Raking will be your first task of spring lawn care. Okay, I can
hear the groans coming from all lands near and far, wherever grassy carpets are
cultivated: "But we already raked leaves in the fall!" Sorry,
but raking is for more than just removing leaves: it's for controlling thatch, too. A thatch build-up of more than 1/2 inch is considered
excessive.
Thatch is the reason why
I recommend that, when you rake leaves in the fall, you make the effort to rake
deeply. Don't just skim the surface, so as to remove the leaves. A deep raking
will remove thatch, too, allowing you to kill two birds with one stone. Even if
you followed this advice in fall, I still recommend a spring raking: it will
remove grass blades that died over the winter -- dead blades that are just
waiting to become thatch!
But there's often another
good reason for a spring raking. As you survey your lawn in spring, see if
there are any matted patches, in which the grass blades are all stuck together.
This can be caused by a disease known as "snow mold." New grass may
have difficulty penetrating these matted patches. But a light raking will be
sufficient to solve this problem.
Just when you should perform any of these spring lawn care tasks will
depend upon the climate of your own region. But Mother Nature provides palpable
cues in some cases. For instance, when you're pretty sure the snow season (if
you have one) is over in your region, begin raking. Applying pre-emergent
herbicides (see Tip #6) should be done sometime between the time the local forsythia bushes stop blooming and the time the local lilac bushes begin blooming.
