Spring Planting Tips from a Landscaper

Spring is almost here, and now is the perfect time to refresh your landscape, revitalize your lawn, update your hardscaping, fix your tools, and enhance your outdoor living space. If you love landscaping, gardening, or just spending time outside on your property, then the arrival of spring brings you excitement and happiness. It's time to step back into your garden, prepare it for planting, and finish all chores. Whether you want a lush green lawn, colorful flower beds, a comfortable outdoor space, or a vegetable garden, a little work now will help your landscape perform all season and pay off big time later.

To help you, our landscaping experts share the top spring planting and landscaping tips that any gardener, homeowner, or landscaper can follow to have a slow and stress-free start to the growing season.

1. Plan Before You Plant

Spring planting should start with a clear plan. Take some time to plan and match plants with the right sunlight, watering needs, and available space. Wait to plant tender plants, such as tomatoes and annual flowers, until the risk of frost has passed. If you still feel like starting, you can start seeds indoors now to get a head start on summer garden success. Planning ahead means you'll have more time to enjoy your landscape later.

Spring is the time to:

• Design new beds or plantings you want to work on.
• Choose native, drought-tolerant, and climate-friendly plants.
• Shop seeds and transplants early for the best selection at nearby nurseries and garden centers.

Planning Tips

Consider the usage of your outdoor areas, such as patios, walkways, and play areas, before choosing plants. Good planning helps you prevent overcrowding and spread color throughout the entire season rather than having everything bloom at once.

• Measure garden beds and lawn
• Mark both sunny and shaded areas
• Choose plants based on color and textures
• Identify drainage problems

2. Timing is Everything

One of the most common planting mistakes is planting too early. Cold soil can slow root growth and damage sensitive plants. Always watch soil temperature and nighttime lows. Trees and shrubs can be planted early, but tropical flowers should wait. Correct timing gives plants a strong start. Therefore, you should choose the best time to plant and transplant based on weather and soil conditions, not by the calendar date.

• Plant trees and shrubs in the early spring
• Wait to plant summer flowers till the soil warms
• Start planting cool season crops first
• Avoid working on rainy days
• Transplant on cloudy mornings

3. Clean Your Landscape

Before starting new planting, your yard needs a spring reset. It likely has accumulated debris, broken branches, fallen leaves, faded mulch, and damaged plants after months of winter weather.

• Start your spring landscaping with a thorough yard and garden cleanup:
• Remove leftover leaves, branches, and dead plant material from your garden beds and lawn to allow fresh air and sunlight to reach the soil.
• Cut off dead or damaged branches from trees and shrubs with sharp Felco pruners to promote healthy growth and improve the appearance of your landscape.
• Clear out all weeds before they take over your garden beds.

4. Prepare Your Lawn for the Growing Season

Winter can be rough on your lawn, so it needs some TLC to bounce back. A beautiful landscape includes a healthy lawn, which starts with proper spring care. Below is a lawn care checklist to prepare it for the upcoming seasons.

• Aerate the soil to reduce soil compaction and help water, air, and nutrients reach the roots more effectively. It'll give your grass a breath of fresh air.
• Overseed bare spots with cool-season grass seeds to create a lush appearance.
• Apply a well-balanced spring fertilizer such as Ferti-Maxx Landscape to help boost your lawn's growth and provide essential nutrients.
• Mow high when the grass reaches 2.5 to 3 inches long. Make sure to sharpen your mower blades first because dull blades tear the grass and leave it ragged.
• Inspect your lawn irrigation system thoroughly for any damage. Adjust sprinklers for even coverage and reprogram the controller to provide adequate moisture before the summer heat arrives.

5. Refresh Your Mulch

Mulching leaves the biggest impact on your spring landscaping as it helps conserve moisture, keep roots cool, and promote soil health. Organic mulches like bark, pine needles, grass clippings, or compost are the best choices.

Mulching Tips

Here are some tips to refresh your garden beds effectively:

• Remove old layers of mulch to prevent fungal growth.
• Apply a 2–3-inch layer of fresh mulch around trees, shrubs, and flower beds for a finished look.
• Create crisp, defined edges around your beds to give your yard a tidy appearance.
• Apply mulch after planting to lock in moisture and give your garden beds an instant glow-up.

6. Choose Plants like a Landscaper

The choice of plants determines how easy or difficult a landscape will be to manage. You need to choose plants that suit your local climate, garden's microclimate, sunlight availability, and soil type. Also, consider the mature size of desired plants to prevent overcrowding the space. Native and drought-tolerant plants perform better and need less maintenance.

