Planning and organization are the keys to lawn maintenance success. A lawn maintenance schedule can help you design a plan that will help fend off weeds and diseases, keeping your lawn care maintenance simple and low-stress.
What is a Lawn Care Maintenance Schedule?
A lawn care maintenance schedule is a plan, designed around a calendar, of lawn maintenance activities that you or your lawn care maintenance provider will undertake throughout the year.
An organized lawn care maintenance schedule can help you target specific problems—like applying weed control for weeds that germinate at particular times—and prevent other issues before they start. For example, irrigating on a regular schedule (with room for adaptation if the weather becomes particularly wet or dry) can keep your turf healthy and prevent the diseases and stress-related wilting that can occur when grass becomes too wet or too dry.
Planning Your Lawn Care Maintenance Schedule:
Let's talk about how to make a lawn care maintenance schedule that works for you.
1. Know your local environment
Find out the traditional first and last frost dates for your region. Think about when pernicious weeds like dandelions will appear, when your favorite flowers will bloom, when spring rain comes and when the hottest and driest parts of the year will hit.
2. Map the season and weather conditions on your calendar
Put what you know into writing on your calendar. Scribble notes into margins. You'll gain insight into how these conditions relate to one another.
3. Target your lawn treatment schedule to seasonal conditions
Now for the toughest part—knowing exactly what to do to counteract the environmental hardships your lawn will face throughout the year. If you know when dandelions appear, you can decide when to apply your seasonal weed control to get the greatest effect. If you know your soil needs 1-2" of water in normal summer weeks to stay moist to six inches below the surface, you'll be able to plan an irrigation schedule that will keep your lawn healthy.
4. Write down concrete plans
Keep it simple, and build a schedule that will be easy to remember. Irrigate every Tuesday and Thursday, for example, and before long it'll be second nature to turn on the sprinkler before you have your morning coffee.
5. Now, stick to it.
Check your lawn care maintenance schedule at the beginning of every week. Determine what tools or applications you'll need, get your equipment together, and prepare before the day comes. Preparation makes better performance!
Some of TruGreen's additional services—like aeration, overseeding, and lawn damaging insect control—can be included in a complete lawn care package further tailored according to your needs to ensure the healthiest lawn possible. Every TruGreen® plan starts with a Healthy Lawn Analysis®, so you know the services you receive are tailored for your particular landscape. And for as long as your lawn treatment schedule is in place, the Healthy Lawn Guarantee® provides you with the peace of mind that comes with knowing your TruGreen specialist will return as often as needed to make adjustments to ensure your satisfaction.
For help planning and implementing the right lawn care maintenance schedule for your individual lawn and landscape, visit TruGreen.com.
All articles are copyrighted and remain the property of the author.
By Dan Heims, President, Terra Nova Nurseries, Inc.
Photographs courtesy of Terra Nova Nurseries, Inc.
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