Lawn · Framingham, MA
Spring clean-up checklist for Framingham yards: 8 jobs from April to May
Spring has a short window and a long list. Here is the order that works, with the City and state rules that touch it.
The short answer
- The City's spring leaf pickup has been in April. Check the Sanitation Calendar.
- Crabgrass preventer timing is around the first week of May, before forsythia flowers drop.
- Mulch goes down after the soil warms, once beds are cleaned and edged.
The 8 spring jobs, in the order they happen
- Pick up winter debris, sticks and plow damage.
- Rake out matted leaves, bagged in paper for April pickup.
- Cut back last year's perennials and grasses.
- Edge and weed the beds.
- First mow once the grass is actively growing.
- Crabgrass preventer around the first week of May.
- Mulch once the soil warms.
- Start up and check the irrigation after the last hard freeze.
The crabgrass window, and who may apply it
UMass ties crabgrass preventer to forsythia: apply before its flowers drop, about the first week of May. It is pesticide work, so anyone applying it for hire needs an MDAR license.
Why spring fertilizer waits for March
The state fact sheet pauses plant nutrients on turf from December 1 to March 1. Spring feeding starts after that, on ground that isn't frozen.
Spring lists fill up early. Getting on one in winter beats calling in May.
Sources
- City of Framingham, Curbside Leaf and Brush Collection, read October 31, 2026
- UMass Extension, Annual grassy weed control for lawns, read October 31, 2026
- MDAR, Pesticide Examination and License Bulletin, read October 31, 2026
- MDAR, Plant Nutrient Regulations for Turf and Lawns, read October 31, 2026