Spring cleaning isn’t just for indoors! Spring is a great time to take a step back an assess your yard. Whether it be the yard, the deck, or the garden, it might be a good idea to take a weekend and clean up your yard and get ready for summer get-togethers and BBQ’s.
We want to help you start the right way, so we are going to share a few tips with you on how to spring clean your outside too!
Spring Yard Cleaning Tips
Clean Up the Debris
Throughout fall and winter leaves have fallen and maybe a few branches on your bushes and trees have been broken and are laying in the yard. Spring is a great time to get this all cleaned up so that your yard is ready for the new growth.
If your lawn is covered with leaves, you’re going to have to pull out the rake. Before you start raking the leaves, be sure the ground is dry.
Raking over wet grass can tear it from the roots, leaving you with even more bare patches that you will have to seed.
Prune Your Trees and Bushes
Some tree or shrub branches may have been damaged by cold, snow, and wind during the fall and winter months. Spring is a great time to prune them back to live stems.
Shaping hedges with hand pruners, rather than electric shears, prevents a thick outer layer of growth that prohibits sunlight and air from reaching the shrub’s center.
Fertilize and Seed the Yard
Now that the last freeze has come and gone for the year, it is time to start feeding/fertilizing your lawn.
After you have cleaned up the debris, you should have the yard aerated and fertilized to help its early season growth.
After two weeks of fertilization, you can now throw down some seed on your bare spots in the yard.
Be sure that you keep up on your watering, but don’t over water. If you over water, you could wash away your fresh seed or even drown your lawn.
Getting the Garden Ready for Spring
Clean Out the Debris
Next, on the spring yard, clean up checklist is the garden.
Rake out fallen leaves and dead foliage (which can smother plants and foster disease) and pull up spent annuals.
Once the threat of frost has passed for the season, you will want to remove the existing mulch to set the stage for a new layer once spring planting is done.
Plant New Foliage
Springtime is a great time to add some color to your garden.
Whether you want to plant annuals (flowers that only bloom for a year) or perennials (flowers that come back year after year), spring and early summer is a great time to get started on this.
Fertilizer
Spring is also an excellent time to spread fertilizer tailored to existing plantings on the soil’s surface so that spring rains can help carry it down to the roots.
Try adding a 5-10-10 fertilizer around bulbs as soon as they bloom to maximize their flowering time and to feed next season’s growth.
To keep the grass from growing in your garden, use a square-head shovel to give beds a clean edge.
Spring Cleaning the Deck or Porch
Spring and summer mean its time for friend and family gatherings outside and BBQing.
When is the last time you took the time to sweep and wash off your deck? Now that your yard and garden are all cleaned up, you should take some time and clean up the deck or porch.
If you have a wood deck, you want to make sure you don’t have any loose screws.
You may want to take this time to pressure wash it too.
Now that the deck has been cleaned up, does it need to be restained? Many pros suggest that you restain your deck every 2 – 3 years.
If you have a concrete pad, you should sweep up the debris.
And if you so desire, you can pressure wash it and make it look almost new again.
Patio furniture should also be cleaned during the spring, especially if they have been sitting out in the weather during the winter season.
Take a bowl of soapy water, wipe down the table and chairs.
You should be able to spray them down with the hose to give them a good rinse.
Inspiration
Happy Spring! We hope you have enjoyed our spring cleaning tips for the yard. Be sure to like and follow us on all of our social media channels for quick, tips, and items we use! Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, and YouTube. When you start your spring cleaning, make sure you tag us by using the hashtags #homeaze #spring #springcleaning #yardcleanup. Keep a lookout for our next blog!
