Spring is coming. And if you’re already eyeing those garden beds from the kitchen window, good news: right now, before the warm weather really locks in, is the single best time to get ahead of weeds for the entire growing season.

Most families wait until dandelions are ankle-high before doing anything about it. By then, you’re playing catch-up all summer. A few hours of work in early spring, though, and your yard will practically manage itself through June, July, and August. Here’s how to make that happen.

Start with Winter Cleanup

Before anything else, clear out what winter left behind. Leaf piles, broken sticks, dead debris from garden beds, and all that soggy organic matter that accumulated since October. It’s not glamorous work, but it matters more than most people realize.

One note on raking: go easy. Rob Palmer of Lawn Squad says you should not aggressively rake your lawn in the spring. “Raking can damage the softer turf tissue and disturb the soil, making it an ideal home for weeds to germinate,” Palmer said. So yes, clean things up, but don’t attack your lawn like it owes you money. A light hand is the right call here.

Trim back dead leaves from perennial plants and shrubs while you’re at it. The cool air makes this kind of physical work actually enjoyable before temperatures climb.

Pre-Emergent Herbicides Are Your Best Friend

This is the move most suburban homeowners skip, and they pay for it all season long. Pre-emergent herbicides work by stopping weed seeds before they ever push a root into your soil. Miss the window, and they do nothing. At all.

Wait until soil temperatures hit around 50 degrees Fahrenheit. Then grab a broadcast spreader and apply granular pre-emergent to dry grass. Water the lawn within a day or two. That’s what activates the product and pushes it into the top layer of soil where weed seeds are waiting to germinate.

“As the weed first germinates and emerges from the seed, the new plant roots begin to take up the pre-emergent product in this barrier layer, killing the plant before it can grow any larger,” Palmer said.

One application, done right, protects you for the rest of the growing season. That’s a deal worth taking.

Refresh Your Mulch

For garden beds, mulch is the most practical, family-friendly, zero-chemical solution you’ve got. A fresh 2 to 3-inch layer blocks sunlight from reaching weed seeds sitting in the soil underneath. No sunlight, no sprouting. Simple.

Don’t go thicker than 3 inches, though. Too much mulch creates soggy conditions that lead to mold and rot. Your plants won’t thank you for that. Stick to the 2 to 3-inch sweet spot, and your beds will look clean, stay moist, and fight off weeds all spring and summer.

This is a great Saturday project to pull the kids into. Wheelbarrow duty is surprisingly popular with kids under ten. Not a bad way to burn some energy while actually getting the yard ready.

Fill In the Bare Spots

Bare patches of lawn are basically welcome mats for weeds. Sunlight hits the soil directly, and weed seeds take advantage fast. The fix is overseeding: spreading grass seed over thin or bare areas using a broadcast or drop spreader.

Thick, healthy grass competes with weeds for nutrients and blocks sunlight from reaching the soil surface. Turfgrass that fills in properly doesn’t give weeds much room to operate. Overseeding in early spring, before it gets hot, gives new grass the best chance to establish roots before summer stress kicks in.

The Payoff Is Real

Here’s what all of this adds up to: a summer where you’re actually enjoying your yard instead of pulling weeds out of it every weekend. Your kids can run through the grass. You can host the block party without apologizing for the dandelions. The garden beds stay neat without constant intervention.

A lot of this guidance comes from reporting by Family Handyman, which put together a solid early-spring checklist worth bookmarking for next year too.

Start this weekend. Soil temperatures across most of the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic are climbing right toward that 50-degree mark, which means the window for pre-emergent herbicide application is opening up right now. A few hours outside, a little planning, and your yard gets the whole summer off to the right start.