Plant Selection Tips

• Match plants to sun exposure
• Consider heat tolerance and watering needs
• Mix evergreen and flowering types
• Use native plants
• Think about mature height

Learn How to Choose the Right Plants for Your Garden in this detailed guide.

7. Maintain and Enhance Hardscaping

Hardscape features, such as patios, walkways, raised garden beds, decks, trellises, and retaining walls, also need some attention in the spring. Early spring is a good time to repair damaged retaining walls, clean out gutters, level out your stepping stones, add a fresh coat of paint to any hardscaping element, and fix benches, fences, decks, sheds, and raised beds.

• Install new raised garden beds, widen existing ones, and clean up your beds' edging.
• Look for any winter damage, such as cracks or loose stones, on patios, decks, and walkways.
• Wash hardscaping surfaces to remove dirt, grime, and algae buildup.
• This is also a perfect time to add new elements like firepits, landscape lighting, or a water feature.

8. Set up Your Outdoor Living Space

Now is the perfect time to prepare your outdoor space for entertainment and relaxation as the warmer months approach.

• Clean outdoor furniture, wash textiles, incorporate new elements, and set up a comfortable seating area.
• Install modern outdoor lighting, including LED string lights, path lights, step lights, spotlights, and lanterns to add magical ambiance and functionality to your space.
• Spring is a perfect time to upgrade your old patio or deck. You can add new furniture, rugs, or other decorative elements to make your outdoor space more inviting.
• As summer is coming, incorporate shade solutions like pergolas and umbrellas to get relief from the sun on hot days and extend the usability of your outdoor space.

Read More:2026 Outdoor Living and Landscaping Trends to Transform Your Backyard

9. Fertilize the Right Way

This is one of the most important planting tips. Your fertilizer should support natural plant or grass growth rather than forcing it. Many homeowners overfertilize young plants, which burns their roots. It is recommended to use slow-release organic fertilizers for new plantings, which feed gently for months. Compost is the best organic soil amendment as it boosts soil fertility and structure. Fertilize your lawn when the grass is actively growing.

• Use slow-release organic fertilizers.
• Avoid heavy nitrogen early.
• Fertilize after planting in nutrient-rich soil.
• Light feed for perennials.
• Follow the package directions for the application to prevent overfeeding.

10. Set up a Smart Watering System

Proper watering gives you a thriving, beautiful landscape of your dreams. Remember that spring watering is different from summer watering. In spring, the weather is still cool, which keeps the soil wet longer, and overwatering your plants becomes a real danger. It is crucial to water wisely and smartly based on your plants' needs and the weather.

Smart Watering Tips

Below are eco-friendly spring watering tips to conserve water while keeping your yard healthy:

• Inspect your drip irrigation system for leaks, cracks, or clogs.
• Check for broken sprinklers.
• Program your irrigation controller for spring watering schedules.
• Water early in the morning to reduce evaporation and allow moisture to reach roots effectively.
• Collect rainwater in a rain barrel and use that water to irrigate your plants sustainably.
• If you've not already installed the system, install drip irrigation to deliver water deeply and slowly directly to the roots.
• Group plants with similar water needs together to help reduce overall water consumption.

11. Prepare for Pests and Diseases

Spring is when pests, weeds, and plant diseases start to wake up. Take proactive steps to protect your landscape and save months of struggle.

• Look for spots, yellowing leaves, holes, chewed leaves, visible mold, or wilting, and act quickly.
• Use organic pest control methods.
• Encourage beneficial insects like bees, ladybugs, and wasps, which naturally keep harmful pests in control.
• Watch for lawn pests such as white grubs, chinch bugs, armyworms, and other lawn pests. They can damage your grass if left unchecked.

The Bottom Line

Spring planting is about patience and the right steps, not speed. Don't rush your spring garden preparation. When we rush to get things done, we sometimes miss out on an opportunity to truly enjoy those little moments, like feeling your hands in the soil. So, take it slow and enjoy every step. Treat your garden with love, and it will reward you with colors, shade, flowers, beauty, and healthy harvests for many years.

DripWorks garden and landscaping solutions can help you set the stage for a beautiful landscape year-round. Explore our high-quality garden tools, smart irrigation system, landscape lighting, and many more products you'll need to bring your spring landscaping vision to life.