and brown grass are key indicators of a problem. Some of the most common lawn diseases that North Carolina homeowners face include gray snow mold, dollar spot, brown patch, powdery mildew, and Pythium blight. Our lawncare professionals can actively treat these issues to prevent their spread.
Weed Control
There are many common weeds that plague homeowners in both Raleigh and Greenville. These include crabgrass, common chickweed, dandelion, ground ivy, white clover, wild onion, and henbit. The best way to deal with weeds is to prevent them from developing in the first place. By taking the steps we went over above, you can encourage your grass to grow up quickly and strong. This dense grass growth should help to minimize any weeds that attempt to grow as well. However, if you have reoccurring weed problems in your lawn, you may want to consider getting a professional pre-emergent treatment in the spring. Application at the correct time is necessary for this solution to operate effectively. It prevents seeds from germinating, and you should use it before the weather warms up sufficiently to encourage their growth.
Pest Prevention
Pests can be a real problem for many North Carolina homeowners. Grubs, armyworms, mole crickets, and chinch bugs can cause extensive damage to your lawn. For example, mole crickets will burrow tunnels throughout your soil and damage root growth while grubs will feed on the roots of your grass and cause brown and spongy patches to develop. Treating these pests in early spring or late March is ideal for preventing damage before peak activity in late spring and early summer. If you do notice signs of pest activity after the spring season, be sure to treat them promptly to prevent their spread. Just as weed activity picks up in the warmer weather, so does pest activity.
Use Mindful Mowing Practices
Before you attempt to mow your lawn for the first time in the spring, you should sharpen your mower’s blades. You want them to slice easily through the grass instead of tearing the blades. For your first mow of the season, set your mower to about two inches if you have warm-season grasses like Bermuda or Zoysia. If you have Fescue, which is also common here, a slightly higher setting (3–3.5 inches) is better. Then, readjust the mower height so that you’re only taking off about one-third of the grass blade in a pass. This encourages new growth without permanently harming your lawn.
Tree and Shrub Care
While your lawn is likely to get the majority of your attention, you don’t want to forget about the trees and shrubbery that also make up your landscape. Getting professional service in the spring is a great way to help provide these landscaping features with the nutrients and care they need to flourish during the upcoming year. Most professional treatments include horticultural oil application for pest control, disease management sprays, root feeding, and selective pruning.
Continuous Monitoring
By implementing all the steps that we went over above, you’ll set yourself up for success with your summer lawn. However, no matter how conscientious your preparation steps are, it isn’t uncommon to deal with pest, weed, and disease issues throughout the entire year. The key is to identify these problems as early as possible. The sooner you can treat the issue, the more effective the treatment will be and the less damage the problem will cause to your lawn. Even letting a disease go unchecked for a week can allow it to drastically spread throughout your yard and turn a beautiful green lawn into a brownish disaster.
Reliable Lawncare Service
Lawn Squad® offers reliable lawncare service for the North Raleigh and Greenville communities. Our professionals can even help with all your lawn fertilization, weed control, aeration, and overseeding needs. Call us today to book your next service appointment or arrange a consultation.
