Spring in the Piedmont Triad is unpredictable, but when it arrives there is a lot of yard work to do and prepare for before your first mow of the season.
Whether you live in Greensboro, Winston-Salem, or the surrounding cities, you might see warm spells in February only to face a March freeze. Don’t let “false spring” trick you; mowing too early exposes tender new growth to frost damage.
Follow our Spring Lawn Care Checklist for the Piedmont Triad to get your lawn mower ready and your grass prepared to deal with the summer heat.
- 1. Prepare your lawn mower
- 2. Clean up yard debris
- 3. Dethatch grass during its growing season
- 3. Aerate annually
- 4. Prevent weeds with pre-emergent herbicides
- 5. Control spring lawn pests
- 6. Overseed warm-season grass
- 7. Fertilize for lush growth
- 8. Check sprinklers and start watering
- 9. Know when to mow
- 10. Treat spring lawn diseases
1. Prepare your lawn mower
In late February to early March prepare your lawn mower before your grass greens up.
Here’s what to do:
- Inspect your lawn mower for rust or damage
- Sharpen your lawn mower blades
- Check your lawn mower’s spark plug and oil filter, and change them if necessary
- Refill the line in your weed eater
- Restock your supply of gas for gas-powered mowers and string trimmers
- Make sure batteries for electric tools still hold a charge
Read more: Best Lawn Mower Maintenance Practices
2. Clean up yard debris
Winter in the Triad leaves a chaotic mix of pinecones, fallen branches, and the inevitable sweetgum balls. Clear this clutter in late February to early March so sunlight can reach the emerging grass blades.
Note: Avoid yard work immediately after heavy spring rains. Walking on or raking wet soil compacts our region’s heavy red clay, which crushes grass root systems and hinders future growth.
How to clean up your yard: Gently remove heavy debris using a leaf blower or a light rake to clear the turf without tearing up sod.
Follow local disposal ordinances to ensure pickup:
- Greensboro residents: Place leaves, grass clippings, and branches in your gray 95-gallon yard waste cart. Extra leaves go in biodegradable paper bags or natural twine bundles. Never use plastic bags or personal trash cans; they won’t be collected.
- Winston-Salem residents: Purchase a 96-gallon yard waste cart for year-round yard waste collection. Keep yard waste separate from trash and recycling. For residents without carts, contact the city about alternative yard waste disposal options.
Leaf cleanup: Winston-Salem maintains a seasonal loose leaf program through mid-February, then yard waste must be managed through carts or biodegradable bags for spring and summer cleanup.
3. Dethatch grass during its growing season
Over the course of the year, little bits of dead grass build up in the lawn between the living grass and the soil. This layer of debris is called thatch, and it should never be more than half an inch thick.
If your thatch is thicker than that, you need to dethatch your lawn to remove the layer.
The best time to dethatch grass is during its growing season, which varies depending on your grass type:
- Dethatch cool-season grasses at the beginning of their growing seasons in early spring (March to April) or early fall (September to October). Fescues, Kentucky bluegrass, and perennial ryegrass are common cool-season grasses in the Piedmont region of North Carolina.
- Dethatch warm-season grasses at the beginning of their growing season in late spring to early summer (late May to July). Bermudagrass, carpetgrass, centipedegrass, St. Augustinegrass, and Zoysiagrass are warm-season grasses common in this area.
3. Aerate annually
After dethatching, it’s smart to aerate your lawn. Aeration is the process of poking holes in compacted soil to loosen it up and give grass roots better access to water and plant nutrients. Prevent soil compaction and a lackluster lawn by aerating once every year.
As with dethatching, the best time to aerate your lawn depends on your grass type:
- Aerate cool-season grasses when soil temperatures are between 50 and 60 degrees (typically late March through April for spring aeration or late August through October for fall aeration).Wait until the fall growth period if possible.
- Aerate warm-season grasses when soil temperatures reach 65 to 75 degrees (late May to July). At this optimal soil temperature, grass actively grows and recovers quickly from aeration.
Good to know: For the most accurate timing in your specific location, monitor soil temperature with a soil thermometer or check NCSU Extension’s climate station data. Soil temperature is more reliable than calendar dates for determining peak grass growth periods.
