Early Spring Cleanup

To recap my first two tips:
1) Make sure you start the season with a sharp mower blade.
2) Maintain a sharp blade throughout the mowing season.

This post is about my 3rd tip, which concerns early Spring cleanup. Since your lawn has had little or no attention through the winter months, chances are good that it now requires special attention. If there are any leaves from the previous autumn still laying on your lawn, it's now time to make sure they're raked up. There may also be small twigs or branches under trees that have fallen to the ground since last autumn. Anything else - such as litter, kid's toys, pet droppings, or whatever you may find that doesn't belong on your lawn - should also be picked up.

If you feel that a vigorous hard raking is necessary for your lawn, this should be done as early as is possible in the Springtime. This may mean raking even before you see signs of fresh growth in this year's lawn. By giving your lawn this vigorous raking now, not only will you be removing debris that would otherwise be dulling your mower blade but you will have this chore done early enough to complement an application of crabicide.

To get the best bang for your buck, crabicide should be applied after any hard raking is done and while nighttime temperatures still drop below freezing. This technique is critical if you have had any problems with crabgrass sprouting in your lawn in the past.

I will discuss the implications of this technique in my next tip.

NEXT TIME: Don't Undo the Effectiveness of Your Crabicide Application