Spring
- Spread granular, slow-acting fertilizer. (This is optional if you fertilized in the fall or winter)
- Aerate the lawn to treat compacted soil
- Mulch with organic matter, if necessary
- Sharpen your mower blades at the start of the season
Summer
- Learn the signs of bug infestation, and head them off before they get settled in
- Water your lawn weekly if rain is scarce or your soil is poor. Otherwise, water only when rainfall is delayed more than 10 days
- Treat weeds and bare spots as soon as you see them
- Sharpen your mower blade again halfway through the season
Autumn
- Water trees and shrubs thoroughly mulched before the first frost
- But don’t over water! Plants and shrubs should be expected to look a little brown in September and October
- Mulch with organic material, or mow a layer of fallen leaves into the lawn
- Fertilize your lawn around Thanksgiving to promote strong root growth during winter
- Cutting the grass a bit shorter just before winter to prevent its matting under snow
Winter
- Put burlap windscreens around less hardy plants if they’re in exposed areas
- Use a broom to brush snow away from evergreen trees gently, to keep the weight from breaking the limbs
- If ice or snow does break tree limbs, have the limbs removed as soon as weather permits – damaged trees are prone to disease
- Putting markers at the edge of your lawn will help you avoid damaging it when you’re shoveling snow
- Avoid walking on frosted or snow-covered lawns
- Use only non-salt de-ices for sidewalks and driveways, so the runoff doesn’t harm plants
- Salt will damage grass, perennials, and shrubs, and will keep the plants from absorbing much-needed water
- Check any perennial plants during periods of thawing soil to see if roots popping out of the ground. If they have, gently push them back into place, and add mulch
