As the weekends begin to become warmer and warmer, Columbus area homeowners are ready to get their spring lawn care and landscaping chores underway.  Before you consider which columbus lawn care company to choose, or attempt to get your lawn up-and-running yourself, let's look at the TOP 10 Lawn Care Tips for the Columbus area:

1. Aerate Your Lawn - Soils in most Columbus subdivisions are awful.  Harder sub-soils, such as clay, make Ohio one of the hardest areas in the nation to keep a great looking lawn. A lawn aeration will help roots penetrate and grow deeper by creating pockets for growth in the harder soil.  Roots can begin to grow deeper and stronger, giving you a great looking lawn at the beginning of the season. (Read more about Spring Lawn Aerations Here)

2. Pre-emergent Weed & Crabgrass Control - Pre-emergents are an important part of any spring lawn care program. Preventing weeds & crabgrass is always easier than trying to control them after the fact, not to mention cheaper. One word of warning: if you have new seed then you need to wait about two weeks before you use pre-emergent. Pre-emergent weed control is non-selective; meaning that it will prevent the grass seed, as well as weeds, from germinating. (Read more about Pre-Emergents Here)

3. Grub control - This preventative lawn care treatment should be done in late spring to early summer.  Grub control is similar to home insurance. You might never need it; however if something happens, you'll be protected. There is no rhyme or reason to whose lawns gets grubs and whose doesn't, so it's always good to protect yourself. (Read more about Grubs here)

4. Surface insect control - (bifenthren) This treatment should be applied in Columbus four times throughout the season. Surface insect control will keep fleas and ticks away, as well as other turf damaging insects like chinch bugs and bill bugs. These insects were very prevailant last year in Columbus lawns. (You can learn more about Weed Pro's Surface Insect Control Program here)

5.  Water To Supplement - Last year many Columbus lawns went too long without water in extreme heat.  Fertilizer alone won't suffice, so that's why it's important to thoroughly water your lawn. If there is not enough rainfall, you'll need to supplement it by watering.

6.  Overseeding - Bare spots and other thinning areas need addressed in the spring. Overseeding your lawn can be a good first step, along with a lawn aeration. Be careful, wait 2-3 weeks after seeding to apply pre-emergent fertilizer. As mentioned above, this treatment will prevent your lawn seed from germinating. (Read more about proper seeding methods here)

7.  Light nitrogen - Be careful with the amount of nitrogen you add to your lawn. Not only is too much nitrogen harmful for our natural waters from storm drain runoff, too much fertilization with nitrogen will cause your grass to grow fast, leaving you with more work with constant mowing! 

8.  Don't Roll Your Lawn! - It may seem like the winter has left your front lawn uneven, and wet spring conditions seem like the perfect time to smooth out your turf. However, rolling your lawn in the spring can cause damage to the crown of the turf plant, stunting or even killing the plant.

9.  Never mow off more than 1/3 of the leaf blade - Grass grows at an incredible rate in Columbus during the cool, wet spring. It's important to keep on top of your mowing, and to never let it grow too long because cutting too much of the grass blade can cause harm to the turf plant. (Read more mowing tips for your lawn here) 

10.  Plan a Thorough Lawn Care Program- it's important that when getting your lawn ready for the season you plan a thorough lawn care program that will provide important nutrients throughout the season. Lawn care companies, such as Weed Pro, can provide you packages based on your lawns needs. (Learn more about Weed Pro's Lawn Care Packages Here)

The Ultimate Columbus Lawn Care Calendar

Do you know what lawn care application to apply, and when to apply it? While some of the national fertilizer brands may think that fertilizer can be applied the same time throughout the country, Columbus area residents should use a specific schedule based on this areas climate. That's why we have put together the ultimate Columbus lawn care calendar for you to use! Best part is that it's completely free by clicking on the button below!

Shaun Kanary has been a part of the Green Industry for the past 15 years. As the Director of Marketing for Weed Pro Lawn Care, a Cleveland and Columbus Lawn Care Service Provider, Shaun is a regular contributor to the Weed Pro Blog, and other industry magazine and blogs.  Shaun on Google+     Shaun on LinkedIn     Shaun on Twitter