Spring is finally here! It's time for things to turn from the gray and cold to the green and warm. The first thing many of us think of is our lawns. That fragrance from the first few cuts of the year is an inspiring reminder to get out in our yards. To help the lawn establish itself after a long dormant winter, a few steps are needed. The first is to remove sand/gravel from the winter off the lawn as it will prohibit growth in the blades of grass. You should also remove any other type of debris so your lawn can receive the sun and oxygen it needs. Next, you should aerate your lawn. As the snow melts, it can compact your soil and prevent air from being exchanged with the soil and roots of your grass. Typical machines will take a core of soil and displace it, thus providing a passage for the air to reach the roots. It also provides a way for the fertilizer to reach the grass at their roots, where fertilizer is needed most. This brings us to our next step. It's best to hit your lawn with a fertilizer product that contains a 'pre-emergent crabgrass prevention product' along with the usual Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Potassium. A pre-emergent crabgrass control will prevent crabgrass and other various weeds from setting seed and taking over your yard. The grass itself hasn't been fed, and products containing plenty of Nitrogen will help them green up and grow. It is recommended that you apply after two cuttings.

Along with the fertilizer, you need to water the lawn as the temperatures start to rise. If you have an irrigation system, have it checked when it's turned on to be certain it's running properly and placing water where it's intended to. Also be certain that your irrigation timer is set to water less frequently but for longer periods of time. This will allow the roots to grow deep, which help with the long summer droughts and ever increasing water restrictions. Remember that watering your lawn at night gives turf diseases the best chance to take hold since fungi and spores need water to germinate. The hot, humid nights provide the best environment for diseases to grow and spread. It is best to water in the early morning, sometimes even 3 or 4am, to give the foliage a chance to dry out with the afternoon sun. Turfgrass is best watered with overhead sprinklers, but consider using drip irrigation for your planting beds if they are currently watered overhead. Drip irrigation applies water only to the root zone, and not the foliage, ultimately reducing or even eliminating the growth of diseases.

Pruning out broken branches and dead plant material is also called for in your spring clean-up regime. Be aware that every cut costs the plant energy, and if too much is removed in the active growth period of spring, it may mean irreparable decline in the health of the tree or shrub. Often, if the plant is a flowering variety, you may not receive a healthy or full bloom that season following pruning; which leads us to a question we receive often.

"Why did my hydrangeas not bloom this year?"....While there can be several different reasons; the most common is simply in the pruning. There are three popular varieties of hydrangeas. Smooth Hydrangeas, identified by their large globe-like white blooms, only flower on current seasons' growth; which is to say that you can prune this shrub to the ground and receive blooms that season. Panicle Hydrangeas bloom flowers in the same fashion that you should receive blooms each year, regardless of pruning. The culprit is in one of the more common species called 'Big-Leaf Hydrangeas'. These are identified with their globe or disc shaped flowers. This species bloom only on 'old wood' meaning the stems grow from year one but don't bloom, then over winter, put out buds, and bloom flowers in the second or third season. The visual key is making sure not to cut stalks with buds on them. These hydrangeas will not bloom if they are cut to the ground, only cut to the ground to control their size. If you have questions regarding how to prune a specific plant, don't hesitate to contact Eric Horrocks who is a Certified Massachusetts Horticulturist, or check with your local University Extension Program. Eric can be reached by