A Homeowner’s Quick Guide to Landscaping

Whether you’re preparing your house to sell and want to boost its appeal, or you just want to stay on top of maintenance, keep these key tips in mind.

Seasonal Lawn Care

Here in Portland, we’re able to fully enjoy each distinct season. And with each season comes its own yard maintenance schedule.

Spring: Test out your sprinkler and other irrigation systems to make sure they didn’t incur any damage over the winter months. Aerating your lawn will help combat winter compaction. This is also a great time to fertilize your lawn. 

Summer: Be consistent with mowing and weeding about once per week, or as needed depending on your yard. In general, you should run your sprinkler for 20min, one to three times per week.

Fall: Stay on top of raking leaves and keeping other falling debris off your lawn. Fall is also your last chance to squeeze in one final round of seeding and fertilizing. 

Winter: Try limiting the amount of foot traffic on your lawn as you’ll risk compressing the soil and killing the grass. You won’t have to mow very often, but when you do try to save it for a relatively dry stretch of time (we know this can be rare during Portland winters). 

For more information on seasonal care, check out this resource from Oregon State’s horticulture department: Practical lawn care for western Oregon [PDF]

Landscaping if You’re Preparing Your Home to Sell

If you’re thinking of selling your home in the near future, hold off on any major projects and focus your efforts on general clean-up of your outdoor space.

“Cleaning up the garden is the single most important thing one can do to prepare a home for sale… If money is tight, trim and clean, but there’s no need to add anything to your garden. A new tree or bed of flowers is moot if the garden itself looks messy.”

-John Clements, horticulture manager at the San Diego Botanic Garden

General clean-up could include weeding, pruning, and cutting back overgrown plants. If you have any water features, try to get rid of algae buildup or loose debri, and consider getting the system checked and cleaned. We highly recommend laying down fresh mulch in your yard – it’s relatively inexpensive, easy to apply, and will drastically up-level the look of your yard. If you’re wanting to lay bark chips, checkout Chipdrop, a local Portland company that will deliver a truck load of chips straight to your home for free.