Follow This Landscaping Calendar to Maintain a Beautiful Yard Year-Round

Great landscaping takes year-round planning. It’s more than just watering your flowers in the summer and watching your lawn go dormant in the winter. For example, if you prune too early, you could accidentally cut buds right off the branch, meaning no spring flowers. Following a landscaping calendar will help you stay on track. 

Note: Certain tasks depend on your hardiness zone, so keep your local temperature in mind when setting your own landscaping schedule. If you have any doubts, hire a landscaper who knows the nuances of your area. 

Spring

Spring is one of the busiest seasons for landscaping. Ice and snow start to melt, revealing your lawn. Perennials start to bud, waking from their winter dormancy. The bulbs you planted during the fall start pushing up from the ground. Now is the perfect time to prep your yard for the growing season, plant new annuals, and clean up debris or damage your yard may have sustained during the winter. 

Landscaping costs $1,300 to $6,100 if you hire a pro. Spring tasks commonly include sod installation, mulching, pruning, and planting. Certain projects—like designing a paver patio or investing in landscape curbing—are best done before planting for the season.

March

Once the snow has melted, prep your garden beds, prune plants ahead of the growing season, and plant your earliest seedlings. You can make your own mulch or start a new compost pile for later use. These tasks are ideal for March:

• Keep snow on garden beds to protect new growth from freezing temperatures

• Secure newer perennials that became dislodged during winter

• Prune trees, hedges, and shrubs to remove dead, damaged, or diseased limbs

• Trim certain perennials ahead of new growth (mums, coneflowers, delphinium, etc.)

• Trim ornamental grasses (after the snow melts) 

• Use pruned organic matter to start a new compost pile

• Once the ground is no longer frozen, you can schedule hardscaping projects

April 

April is a crucial month in your yearly lawn maintenance schedule. The last frost occurs during this time—though it could also occur in March or May, depending on your local climate. Most of April’s tasks focus on what to do when there is no longer the threat of frost: 

• Remove and replace tree stakes, wraps, and trunk guards from the previous year

• Overseed thin patches of grass or install sod

• Re-mulch garden beds (aim for a 2- or 3-inch layer)

• Add 1–3 inches of compost to garden beds 

• Cut your lawn, then mow weekly to maintain an ideal height for your lawn

• Water your lawn during dry spells (do not over-water since April is notoriously wet)

• Apply pre-emergent herbicide right before soil temperatures reach 50 to 55 degrees Fahrenheit for five or more days in a row 

• Weed your lawn if necessary

• Fertilize warm-season grass, perennials, trees, shrubs, and vines

• Fertilize bulbs as they emerge

• Plant perennials that bloom in mid-summer through fall (you’ll need to take precautions if you’re planting flowers in existing mulch)

May

With the last frost out of sight, you can do the bulk of your planting. New plants need daily watering for the first two weeks after planting before scaling back to every two to three days on average. You may need to water less if there is a lot of rain. 

• Continue mowing your lawn weekly to maintain height 

• Water your lawn when necessary (about 1 inch of water per week if there’s no rainfall)

• Fertilize your lawn

• Plant warm-season annuals, vegetables, and summer bulbs

• Regularly water new and established plants

• Prune shrubs as soon as they’re done flowering

• Clean water features like bird baths, fountains, and ponds

• Check your plants for pest infestations and disease (call a landscaper near you to get these issues under control)

Summer

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Summer is all about maintenance and it’s the busiest season in this yearly lawn care schedule. You’ll want to weed, water, mow, and fertilize. You may also have the chance to harvest a few fruits and veggies and plant some new ones. Since this season is prone to high temperatures, you may need to increase the amount you water (unless your area has water restrictions).

June 

In June, support your garden as it grows. Your lawn needs around 1 inch of water per week from either rainfall or irrigation. Don’t forget to fertilize—but skip it if your plants are stressed from heat or drought.

• Continue mowing your lawn weekly to maintain height 

• If necessary, water your lawn twice per week during high temperatures

• Water your plants daily (if temperatures are above 85 degrees) 

• Plant warm-season grass and cold-sensitive plants (keep in mind, warm-season grass does not thrive in regions with cold winters)

• Weed garden beds as needed and fertilize every week 

• As climbing plants or perennials grow taller, stake them or tie them to a trellis

• Inspect your landscaping for insect infestations and disease

• Continue to prune spring-blooming plants as they finish blooming

• Prune evergreens and trim hedges to maintain shape

• Re-mulch as needed

July 

July temperatures can get pretty warm in certain parts of the country. Make sure to increase watering as needed. Established plants require less water than new plants.

