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Lawn Care Tips: Don't Get That Rake Out Just Yet

BLOOMINGTON (WCCO) -- The Twin Cities set a record high temperature on Wednesday when we hit 73 degrees, and many residents were ready to jump in the yard and get to work. However, lawn care experts say not so fast.

"They are totally ready to go," said Jon Erickson, who owns Envirolawn lawn care and landscaping in Bloomington.

He cautions that you could do more harm than good, if you start this soon. He wants you to remember four things about lawn care this time of year. First, most importantly, don't rake.

"Things are tender. Things are moist down there," he said. "You risk damaging crowns of the plants right now."

Erickson recommends raking when the soil is dry, in about another two weeks.

Second, he says you shouldn't fertilize yet. It's pointless right now.

"Grass isn't growing. It's just going to sit there. It might run off," he said.

There is something you can do, which is the third of Erickson's points. Trim your trees.

"You could certainly get by trimming the crossing branches, thinning the interior. I certainly wouldn't touch anything where the flower beds are at all," he said.

Fourth, feel free to trim perennials and bushes. It's all about shrub and flower maintenance right now, nothing more.

"Just give it time. It just needs time," said Erickson.

He added that you shouldn't use your sprinkler system just yet. You don't want water to get inside it, and then freeze if the temperature gets below freezing one of these nights.

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