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What To Do for Your Lawn in May

The snow is gone and those of us who enjoy working on our lawns are anxious to get started. Here's what you can safely do for your lawn in May.

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Outdoor shot of garden equipmentVITALLIY/GETTY IMAGES

Lawn Care in May

The daylight hours are getting longer and tree buds are beginning to swell. Retailers are already urging you to buy fertilizer, crabgrass preventer and grass seed. Like a racehorse at the starting gate, you’re waiting for the starting bell to ring and the gates to swing open so you can get cracking on your lawn.

Patience, my friend. Let’s wait for Mother Nature to set the stage first. There’s not much we can, or should, do without her cooperation. And the timing of her arrival depends on where you live.

Those of you in the Transition Zone will start working on your lawns weeks before those of us in the Northern climes. And for those who live south of the Transition Zone, this information won’t apply to you. That’s because your grass seldom goes dormant. You get to enjoy it all year long!

Those of us in the U.S Department of Agriculture’s Plant Hardiness Zones 6 or colder grow mostly cool-season lawn grasses. Here’s a step-by-step action plan to get your lawn off to a great start this year.

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Joe Churchill
Joe Churchill is a Senior Turf Specialist for Reinders, Inc. in Plymouth, MN with a passion to promote realistic and environmentally-sound turfgrass maintenance practices through responsible use of water, fertilizers, pesticides and other inputs. Joe's client base includes professional turf managers serving the lawn care, sports turf and golf course industries. His lawn is the envy of the neighborhood and, in his free time, he enjoys kicking back on the Northshore of Lake Superior.