Fresh spring breezes and comfortable daytime temps are calling us outdoors as we look forward to warm summer cookouts and backyard fun. The best way to enjoy the lush days ahead is to spring clean your lawn, garden and outdoor spaces now. Eliminating pesky weeds, taming untidy flower and shrub beds, performing minor exterior maintenance, and boosting your home’s curb appeal will make late spring and summer picture perfect. Spring officially begins March 19th, but our southern lawns operate on their own calendars. The warmer days we’re enjoying are prompting plants – including weeds – to wake up and grow. Now is the time to take advantage of these milder (and longer) days to assess the condition of your home’s exterior and outdoor spaces and get a head-start on projects. Here are handy tips for sprucing up the outside and making your home and neighborhood stand out.
Spring Clean Your Landscape
Over the fall and winter months, lawns and shrub/flower beds tend to get less attention than during the spring and summer. Mulch deteriorates and fades, dead leaves accumulate and weeds pop up. Local landscape services can clean beds and apply pre-season weed control and fertilizer to promote a healthy lawn. If you enjoy spring yard work, check with a local independent nursery or garden center for recommendations on what to apply to your lawn. These are the first steps to make your landscape ready for spring and summer:
- Clear the lawn and beds of leftover leaves and weeds.
- Refresh pine straw and mulch around trees, shrubs, and flowers to control weed growth and dress up your landscape’s appearance.
- Clean flower pots and planters and prep for planting.
- Trim hedges and prune or replace trees/shrubs damaged by winter freeze.
- Apply pre-emergent weed control and fertilizer to promote a healthy lawn.
- Spot treat new weed growth with post-emergent weed killer.
Check Your Curb Appeal
First impressions are lasting impressions. Step back and take a fresh look at your home and yard. If you were a home buyer, would you consider buying your house? You and your neighbors count on one another to keep property values high whether or not you’re looking to sell. Keeping your yard and home neat and in good repair is good for you and your neighbor. Make a list of items needed to make your house – and your neighborhood – shine:
- Clean the front door and surrounding glass.
- Soft wash woodwork, siding or brick that has accumulated mildew and dirt.
- Clean screens and windows – replace as needed.
- Sweep or power wash porches, walkways, patios, decks and driveways.
- Clean and, if needed, repaint the mailbox according to your HOA’s requirements.
Inspect and Repair
Tackle routine repairs before the summer heat and summer fun persuade you to put them off. Milder days make work days more pleasant. If you plan to hire someone to make repairs, you’ll likely find them less busy now.
- Inspect roof for broken shingles.
- Replace exterior caulking.
- Clean gutters and downspouts.
- Replace loose or broken fence boards and hinges.
- Inspect decks and pergolas for rot and re-stain if necessary.
- Check outdoor lighting to ensure all fixture are working.
- Run the irrigation system to detect leaks or missing sprinkler heads.
- Survey the pool liner for tears and check equipment.
Fresh and Refreshed
Now is also a great time to consider larger-scale projects like repainting and repurposing spaces. A fresh coat of paint is a relatively inexpensive way to increase curb appeal. Just make sure you submit any exterior paint color to your architectural review committee before you paint.
If you are planning a backyard addition like a pergola, fireplace, or swimming pool, get on a contractor’s schedule early before demand reaches a peak in late spring and early summer. Remember, all exterior modifications – even if they’re in your backyard – require architectural review committee approval. Your contractor should be able to provide you with all the necessary specifications and drawings needed. If you’re taking on a DIY project, submit as much information as possible with a drawing, your measurements, and finishes.
The architectural review process protects your property values by ensuring homes remain faithful to the neighborhood’s architectural standards. Architectural review committees are usually willing to work with you, where possible, to accommodate your request.
Pick a sunny pre-spring day or two and get a jumpstart on spring cleaning outdoor style. Then, when that first perfect outdoor day beckons you to the lake or the golf course, you’ll be ready to play and return to a home with curb appeal so fresh you would buy it all over again.
