Seasonal Lawn Care for Southern Landscapes

Your lawns in Sunnyvale require different types of landscape maintenance with the coming of each season. To ensure a beautiful yard throughout the year, follow these guidelines for lawn care in southern landscapes:

Spring

The spring season is the best time to give your garden a good start for the coming months. To prevent weeds from plaguing your lawn throughout the summer, spread a pre-emergence herbicide throughout your landscaping by early March to stop their seeds from sprouting. Remove any thatch and dead grass from your lawn by late spring to allow more sunlight and air to reach the soil and roots, and start mowing your lawn as soon as it begins to grow.

Summer

Your landscape will be hungry for nutrients once it starts taking off with new growth in the summer, so begin feeding your lawn as soon as the weather warms in late April or early May. If you plan on starting a new lawn using sprigs, plugs, or grass seeds, summer is the time to plant. Be sure to keep your young grass watered as it gets established and never allow a new lawn to dry out. Removing more than a third of your grass’ blades at one time can damage the health of your lawn, so be sure to keep up with regular mowing. It’s vital for your grass to get plenty of moisture in the summer, and the average southern lawn will need about one inch of water per week.

Fall

If your lawn is composed of Bermuda grass, it will turn brown and go dormant during the winter, so consider over seeding with ryegrass, which will remain green throughout the winter months and die off once the weather warms again. Winter comes with its own array of cool-weather weeds, so October through November is the ideal time to give your lawn another round of pre-emergence herbicide. Once the weather turns, it can be tempting to relieve yourself of yard duties, but it’s important to prevent your lawn from getting too long, so continue mowing it as needed until it goes dormant.