As summer rapidly approaches, it’s time to be thinking about your lawn maintenance schedule this year. Spring yard cleanup should be a priority before the summer heat hits, but then what comes next? What does lawn maintenance include?
We’ve got all the answers right here! Today we’re answering the question “what does lawn maintenance include?” and exploring the difference between lawn care and lawn maintenance.
What Is the Difference Between Lawn Care and Lawn Maintenance?
So what is the difference between lawn care and lawn maintenance? At first glance the terms seem like they’d mean the same thing but they really don’t.
Lawn care focuses mostly on the health of your grass and soil. Some common lawn care activities include soil testing for nutrients, garden pest control, fertilizer application, and pruning trees and shrubs for healthy growth. Combining lawn care with lawn maintenance is essential to the overall upkeep of your landscaping.
Lawn maintenance covers a broader spectrum of things that focus on the appearance of your lawn and landscaping. This can range from summer lawn maintenance tasks like lawnmowing to new landscaping installation. Lawn maintenance also includes seasonal tasks like spring cleanup and fall cleanup to keep it looking great all year long.
Even though we’ve looked at the difference between lawn care and lawn maintenance, it’s important to remember they go hand-in-hand so neglecting one is a guaranteed way to kill your lawn! If your lawn is larger or you just don’t want to worry about the upkeep, landscape maintenance professionals know how to balance it all and make your lawn shine (we happen to know the best landscape professionals in Albany and the Capital Region!).
What Is Included in Lawn Maintenance?
Today we’re focusing more on lawn maintenance for landscaping service. What does lawn maintenance include? As we mentioned, lawn maintenance is more concerned with how your lawn looks and keeping it up on a regular basis.
Some items on your lawn maintenance schedule should include:
Cutting the grass during lawn mowing season
- Spring and fall landscape cleanup
- Pruning shrubs and tree trimming
- Landscape edging for a clean look
Yard Mowing for Regular Lawn Maintenance
The first item on every lawn maintenance schedule is regular yard mowing. Lawn mowing season can vary depending on your region and how the weather is acting that year. Lawn mowing in areas like Albany, NY, Colonie, NY, and other parts of the Capital Region typically starts in April and can extend into September or early October.
Spring and Fall Landscape Cleanup
What does lawn maintenance include besides mowing? Lots! Maybe not the most fun on your weekend to do list (which is another benefit of outsourcing your landscaping!) but certainly necessary for your lawn maintenance schedule is spring and fall landscape cleanup. Spring yard cleanup will keep your yard looking lush and healthy throughout the spring and summer months. This requires removing debris left over from the winter as well as seeing what other lawn maintenance needs doing like dethatching and overseeding a lawn area. (Unsure where to start? We’ve got you covered with our spring yard cleanup list!)
Landscaping fall cleanup is a lawn maintenance must to prepare your lawn for the freezing Upstate New York winter! Without landscaping fall cleanup, your hard work will go to waste and your lawn won’t be ready for the next spring. You’ve got to plan a full season ahead for how to keep a lush green lawn! Fall lawn maintenance includes leaf removal, mulching, pruning perennials, and other important tasks. (You didn’t think we’d leave you alone for fall, did you? Here’s our fall lawn maintenance guide!)
Pruning Shrubs and Tree Trimming
When you ask “what does lawn maintenance include?” you’ll find pruning shrubs and tree trimming fall under both lawn maintenance and lawn care. So then what’s the different reasons for them to be covered by both? From a lawn care perspective, pruning shrubs and tree trimming is to remove diseased branches or growth out of the way. This prevents it from spreading to healthy sections.
When it comes to pruning shrubs and trimming trees for lawn maintenance, it’s part of keeping manicured landscapes so they look their best at all times! Well manicured landscaping aside, pruning shrubs and tree trimming as part of lawn maintenance also keeps a safe environment. Loose branches and weak limbs can fall. If they’re over a walkway, this could pose a danger to people entering your home or business.
Pruning shrubs and tree trimming is only part of the necessary lawn maintenance to keep them looking good, though. Use a landscape planner online to think about landscaping around trees for a finished and polished look! Your landscape professional will know which plants and flowers will thrive in your area depending on sunlight, climate, and your planting region.
Late winter and early spring are common times to prune deciduous trees while some others benefit from a late summer pruning. Your landscape professional will know the best time for pruning shrubs and tree trimming based on your location and which you have in your landscaping.
Landscape Edging Ideas for Lawn Maintenance
Last on our list answering “what does lawn maintenance include” is landscape edging. Landscape edging provides a clear divider between your landscaping and the rest of your lawn. Some choose mulching to provide a visual divide between the two as it’s one of the best and easiest things you can do to protect and spruce up the overall look of your landscaping. Others may opt for hardscaping to have a more polished finish to their landscaping.
Pro Tip: Read this guide to learn “what is the difference between hardscape and landscape”!
Garden Water Feature Maintenance
While you may not have considered it at first, we recommend learning how to maintain a water feature as part of your regular lawn maintenance, as well. It only takes a few minutes a week to stay on top of it and will keep your garden water feature installation functioning properly and looking great. If you’d prefer help with water feature maintenance like refilling your pond or other maintenance tasks, a professional will be happy to help you with that service, as well!
So then what does lawn maintenance include? Everything that makes it look great all year long! Remember that, from a high level view, lawn care is more about the health of the soil and plants whereas lawn maintenance focuses on its appearance. It’s important to remember that they rely on each other, however, so you can’t focus on one while neglecting the latter. If you’re ready to get started with lawn maintenance this year we know the best landscape professionals in the Albany and Capital Region area to help you out!
Wanting to do a full landscaping refresh? Check out our Project Planner tool to get started budgeting and planning your next project like adding a water feature installation! Save the plans for yourself or submit then directly to us and we’ll get in touch to make your plan come to life.
Interested in adding a water feature to your landscaping this year? Learn how water features add value to your home, get inspired with these water feature inspirations, and let’s get started!
