CLEVELAND, Ohio (WJW) — Spring might be taking its time this year, but according to AJ Petitti, President of Petitti Garden Centers, if your lawn is dry enough, now is the best time to tackle winter clean up. Fox 8’s Scott Sabol learned about the tasks AJ says we need to take care of to ‘wake up’ the lawn and garden beds.

AJ’S Spring ‘To Do’ list:

In the Garden

Cut back any grasses and perennials that were left standing over winter, in order to make room for the fresh green growth that’s sprouting now.

Feed your perennials, trees, and shrubs now; for deciduous plants, use Plant-tone® and for evergreens, use Holly-tone®.

Apply Preen® now as though you were salting a burger; it sterilizes any weed seed present in the soil and goes a long way to prevent weeds from the start, so you don’t have to control them later.

Mulch your beds as soon as they’re drained and dry enough, so you don’t compact that soil by stepping on them while they’re still wet from recent rains.

In the Lawn

Rake and fluff up the lawn to increase air circulation and help the lawn recover from any snow mold. If the thatch layer under your lawn is thicker than 1/2 an inch, consider renting and running a de-thatcher to thin it out (and clean up the debris), otherwise it’ll be a barrier to fertilizer and grass seed.

Apply Scotts® EZ Seed® to patch and repair small bare spots. It’s an all-in-one grass seed, lawn food, growing material, and tackifier combination that works quickly.

Apply step 1 of a 4-step lawn food program now to feed the lawn and prevent annual crabgrass seed from sprouting and taking hold. If you’re planning to overseed your lawn with grass seed this spring, be sure to choose Scotts® Step® 1 for Seeding, which combats the crabgrass weed seed without suppressing the desirable grass seed. Using regular Step® 1 will neutralize all seed present in the soil.