4. Prevent weeds with pre-emergent herbicides
Springtime is when summer annual weeds and some perennial weeds germinate. If you don’t want a lawn full of weeds later in the year, apply pre-emergent herbicides in early spring (March to April) to nip weeds in the bud before they have a chance to sprout.
Pre-emergent herbicides are effective only for weeds that haven’t sprouted yet. If there are already weeds growing in your lawn in spring, you’ll have to apply post-emergent herbicides to get rid of them.
Identify the weeds in your yard with this list of common North Carolina weeds from North Carolina State University to find the best way to kill and prevent them in the future.
Warning: If you plan to overseed your lawn this spring, do not spread herbicides, lest they kill the new grass seed along with the weeds.
5. Control spring lawn pests
The best way to prevent pest problems in your lawn is to maintain your grass consistently and keep it healthy. Healthy grass is less inviting to lawn pests, and it withstands pest damage better than unhealthy grass.
If your lawn does develop a lawn pest problem, your best shot at wiping it out is to catch the pests ASAP. Start checking your lawn for trouble spots in late March and April.
Warning: Never treat your lawn unless you actually see lawn pests or active damage. If you find lawn pests, target them quickly with the right treatment to stop them before they multiply and destroy your grass.
This spring, keep an eye out for signs of these common spring turfgrass pests in North Carolina:
- Chinch bugs: These tiny black bugs drain grass sap, causing yellow patches in sunny areas during warm spring days. Apply bifenthrin-based insecticides if you see significant active clustering.
- Cutworms: These caterpillars cut grass stems right at the soil line, leaving dead spots in April. Mow the lawn 24 hours before applying insecticides, then treat in the evening with Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) or spinosad when larvae are active.
- Grubs: These C-shaped larvae feed on roots and may be visible in spring (April to May), leaving spongy turf that lifts like carpet. However, do not apply curative treatments in spring. Apply preventative treatments in June during adult flight season.
- Billbugs: These weevils with snouts puncture stems of warm-season grasses, causing irregular yellowing in late April or May. Target adults with contact insecticides before they lay eggs in stems.
- Two-lined spittlebugs: Nymphs hide inside frothy white masses and suck plant juices, causing purple or yellow streaks in late spring. Wash away spittle masses with water or apply contact insecticides. Damage typically becomes most noticeable by mid-May.
Read more:
Common Spring Lawn Pests
Guide to Using Pesticides on Your Lawn
6. Overseed warm-season grass
Grass that has become thin or patchy could benefit from overseeding, which means spreading new grass seed on top of your existing lawn to fill in gaps. Overseeding will repair bare patches and make your grass thicker.
Once again, the best time to overseed your lawn depends on your grass type’s growing season:
Warm-season grasses like bermudagrass and Zoysiagrass respond poorly to overseeding. Instead of scattering seed, repair bare patches using sod, sprigs, or plugs installed between late May and June when soil temperatures consistently exceed 55 degrees.
If spring seeding is necessary, you may overseed your cool-season grasses in early spring (mid-February to late March), but results will be fair since seedlings lack time to root before summer heat and drought stress arrive.
Note: The best time to overseed cool-season grasses is in early fall (September to October) when cooler temperatures and moisture help seedlings establish strong root systems before winter.
Read more:
How to Overseed a Lawn
Zoysiagrass Maintenance Schedule North Carolina
7. Fertilize for lush growth
Fertilizing your lawn too early in the Piedmont Triad often feeds winter weeds rather than your grass. You must time fertilizer applications around active grass-growing phases, never dormancy.
Before you fertilize your lawn, test your soil to find out what nutrients it’s lacking. This will help you choose the most beneficial type of fertilizer for your specific lawn.
Soil testing is performed by the NCDA&CS Agronomic Division. It is free for most of the year (typically April 1 through November 27), with a small fee during the peak winter season.
Once you know which fertilizer to use, follow the fertilization schedule:
- Cool-season grasses: If you missed the primary fall window for lawn fertilization, apply slow-release nitrogen in late February or mid March (typically when soil temperatures consistently reach 50 degrees).
- Warm-season grasses: For warm-season grasses like bermudagrass, wait until late March through April when soil temperatures reach 65 to 75 degrees.
