Spring is an important time of year for your lawn. As the weather begins to warm, grass and plants will emerge from their dormant state. They can only do so, however, if your lawn is healthy. By following these tips, you can prepare your lawn for spring so that it blossoms back to life in full health.

Remove Debris
Start by removing debris from your lawn. Most lawns accumulate debris such as leaves and branches during the cooler months of the year. When left unchecked, debris will restrict the amount of sunlight that reaches the grass. It will shield the grass from the sun, thus stunting your lawn's growth. Removing debris from your lawn will improve its health by giving it more sunlight.

Consider Aeration
You may want to aerate your lawn in preparation of spring. Aeration is the process of scoring the soil with shallow holes. It's designed to help moisture, as well as nutrients, reach the deep roots of grass and plants. With that said, aeration isn't always needed. For heavily compacted soil, you may want to aerate it. If your lawn doesn't have compacted soil, though, you can probably skip aeration. Heavily compacted soil won't absorb much water. When it rains, water will sit in the upper layers of the soil where it fails to reach the roots of grass and plants. Aeration will break up the compacted soil so that it's more absorbent.

Weed Prevention
Weeds can be a problem during spring. As the grass comes back to life, so will the weeds. Rather than waiting until they've already taken over your lawn, you should prevent weeds from growing. There are several ways to prevent weeds. Herbicides, for instance, are products that are designed to kill and prevent weeds from growing. You can also apply mulch around the edges of your lawn to ward off weeds.

Cut One-Third of Grass Length
When mowing your lawn in the weeks leading up to spring, try to cut one-third of the grass length. If the grass is 6 inches tall, for instance, you should mow it to about 4 inches. Following this simple rule will ensure that you don't stress your lawn when mowing it. If you cut the grass too short, it may die in certain spots. If you cut it too tall, conversely, you may leave shallow-growing weeds behind that spread to other parts of your lawn.

This article was brought to you by Palmetto Coastal. For more articles, tips and news for your commercial landscaping and maintenance needs, please visit us at our website.