Yard Maintenance

Our yard maintenance tips can help you keep your home cost efficient, safe & cozy.

A cozy porch with two white Adirondack chairs, blue striped cushions, and a small table showcasing home maintenance tips to tackle this summer to keep everything inviting. A striped rug adds charm while a green plant sits in the corner.

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Home Maintenance Tips to Tackle This Summer

As the weather warms up, tackle these summer home maintenance tasks keep everything running smoothly—inside and out.
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Spring Home and Lawn Maintenance: Tips for a Beautiful Property

These home and lawn maintenance tasks will take spring cleaning to a new level and keep your property looking as good as new.
A cozy home prepared for cool fall weather.

Fall Yard and Home Maintenance Checklist: 12 Simple Items

As fall begins, there are a few maintenance tasks around the house. Here are 12 ways to prepare your yard and home for the cooler season.
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The Ultimate Summer Maintenance Checklist

The summer months have arrived, meaning certain areas of your home may need some tending. Here are some maintenance tasks to pay attention to this season.
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How To Care for Ornamental Grass

Wondering how to care for ornamental grasses? This guide covers expert care tips, how to find the right type for your climate, and more.
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Spring Checklist: Prep Your Home for Warm Weather

Get your home, lawn, and garden ready for the milder, wetter days on the way
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End-of-Summer Yard and Garden Cleanup Tips

Give your lawn and garden the care they need by removing debris, dividing crowded perennials, and adding mulch—so plants can come back stronger.
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Summer Checklist: Small Projects that Pay Off

Warm weather has finally arrived! It’s time to head outside and give your house and landscape some TLC.
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Pro Tips to Get Your House Ready for Warmer Weather

Spring is here, so it’s time to prime the house and garden for the warm-weather months ahead. Read on for tips on how to get everything ready for the summer.
A house with a yard covered in Fall leaves.

The Best Tools You Can Use To Collect Autumn Leaves

From leaf blowers to vacuums, our guide covers all the different kinds of products and technology to tackle this annual chore.
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The Ultimate Guide to Burning Leaves

Leaf burning can be an effective way to tackle your fall cleanup. Here are a few tips for burning leaves safely.
Hot tub that needs to be drained.

How To Drain a Hot Tub

Hot tubs are meant for relaxation, but there’s one aspect of owning one that may be stressing you out: draining the water to clean the tub. Read our guide to learn how to drain your hot tub.
A person spreading mulch between two plants.

Everything You Need to Know to Choose the Right Mulch

Mulch is a an often overlooked but useful garden tool. Use our guide to navigate the options and find the best topdressing for your plant bed.
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How To Fix a Leaky Hose Spigot

This Old House plumbing and heating expert, Richard Trethewey, explains some common failure points in hose spigots and how to repair them.
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Best Chemical Sprayers (2024 Guide)

The best chemical sprayers in 2024 are the Chapin Backpack Sprayer, Scotts Lithium-Ion Sprayer, and the D.B. Smith 1-Gallon Sprayer.
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How To Prep Your Grill for Winter

Whether you have a charcoal grill or a built-in outdoor gas grill, here's how to prep it for storage during the winter.
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How to Remove Overgrown Foundation Shrubs

Ask This Old House landscape contractor Roger Cook helps a homeowner remove foundation shrubs that have overtaken the front of her house
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Cordless Lawn Mowers That Won’t Quit

We’re living in the golden age of cordless lawn mowers. Not long ago, these quiet, smokeless cutters had anemic batteries that made you wish you were mowing with gas.
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How to Put Your Snow Blower to Bed

Here’s what to do now to ensure that your snow blower is ready for action next winter.
A pruning tool being used to prune a fruit tree.

How To Maintain Fruit Trees

Read these care tips from Tom Spellman of Dave Wilson Nursery to learn how to properly maintain fruit trees, from fertilization to pruning.
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Prep Your Yard for Fall

Cooler temperatures and abundant rainfall are an invitation to tend to what’s green and growing. Here are 3 things you need to tackle this fall
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CHECKLIST | Get Your House Ready for Spring

Add these tasks to your fix-it list to smoothly transition your home from winter to spring and keep everything running in top shape for the warmer months.
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How To Revive a Lawn With a Slice Seeder

This Old House landscape contractor Roger Cook shows a quick, easy way to seed and resuscitate a sickly-looking lawn.
A woman pushing a wheelbarrow across a patchy lawn.
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What You Need to Know to Restore a Patchy, Weedy Lawn

In this guide, This Old House landscape contractor Roger Cook shows you how to revamp a struggling lawn and keep it looking pristine.
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Backyard Renovation: Creating a Low-Maintenance Yard

Using no-fuss materials and water-thrifty plantings, this landscaping pro gave his small urban lot plenty of visual punch
A variety of potted spring plants.

How To Clean Up Your Yard and Prepare Your Plants for Spring

Tackle early spring maintenance to get your yard and patio ready for the growth spurt to come. Here's what you should do.
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Get to Know Your Gas Grill: A Comprehensive Guide

Whether you're a seasoned grillmaster or not, understanding your gas grill will really up your grilling game. Here's what you need to know.
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10 Best Tools for Fall Cleanup (2023)

Are you battling leaves and debris outdoors? Discover the 10 best tools to make your yard beautiful this autumn in our guide to fall cleanup.
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How to Winterize Yard Tools

Your outdoor power tools will benefit from some upkeep before they hibernate for the long winter ahead.
Image of an outdoor fountain. It is important to maintain your outdoor fountain to keep it working smoothly

How To Clean and Maintain Your Outdoor Fountain

Without regular care, a bubbling fountain can quickly go from lovely to grubby. Follow these steps to properly care for your garden fountain.
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9 Steps to a Lush Lawn

Want to create a lusher lawn? Read these tips from This Old House landscape contractor Roger Cook.
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How to Seed a New Lawn

In this how-to video, This Old House landscape contractor Roger Cook plants a new lawn from seed
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All About Fertilizing: How To Fertilize Your Lawn Effectively

In this how-to video and guide, This Old House landscape contractor Roger Cook discusses proper techniques for feeding a lush, green lawn.