Spring cleanup: what it includes and when to book
It is the visit that sets up the entire season, and the one most people leave until the lawn already looks bad.
Spring cleanup is the reset. Everything the winter left behind comes off, the beds get cut back and edged, and the lawn gets its first cut at the right height. Done well, the property looks finished by the end of April. Done late or badly, you spend until June catching up.
What is actually involved
- Winter debris, dead leaves and salt-damaged material cleared from turf and beds
- Perennials cut back where they were left standing over winter
- Beds edged and weeded before anything has a chance to establish
- Dethatching where the lawn needs it
- The first cut of the season, set high rather than short
- An assessment of what the winter actually damaged
Timing on Peel clay
This is where local knowledge matters. Much of Mississauga sits on heavy clay, which holds water and stays soft far longer in spring than sandier soil does. Working a lawn while it is still saturated compacts it, and compacted clay is a problem you carry all season.
Walking on a thawing clay lawn in March costs you more than waiting two weeks ever will.
We watch the ground, not the date. Usually that means late March in a mild year and mid-April in a cold one.
Book it in February or early March
GTA crews build their spring routes before the snow is gone. By the time your lawn visibly needs attention, the good companies are scheduling three weeks out. Booking early does not cost more, it simply gets you the timing you want instead of the slot that is left.
What we look for while we are there
Spring cleanup is also a diagnosis. Snow mould, salt burn along the driveway edge, vole runs, winterkill in exposed spots, drainage that did not cope with the melt. All of it is visible in April and invisible by June, and all of it is cheaper to fix now.