When the days get longer and thoughts turn to summer activities, often our outdoor obligations come first. And unless you want to pay someone else, you’re on the spot to make things happen.

If you love an attractive lawn as most of us do, nothing greens things up in the spring like a dose of basic fertilizer, especially after rain and a warm up. Spring is also the time to take action to prevent a bumper crop of crabgrass in your yard.

Crabgrass usually starts germinating around the time the forsythia, those large, early-blooming bushes with yellow flowers are out. By the time most spring flowers are blooming the window of opportunity is closing fast. If you’ve removed the winter debris like leaves, pine needles and twigs off the ground you’re ready for the next step, spreading a weed block on your lawn. Once a “pre-emergent” weed block is washed in, it creates a barrier on the ground that prevents weed seeds from germinating.  

So, the best thing to do is go out and buy a bag of combined lawn fertilizer and pre-emergent crabgrass preventer. After it gets washed in by a good rain your grass will get a green boost and you’ll prevent crabgrass from germinating for months as long as the ground isn’t disturbed. Remember, though, that it will also prevent any new grass seed you put down from coming up during the spring.  Be sure to sweep any residue off the pavements and back onto the lawn to keep it out of the drainage system.

You’ll find that whatever you do out in the yard during the growing season, being conscious of the weather will allow you to have the right timing on cutting the grass, applying anything you need to with a spreader and saving money on watering.

You can’t control the weather but if you know the forecast you can save yourself a lot of time and frustration. If you’re weather-wise, your grass can stay green while your neighbors’ lawns turn brown with envy. And always check with Spectrum News for your latest forecast.