Warning: For tall fescue, the ideal fertilization window is September through November. Spring applications should be light (approx. 0.5 lb per 1,000 sq. ft.), supplementary feedings to avoid stressing the grass before the summer heat.
Read more:
How to Soil Test Your Lawn
How to Read a Soil Test Report
How to Fertilize Your Lawn
8. Check sprinklers and start watering
Instead of watering as soon as spring arrives, inspect your sprinkler heads for winter cracks and ensure they pop up fully to clear new grass growth. Also, run a test cycle to fix leaks and adjust sprinkler heads that are spraying driveways instead of grass.
Spring in the Piedmont Triad is naturally wet, averaging 3 to 4 inches of rain monthly from March through May. Because of this ample rainfall, you likely won’t need to irrigate regularly until late spring.
In fact, watering too early promotes fungal diseases like brown patch and encourages shallow roots that fail during the summer heat.
When to start watering: Turn on your sprinklers only when the lawn shows signs of thirst. Look for “footprinting” (when grass stays flat after you walk on it) or a dull, bluish-gray tint.
How to water: When nature doesn’t provide enough rain, apply 1 inch of water per week in a single, deep session during the early morning. Deep, infrequent watering trains roots to dive deep into our red clay soil, creating a drought-resistant lawn.
9. Know when to mow
Hold off on mowing until your lawn shows active growth. Cutting dormant grass or mowing wet clay soil damages new shoots and creates ruts. Let your grass reach roughly 3 inches before the first cut to protect the roots.
- For cool-season grasses, you typically start mowing in mid-March.
- For warm-season lawns like bermudagrass, delay your first mow until full green-up in late April or May.
No matter your grass type, follow the one-third rule: Never cut more than one-third of your grass’s height at once. For example, if your grass is 3 inches tall, set your lawn mower’s height no lower than 2 inches.
When you start mowing, mow the lawn about once a week to keep your grass at its recommended height.
Here are the best heights for some of the most common grass types for the Piedmont Triad:
- Bermudagrass: 1 to 2 inches
- Carpetgrass: 1.5 to 2 inches
- Centipedegrass: 1 to 2 inches
- Fine fescue: 1.5 to 4 inches
- Kentucky bluegrass: 1.5 to 2.5 inches
- Perennial ryegrass: 1.5 to 2.5 inches
- St. Augustinegrass: 2.5 to 4 inches
- Tall fescue: 3 to 3.5 inches
- Zoysiagrass: 0.25 to 2.5 inches, depending on the species
Read more: 9 Best Grass Types for the Piedmont Triad
10. Treat spring lawn diseases
Spring in the Piedmont Triad brings damp conditions and fluctuating temperatures that fuel fungal growth in your lawn.
If your lawn displays odd circular patches or fails to green up while neighbors’ lawns flourish, a lawn disease may be the reason. You must inspect your lawn regularly in April and May; catching lawn disease issues now prevents widespread damage before the brutal summer heat sets in.
Some common threats and how to handle them include:
- Large patch: Affects warm-season grass (Zoysiagrass, bermudagrass) during cool, wet weather in spring and fall. While symptoms may appear in spring, the disease primarily develops in fall.
- Brown patch: Hits tall fescue when nights stay humid and air temperatures exceed 60 to 70 degrees. Apply fungicides preventatively in late spring when night temperatures consistently exceed 60 degrees. Avoid excess nitrogen fertilizer.
- Spring dead spot: Bleached circles on bermudagrass indicate spring dead spot. Do not apply fungicide in spring; instead, encourage regrowth with fertilizer and treat next fall.
Good to know: For accurate diagnosis, consult the North Carolina State University’s extension website before applying chemicals to treat lawn diseases. Obviously, you need to know which lawn diseas you are dealing with before you apply a treatment.
Read more:
How to Identify and Treat Grass Fungus
Fall Lawn Care Checklist for the Piedmont Triad
If this all sounds like a lot of work, hire a Lawn Love lawn care pro
Taking care of your lawn is a year-round job. What you do this spring sets your grass up for success. If this checklist feels like too much work, call in an expert. Lawn Love’s Piedmont Triad lawn care pros make it easy to get a healthy, green yard.
Main Image: Aerial view of Old Salem and downtown Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Illustration by Amy Stenglein / LawnStarter
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