The Yard Almanac · Zone 8a · Upstate South Carolina
Zone 8a spring yard care: lawn and garden to-dos
In Zone 8a the last frost lands around mid-April, so spring is a race between waking the lawn up and not planting tender things too soon. Here is what to do, in order.
Lawn
- Apply a crabgrass pre-emergent when soil temperature holds near 55°F (usually mid-March here), before the forsythia finishes blooming.
- Scalp and dethatch warm-season turf (bermuda, zoysia) as it greens up; rake out the dead thatch.
- Mow cool-season fescue at 3 inches and overseed only thin patches early, before the heat.
- Hold off on heavy nitrogen for fescue; feed warm-season lawns once they are fully green.
Beds and borders
- Prune spring-flowering shrubs (azalea, forsythia, loropetalum) right after they bloom, not before.
- Divide and replant summer- and fall-blooming perennials while they are still small.
- Refresh 2 to 3 inches of mulch, keeping it off stems and trunks.
- Plant summer annuals after the last frost date, not before.
Planting
- Plant trees and shrubs early so roots establish before summer heat.
- Set out warm-season vegetables (tomatoes, peppers, squash) once nights stay above 50°F.
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