Warm northeast Ohio weather may tempt some into starting early yard work

STRONGSVILLE, Ohio - With temperatures consistently in the 60s and even approaching 70, everyone wants to be outdoors.

 Even getting an early start on yard work can be enjoyable this time of the year. Just make sure you don't get too far ahead of yourself when applying fertilizers to your lawn.

A project a homeowner may want to tackle early in the year is applying crabgrass preventer.

"It's a great time to get in front of the crabgrass and get your crabgrass preventer down. Should it snow again it won't affect it at all," said Michael Schaefer, of Petitti's Garden Center in Strongsville.

Schaefer also said it's not too early to put in grass seed, should you have any bare spots in your lawn.

Mulch is another product that can be used year-round.

"Two inches of mulch is all you need to prevent the weeds from coming through and help keep moisture in," said Schaefer. 

Don't be tempted to do too much just because of our unseasonably warm weather. Weed and feed products should not be used until dandelions are actively growing.

Applying bug killers, such as GrubEx, to your lawn early in the year may mean it will have to be re-applied in the summer. Many bug killer products work for only a few months.

Any flowers that are growing from last years bulbs should be fine. Hold off planting anything new flowers in the ground until a little later in the year. Snow is a frequent visitor in April and you don't want to be purchasing flowers twice.