The first 3 ½ weeks of April was very dry, but a nice slow soaking inch of rain in the Northfield area on April 26/27 has really helped green things up and add moisture that will be needed to get spring gardens off to a good start.
It’s time to plant grass seed in the bare spots that have showed up in your lawn over the winter. Cool temperatures will help germinate the seed before it dries out too much. Moisten daily under germination takes place, then every 2-3 days until the new grass matures.
It’s time to apply crabgrass preventer and lawn fertilizer if this is something you have decided on. Keep fertilizer rates modest – perhaps ½ to 2/3 of rates recommended on the package. For crabgrass preventer, use the full rate, but no more. This needs to be done before soil temperatures warm, since the pre-emergent herbicide needs to be established in the top ½ inch of the soil surface to work properly. About a half inch of rain or the equivalent irrigation is needed to bond the weed preventer to the soil particles.
It’s time to till/dig/hoe/cultivate the soil when the soil has dried enough so the tilling breaks the soil into fairly fine particles instead of lumps. Working wet soil will make lumps that last all season.
You may also see this post on the Northfield News’ website as I share many of my blog posts with them.
