A lawn maintenance schedule will vary from zone to zone depending on where you live. I thought that it would be important to share a full service lawn maintenance schedule for zone 5 since we get a lot of questions from customers relating to their lawn programs. I will identify all aspects of a lawn maintenance schedule including watering, maintenance and chemical applications. Hopefully this lawn maintenance schedule helps you time out services for your lawn.
Seasonal lawn maintenance schedule for zone 5 lawns.
- April- A spring clean-up should be preformed to clean up leaves and debris accumulated on your lawn over the winter. Individual lawns will vary depending on the amount of trees on the property.
- April- Optional spring aeration or de-thatching should be done. Aeration should be done once a year. De-thatching should be done when the thatch layer of a lawn is over 1/2 inch thick. This should be done prior to applying a pre-emergent.
- April- Pre-emergent weed control and fertilizer application should be applied. This needs to be applied when soil temperatures reach a constant 60 degrees during the day. Most pre-emergent products should be applied at 4 to 5 pounds per 1,000 square feet of turf. This will provide adequate weed control coverage. Read your product label for manufacturers recommendations.
- April- Start weekly lawn mowing.
- May- Apply round 2 weed and feed application. This application will have an emphasis on broadleaf weed control.
- June- Apply a grub preventative application and round 3 fertilizer at the end of the month. This will space out your fertilizer applications which should be about a month apart. Your grub preventative application should be done before mid July for optimal results.
- June- Start watering your lawn on a regular basis if necessary. Your lawn should get at least 1″ of moisture per week.
- September- Apply round 4 weed and feed application. This application will have an emphasis on broadleaf weed control.
- September- This is the best time to do any seeding. This will allow the seed to germinate and start rooting in before fall.
- October- Begin your fall leaf clean-up if all of your leaves are down.
- October- Perform a fall core aeration. If you aerate when temperatures are too hot, it will stress the grass by exposing the roots. If you preform this when it is too cold out, it can also harm the roots of the grass.
- November- Perform your final cut of the season. Cut your grass at approx 1.5″ – 2″ to close out the season. This will allow any remaining leaves to blow off your lawn and keep them from accumulating.
