Every spring, we get the same question: "Do I really need a spring cleanup, or can I just start mowing?"
Short answer: you can skip it, but your lawn will look worse all season. Here's why.
What Winter Does to Your Yard
Minnesota winters are rough on lawns. Between the snow, ice, salt, sand, and freeze-thaw cycles, your yard takes a beating. By April, most properties have:
- A layer of dead grass and matted leaves smothering the turf
- Branches and debris scattered around
- Compacted soil from snow weight
- Garden beds full of last fall's leftover plant material
If you just start mowing over all that, you're mowing over problems. The grass underneath can't breathe, water pools instead of absorbing, and you end up with bare patches and fungus by June.
What We Actually Do
When we show up for a spring cleanup, here's the full rundown:
- Debris removal — branches, trash, anything winter left behind.
- Thorough raking — we get the matted leaves and dead grass off the turf so air and sunlight can reach the soil.
- Bed cleanup — cut back dead perennials, pull out leftover annuals, edge the beds so they look sharp.
- Gutter check — if gutters are full of leaves, we clear them out. Clogged gutters cause water damage that's way more expensive than a cleanup.
- First mow — once everything's cleared, we do the first mow of the season at the right height to encourage root growth.
The whole thing usually takes a few hours per property. By the time we leave, your yard looks like it skipped winter entirely.
When to Schedule
In the Shakopee area, we typically start spring cleanups in mid-April, depending on when the snow finally clears. The sweet spot is after the ground firms up but before the grass really starts growing — usually a 2-3 week window.
We book up fast during that window, so if you want to get on the schedule, drop us a line sooner rather than later.