Did you hear about the guy who chicken-proofed his lawn? It’s impeccable.
I can’t wait to get into the yard this spring, and I can almost smell the fragrance of freshly mowed grass. It’ll take a while for green grass to appear, but there are lawn tasks we can enjoy now in early spring, while other lawncare tasks should wait.
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When winter exits our yards, lawns are a mix of matted grass, a few soggy leaves, some occasional mold and a maze of surface channels if voles turned the lawn into their winter home.
Raking is a good place to begin remedying what winter left behind. Although much of the area received less winter snow than average, many lawns are still matted down. A broom-type leaf rake works well to fluff up the matted grass and circulate air into the turf.
We shouldn’t start raking too early, though, as grass plants tenderized by winter can be torn up roots and all if the soil is too moist. An old guideline still works: If you can kneel on the lawn without getting a round wet spot on your jeans, the lawn is dry and stable enough to withstand hand raking.
Power raking, on the other hand, is too vigorous for early spring and can damage moist, winter-tender grass plants. It’s better to delay power raking, also known as dethatching or vertical mowing, until the lawn is actively growing in May and has been mowed a few times.
How do you know if your lawn would benefit from power raking? Power raking removes thatch, which is the buildup of tan, undecomposed dried grass located between the grass blades and the soil.
A thatch layer of about a half-inch is beneficial, as it keeps grass roots cool in summer, acts as a mulch to conserve moisture and suppresses weed growth. But if the thatch layer has built up to an inch or more, power raking removes the excess, opening the lawn to better penetration of moisture, fertilizer and oxygen.
To determine the depth of thatch on a lawn, cut a vertical, wedge-shaped chunk from the lawn profile with a long, sharp knife and examine the tan thatch layer. If lawn clippings decompose rapidly enough, which prevents a buildup of thatch, many lawns never need power raking. High-maintenance lawns that are heavily fertilized and watered generously with a sprinkler system might require detaching every few years.
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If the lawn’s soil has become hard-packed by foot traffic or pets, core aeration can improve the lawn by opening up the compaction, allowing water, air and nutrition to create healthier soil. A core aerator extracts little plugs of soil from the turf profile, bringing them to the surface, which reduces the thatch layer and opens the soil. The plugs are left on the lawn’s surface to slowly disintegrate back into the lawn, as they are rich in nutrients and organic matter.
Voles seem to be ever-present, and their damage shows most clearly when winter’s snow disappears, revealing meandering channels along the turf’s surface. Besides the visible channels, voles leave behind loose grass that easily rakes up. Grass will usually grow back from the crown and root system still remaining. If voles damage was extensive, reseed the areas.
Bare lawn areas can be seeded soon, but most grass seed types require soil temperatures above 50 degrees F at the 1- or 2-inch depth for germination to begin. Soil reaches that warmth by early May for most of the region. If seeded too early, birds have a feast.
Turf research has demonstrated the most effective date for applying spring lawn fertilizer is around Memorial Day. By then, grass is actively growing and can utilize the nutrition.
If fertilizer is applied too early before grass plants are able to use it, the product can be lost in spring rain runoff.
The Trust Project
