With winter finally behind us, and the weather slowly creeping into the warmer temperatures, now is a great time to begin tending to your landscaping. Updating your lawn and garden now will ensure an easier time of updating it throughout the year and allow a variety of plants, flowers, and shrubs to really take hold now, and bloom early in the season.

Mowing Your Lawn
As the weather gets warmer and grass begins to regrow, give your lawn a good mowing. Most homeowners tend to mow about once a week. If you would prefer to maintain a certain height of your grass to a single consistent length, it may need to be mowed even more frequently. Typically, your lawn requires a healthy trim once every five days, at least.

Removing Weeds
One of the most important aspects of landscaping is keeping your yard free of weeds. Preparing for weed removal is an especially important aspect of landscaping in the spring when your plants are just starting to grow in warmer weather. Not only are weeds visually annoying, they can very easily affect the health of your plants and shrubs. You can keep weeds away for good by frequently redistributing the soil in your garden, which will also help your plants grow faster and healthier over time. Heading into the new season, it is often recommended to use a good herbicide that is both safe for your garden and effective in controlling weed growth. You can also deter pesky weeds by preparing some plastic with holes cut in where you want your plants to grow to redirect your plants and keep weeds at bay.

Don’t Seed Just Yet!
One common misconception with the spring season is to immediately begin planting grass seed. This is actually most ideal in the Fall, but it certainly is proper to fill in patches and other holes with seed as needed, but begin fertilizing your lawn first.

Clearing Your Gutters

Make sure your gutters are clear of any debris, such as leaves or branches. Blocked gutters can cause water to run up and over them that can create both pooling on your roof, subsequently entering the structure, as well as an excessive amount of water on the ground, ponding the area below.

Check Your Window Wells
Check your window wells around your basement. They need to be clear from any lying debris so that the water can quickly – and properly – drain as designed. If water accumulates and it pools against the basement windows, it can seep into your basement and quickly result in an interior flood.

If you have a basement door, particularly one that comes off of lower-level steps with a drain at the bottom, make sure it is completely clear as well. Water accumulation in these types of areas can quickly result in water entering your basement and creating many costly repairs.

Inspect Your Sump Pump
Inspect your sump pump drain hoses. Water needs to be draining away from the house and not back-flow into the basement, so be certain that the drain leads outside and away from your home. Many homeowners have a backup pump in the instance of the primary one failing.

For homeowners who have drainage systems throughout your property, make sure these are also clear and not blocked. Rain water will run into any crevice and opening possible, so it is important that it flows away from your home and any structures. Portable pools, outdoor seating, and other elements many folks use this time of year, that are often placed on the yard, can inadvertently be on top of a drain – so check this as applicable.