Curb Appeal—Spring Lawn Care

By Lori Cartwright

*Camp to Camp Images

 

As you leave winter behind, and look forward to warmer months, it is time to evaluate your home’s curb appeal.  This is especially important if you are trying to sell your home.  If your home looks great on the outside, potential buyers will be more excited about viewing what is on the inside. 

There are many ways to boost your curb appeal, but one of the best is beautifully manicured grass.  A nice lawn conveys the idea that your home is well-cared for, inside and out.  A nice lawn increases the amount of usable space for your home by providing an area for children to play, pets to explore, and families to gather.  A nice lawn is an invitation to potential homebuyers to take off their shoes, have some lemonade, and stay awhile…exactly what you want if you’re selling or staying yourself.

As you hear the sound of lawn mowers firing up over the next few weeks, review these tips from Better Homes & Gardens to get the most out of your lawn this year.

 
Mountain-West Lawn Care:  Spring
1.  Service your lawn mower and sharpen the blade.  Click here for a step-by step tutorial for self-
    sharpening.

2.  Apply a pre-emergent herbicide.  A good time to do this is when forsythia blooms begin to
    drop.  If you don’t have a forsythia shrub, this is what one looks like.  Now, find one that you
    can watch so you will know when the blooms are dropping…and this fall plant one of your
    own.  They are a beautiful way to announce spring and they grow well in our mountain-west
    climate.

*Forsythia image from greengardenista.com

 

 

3.  Make sure your aerate!  Hard, compacted soil is an obstacle that many Utah home owners
     live with.  Aerating will help alleviate this problem and give your grass more room to spread its
     roots. 

 

*Image from nutrilawn.com

 

 

4.    Mow your lawn when the grass is about 3 inches long; take off about 1 inch to avoid
       stressing your lawn.

 

5.   Give your lawn a light application of fertilizer just when it is time for the first lawn mow of
      the season.  Your lawn will love your for it.

 

Does this get you excited for lawn care this summer?  Well…maybe not lawn care, but doesn’t it sound fun to get out on your lawn for backyard baseball games, barbeques, sprinklers, star-gazing, parties, and all other pleasures that come from a great lawn?  We think so.  Now, please excuse us while we sharpen some lawnmower blades.