Homeowners sometimes think of lawn care in terms of being a springtime task but in reality, there are important things you should be doing for your lawn throughout the year.
Following an appropriate lawn care schedule can make a huge difference in your overall results.
While lawns here in Louisville do go into dormancy, we do not have a harsh or as long a winter as other parts of the country. And even in the winter, you should be keeping an eye on your lawn and planning ahead for the spring.
In this article, we’ll share a lawn care calendar for KY lawns so that you can be sure to stay on top of what needs to be done. Depending on what time of the year you are reading this article, you can skip ahead to the appropriate season. We’ll cover:
Early Spring Lawn Care
Late Spring Lawn Care
Early Summer Lawn Care
Late Summer Lawn Care
Fall Lawn Care
Winter Lawn Care
The early spring season should kick off with fertilizer and pre-emergent crabgrass control in February or March. A big part of the crabgrass control strategy involves preventing it in the first place. This can be achieved with a product called pre-emergent. Some people also refer to this as a “crabgrass preventer.”
The exact timing is weather dependent…or, more specifically, soil temperature dependent. Your lawn care professional should be paying close attention to soil temperatures so that they are applying crabgrass preventers within the optimal window (prior to germination).
Now that spring is in full-swing, you’ll have more tasks to add to your lawn care list.
Even though you’ve had your lawn treated with a pre-emergent product to prevent crabgrass, there is likely some breakthrough. This is the time to apply crabgrass post-emergent products to control any growth.
Besides crabgrass, there are other lawn weeds that are going to start emerging, so you’ll also want to implement broadleaf weed control. An effective weed control strategy is important when it comes to keeping pesky invaders at bay.
Fertilization should also continue. Lawn fertilization provides essential nutrients to the lawn that are needed to help it perform its best, and can be used throughout the lawn care season (just at different rates of application).
For clients who want the greenest lawn in the neighborhood, we apply granulated iron in the spring and early summer to improve and darken the chlorophyll in the grass leaves. This deep, dark green option is only available with our Platinum program.
If you haven’t started already, now is also the time to begin mowing the lawn. Don’t make the common mistake of mowing the lawn too short. For turf type tall fescues in our region, we generally recommend setting your mower to the highest level of four inches. We know that this is taller than people sometimes want but that will promote a healthy lawn with deep roots.
It’s also important that you add watering to your lawn care schedule around this time. While proper watering seems like a simple aspect of lawn care, it’s critical when it comes to getting the best results.
Our lawn care calendar for KY also includes summer weed control, lawn fertilization, and nutsedge control.
Nutsedge is a difficult-to-control weed that tends to pop up in moist areas of the lawn and can grow quickly in warm weather.
One of the reasons that nutsedge can be so difficult to control is that it reproduces underground via tubers called “nutlets.” That means it might be spreading beneath the surface without you even realizing it.
Getting rid of nutsedge requires specialty controls. It may require repeated applications given its persistence.
You also want to make sure that you are keeping up with mowing and watering your lawn. During the summer, it is not uncommon for lawns to experience periods of drought. This is a really critical time to water properly.
Lawns also have an increased chance of dealing with lawn disease in the summer. Some of the most common grass diseases in Louisville, KY include Brown Patch, Dollar Spot, and Red Thread.
Summer lawn care should also include preventative grub control. Grubs, which is the collective name for several species of beetles in their larval stage, are a common Louisville pest that can decimate a lawn by eating its roots. When given the chance, hungry grubs quickly feast upon large patches of the lawn and cost you hundreds of dollars in repairs. That’s why we don’t even give grubs a chance. Our Gold and Platinum lawn care program includes free grub control.
Late summer lawn care means continuing a lot of the same treatments (like fertilization and weed control) while also keeping an eye on potential disease and drought problems that could pop up.
Two of the hardest months on our cool-season grasses are July and August. The intense heat is tough on even healthy turf. For homeowners who care about having the thickest and healthiest lawn, we recommend power seeding after these harsh months in order to give your new grass seeds almost a whole year before the next summer drought. We start our power seeding season after Labor Day.
You should also continue mowing the lawn in the summer. You’ll want to be especially careful about mowing high during periods of drought stress and intense heat. Mowing the lawn too short can be detrimental when it’s already under extreme stress.
In the fall, you’ll likely be dealing with some new lawn weeds, making continued weed control important. The fall is also an important time for lawn fertilization as the last application will help set your lawn up for success ahead of going into dormancy. This will enhance its performance as it “greens up” next spring.
There are also two additional considerations to add to your lawn care list.
For one, the fall is the recommended time for a service like powerseeding or lawn aeration. That’s because the fall is the optimal time for grass to germinate and grow.
The other task you’ll want to add to your Louisville lawn care list is leaf cleanup. Cleaning up leaves and debris as part of grass care in fall is important because it allows your lawn to keep breathing. You don’t want your lawn’s access to sunlight, oxygen, and water to be blocked by leaves.
When leaf fall is light, mowing those leaves into your lawn is preferable! Your lawn appreciates the extra organic matter.
However, when leaf fall is heavy enough to cover your lawn completely, it’s time to rake or blow those leaves away.
Since lawns go into dormancy here, we don’t actually perform winter lawn services. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be keeping a watchful eye on your lawn and looking for signs of trouble. You want to be careful where you apply salt and ice melt products as they can burn your lawn and plants.
In the winter, this could be a good time to start talking to a lawn care company and get set on their calendar for the spring. If you happen to be reading this article, and it’s the winter, start your research now and get set up with lawn care services in Louisville KY in time for spring treatments.
We know that trying to follow a lawn care schedule can be confusing if you’re trying to figure it all out for yourself. But when you work with a great lawn care company, they will worry about all of that for you.
Since there is ideal timing to everything, it is definitely important to choose a lawn care company that will take the time of year into account and switch up products and services with the season.
Along with understanding that timing, a lawn care professional will also be able to get you the best possible results.
Not only do you gain access to their professional expertise, but you can rest assured they have the full range of the best products and services that will be needed to keep your lawn in optimal shape.
Ultimately, so much of this boils down to finding a lawn care program that will give you peace of mind. At the end of the day, you want to know that your lawn care needs are being taken care of without the worries and burdens on your plate.
It might feel like a big decision (and a lot of research), but it will be worth it. In the end, by choosing the right lawn care company for your Louisville home, you can hand over your worries and get back to enjoying your lawn.
Are you ready to have a thick and healthy lawn that’s getting everything it needs throughout the year at your Louisville, KY home? Get in touch with us to get a quote for our lawn care programs, which include three lawn care pricing options.
