What does winter have to do with mowing the lawn, growing your garden, or buying new patio furniture? Everything!

Even while there’s still ice and snow on the grass, there's a lot to do to get your backyard ready for warmer temperatures. No matter how you use your outdoor living space, there are some things you can do now. Make your lawn a little greener, your patio more comfortable and functional, and your vegetable and flower garden a lot more plentiful. Start with the basic steps in lawn care and go from there.

Take Pride in a Carefully Prepared Lawn

If you love caring for your lawn, winter can be a harsh time for you. Even though it's too early for mowing and weed-eating, you can prepare for when spring does finally arrive. Instead of waiting to clean your lawn, clear the way to give your grass some much-needed attention.

Winter is rough on your lawn, throwing debris all across it. This debris can prevent your grass from growing and provide a place for pests to hide and enter your home. To remove it, use a leaf rake to get all of the leaves, branches, acorns, twigs, and whatever else mother nature deposited there into big piles. Next, rake the piles onto a tarp that you can use to remove the debris from the lawn.

The next step is to apply a good herbicide to deter weed growth. Don’t wait until weeds take over your lawn to try and get them under control. Apply a pre-emergent herbicide now to reduce the number of weeds that come in after the snow. This type of weed killer prevents plants from germinating, helping you get dandelions, crabgrass, and more under control.

Wait at least a week after applying the herbicide before fertilizing. Turf Builder provides nutrition to your lawn so that grass grows in stronger. It helps grass develop deep roots for a fuller, more lush lawn.

Get Your Arsenal of Lawn Equipment Ready

You aren't the only one who has been sitting idle for the past few months. Your lawn care equipment has been out of use too. Depending on how well you winterized it, it might be rusty or have moisture in places it doesn't belong. Don’t wait until you’re ready to go to work to look over its condition. Check the mower for cracked belts, sharpen the blades, and change the oil. If something needs to be fixed, do it now while you still have time to spare.

Fill the mower with fuel and add a stabilizer. Oil or replace the spark plugs and give the cord a pull (if it has one.) If it's been more than a year, sharpen the blades. When the first warm, sunny day arrives, crank it up and get the fluids pumping. If your mower doesn't have the power or performance that it used to, consider replacing it with a newer model. No other tool does more to improve the looks and health of your lawn than your lawn mower.

Don’t overlook performing necessary maintenance on your string trimmer. See if you have enough trimmer line and fuel mix. Replace the spark plug and check the oil level if it pertains to your model. If you don't have a string trimmer, don't wait any longer to get one. It makes trimming your lawn a faster, easier job.

You also need to give the mower and string trimmer a good cleaning. Grass and dirt that are stuck on it can cause rust. Hopefully, you cleaned them before putting them in storage for the winter. If not, it’s better late than never.

Moving On to the Vegetable Garden

It's too soon for most vegetable seeds to go in the garden, but it's the perfect time for planting seeds indoors. There are multiple benefits to starting your plants during the winter. For one, it gives you a jump on the growing season. If you do it right, you could end up with a much more fruitful harvest.

Another benefit to indoor planting is that you can’t plant some vegetables until the soil is warm. The only way to grow tomatoes, eggplant, summer squash, zucchini, and peppers is to wait until the danger of frost has passed. If you wait until the soil is right, it shortens your growing season and reduces your harvest. By planting seeds indoors, you can have seedlings to transplant as soon as the weather is warm. You have more options to grow a diversity of plants and get better results.

Redesign Your Outdoor Living Space

If your outdoor space is where you spend a lot of time in the summer, you might want to make some improvements. For example, buying new patio furniture, putting in a pond, or starting a flower garden.

Winter is a good time to get started with any of these ideas. Often, waiting until spring results in your favorite styles being sold out. If you don't have a patio but have been thinking of installing one, you don’t have to wait until spring. Some companies will work around bad weather, and they offer lower rates when it isn’t a prime season. You could get your patio installed and ready to use by the first of spring, complete with new patio furniture and a new Traeger grill.

Get Ready for Spring with Grange Co-op

Grange Co-op is your one-stop shopping place for everything you need to improve your outdoor living space starting today. Shopping with us is easy. Just look for the items you want and see how many are available at our store nearest you. Contact us with any questions about our products or our store locations.