Planning is the key to success! This goes for everything in life, including lawn care. Some YouTubers preach the need to keep a lawn journal – a diary that documents what you've applied to your lawn and when.
I agree with this practice, but the project manager in me prefers to be more proactive. My approach (adapted from Grass and Garden TV) is to create a lawn care plan that can also act as a journal.
Each year, I create a one-page, colorized calendar that plans every aspect of my lawn care season. I break up my 30-week season into six cycles of five weeks each. Each cycle (other than mid-summer) begins with a fertilizer application. I also plan the timing of herbicides, insecticides and fungicides.
I print the calendar in color and keep it handy to jot down actual application dates and treatment details. Therefore it acts as both a plan and journal.
My calendar is designed for my 4-season climate in New Jersey, but you can easily adapt it for cooler or warmer areas by copying and customizing the Google spreadsheet to meet your needs.
Lawn Care Plan – customizable spreadsheet
IMPORTANT! The link below will open a read-only copy of my Google Spreadsheet. Use File>Make a copy… to save an editable copy of the spreadsheet to your personal Google Drive.
You cannot edit my file so don't ask for access.
Lawn Care Plan – completed journal
Here's what my calendars looks like at the end of the season. Note the hash marks indicate when I mowed. R=rain.