• Continue mowing your lawn weekly to maintain height

• If necessary, water your lawn twice per week during high temperatures

• Water your plants daily (if temperatures are above 85 degrees) 

• Trim hedges to maintain shape

• Remove browning or damaged flowers to promote flowering

• Prune plants as they finish blooming

• As climbing plants or perennials grow taller, stake them or tie them to a trellis

• Harvest fruits and vegetables as they ripen

• Weed garden as needed

• If necessary, spray to control pest infestation and disease

August 

In August, you’ll begin preparing your plants for dormancy, but you can still plant frost-tolerant varieties.

• Continue mowing your lawn weekly to maintain height

• Water your lawn and garden beds as necessary

• Divide spring-blooming perennials (including those that bloom in early summer)

• Harvest fruits and vegetables as they ripen

• Plant cool-season crops and frost-tolerant annuals

• Remove browning and wilting flowers to promote flowering

Fall

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Your perennial plants will go dormant once temperatures fall below freezing for several hours at a time, but fall is still an ideal season to plant new trees, shrubs, and cool-season grasses. Plant them early enough in the season to establish roots before the winter freeze. 

Since fall can be dry, it’s a great time to take on landscaping projects that prevent flooding issues or work on the land clearing and hardscaping projects you put off in the spring. Here are some month-by-month tasks to add to your landscaping calendar in the fall.

September 

September is ideal for planting certain trees, perennials, and shrubs. Here are some key September landscaping tasks:

• Regularly water lawn and garden beds ahead of dormancy

• Continue mowing your lawn weekly ahead of dormancy

• Aerate and dethatch established lawns 

• Remove summer annuals as they die

• Plant or overseed cool-season grass

• Plant trees, shrubs, evergreens, and new perennials

• Plant spring-blooming bulbs

• Wrap the trunks of young trees to protect them from pests and frost damage

• Weed garden beds as necessary

October 

The first frost happens during October (though it can be as early as September in some areas). You’ll need to prep with the following tasks:

• Rake and bag leaves (if you live in an area where trees drop leaves during autumn)

• Continue regular lawn maintenance 

• Continue watering your lawn, trees, and garden beds

• Amend your soil to prep for next spring

• Remove any remaining dead annuals 

• Finish planting your spring-blooming bulbs

• Harvest fall vegetables and fruits as they ripen

November

Unless you’re in a warm climate, the ground will likely freeze by November. It’s your last opportunity to prep for winter:

• Rake and bag leaves as needed 

• Continue regular lawn maintenance until the ground freezes

• Continue watering your lawn, trees, and garden beds until the ground freezes

• Cut back certain perennials ahead of winter (hostas, peonies, daylilies, etc.)

• Clean your gutters and downspouts

• Apply a layer of mulch to help protect plants during the winter

• Cover plants once temperatures drop below 40 degrees

• Store your garden tools for the winter

Winter

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Winter varies dramatically based on which plant hardiness zone you’re in. In cold climates, you’ll be dealing with ice, snow, and the ground freezing. You probably won’t be doing much work outside beyond shoveling snow from your driveway and de-icing your patio. 

If you’re in a climate that has warmer winters, you’ll need to water your outdoor plants two to three times per week as long as temperatures remain above 40 degrees. You do not need to water plants once frost sets in. Either way, winter is a great season to plan for future landscaping projects. 

December 

In December, you’ll wrap up most outdoor landscaping tasks that don’t involve snow or ice:

• Keep removing leaves that could potentially damage your lawn

• Service and store your lawn mower

• Clean and store power equipment (make sure lithium-ion batteries are at a 50% charge)

• Make sure your winter equipment (like snow blowers or shovels) are in working order

• Deice hardscaping as needed

• Brush snow off fragile branches to prevent damage

• Use chicken wire to protect shrubs from rodents

January 

Though pruning is kept to a minimum during the winter, you may still need to prune some plants that flowered during the summer. Keep these tasks in your January landscaping calendar:

• Deice hardscaping as needed

• Brush snow off fragile evergreen branches to prevent damage

• Prune away flowers that bloomed in the summer (if you live in a warm climate where flowers may bloom year-round)

• Continue a minimal watering schedule as needed (warm climates only)

February 

In February, you’ll need to prep for the spring growing season:

• Start your seeds indoors 

• If bulbs or seeds have sprouted in storage, plant them temporarily in pots before moving them outside in the spring

• Plan your spring and summer landscaping

• Continue a minimal watering schedule as needed (warm climates only)

Photo: Rouzes / iStock / Getty Images Plus / Getty Images

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