As the snow begins to recede, you may be a bit disappointed in your landscaping. Sodden, moldy grass, weed-bespeckled garden beds, and shrubs in disarray can make your spring yard look depressing rather than bright and welcoming. The following are a few tips that can give your landscaping an almost instant facelift.
1. Feed the Lawn
Begin with a nitrogen infusion for your lawn as soon as growth begins, and it will be bright green in a matter of days. Nitrogen, the nutrient responsible for greening up the lawn, gets washed from the soil during the winter months. A spring fertilization treatment replenishes the nitrogen levels so that the grass comes out of dormancy ready to grow quickly and to green up fast. Just don't apply more than the recommended label amount, or it can have the opposite effect because too much nitrogen will kill the grass.
2. Edge and Trim
One reason spring lawns look ratty is that they often have uneven growth as they come out from dormancy. You don't want to cut the grass too short, though, until it has fully greened back up. Raise your lawnmower blade a bit and just cut off enough of the lawn to remove the brown tips on the grass blades and to create a level lawn. Then, pull out your edger or weed trimmer and clean up the edges near sidewalks and between the lawn and garden beds. Winter snow shoveling often damages these clean edges, which can also make your lawn look shabby.
3. Mulch the Beds
Mulch will keep your garden beds free of weeds until the spring flowers begin to emerge. Opt for an attractive bark mulch in a natural color that complements your home. A 3- to 5-inch layer of mulch will suppress most weeds when applied over a garden bed or around a tree or shrub. As an added benefit, mulch also gives your lawn a more finished look that is more pleasing to the eye.
4. Perk Up the Shrubs
If your shrubs look the worse for wear after winter, then a prompt trim can rescue them. Most woody plants respond well when pruned in late winter or early spring, so take the opportunity to remove broken, dead, and overgrown branches. The shrubs will look better even if they haven't yet put on new leaves. If you have shrubs that leaf out late in the season, then consider adding some brightly colored early spring annuals around the shrubs to add a touch of color to an otherwise drab area of the landscape.
Contact a residential landscaping service for more ideas.