As the snow melts away, impatient homeowners can't wait to begin preening and greening their lawns. Few are keener than Richard Dupuis who devotes at least 90 minutes a week to trimming, fertilizing and tending to the lawn surrounding his Alta Vista home.

"My lawn is an extension of my gardens, it gives the home curb appeal," says the man, who's known around his neighbourhood as 'the Wayne Gretzky of lawn care and gardening.'

"Good lawns make the neighbourhood livable. When you step out of the house a nice lawn stimulates.

"It gives you that happy, good feeling," says the meticulous technology engineer who has kept his corner lot green since 1990.

It may sound like a lot of work to maintain a tiny patch of urban greenery, but this avid gardener notes, lawn care doesn't have to be a battle.

"For me, it is a pastime. It's good, it gets us outdoors," says Mr. Dupuis, who developed his lawn and gardening talents while running a landscaping business as a teenager in his native Sherbrooke, Que. and more recently, by reading gardening books and surfing gardening sites on the web.

The folks that sell fertilizers, grass seed, weed and bug killers and a wide array of lawn tools naturally agree. And they're happy to point out that a healthy lawn has benefits that go beyond making homeowners feel good.

"Having a well-landscaped yard, including your lawn, gardens and trees will easily add five to 10 per cent to the value of your property," says Kevin Weir, marketing manager for Sure-Gro Inc. of Brantford, Ont., maker of a lawn care products that bear the C-I-L Golfgreen, Vigoro and So-Green monikers.

In 2003, the Wall Street Journal's SmartMoney magazine pointed out that: "If you spend five per cent of the value of your home on landscaping, and do it wisely, you might get 150 per cent or more of your money back when you sell."

In addition to being a wise investment, good-looking turf can keep your property cooler, reduce erosion and improve the environment, adds Weir.

"Your lawn gives off moisture and as it does, there is a cooling effect that keeps your yard cooler than asphalt driveways, sidewalks and brick patios.

A good lawn has a cooling effect similar to the air conditioning in an average home."

Weir also points out that lawns, like all plants, absorbs carbon dioxide, returning oxygen to the atmosphere and helping to improve the environment. Now where to start if your goal is to have the best lawn in the neighbourhood, or to reduce greenhouse gases?

1 First off, depending on the size of your lawn, turf experts including Kevin Weir and Douglas Ritchie, vice-president of operations at Ritchie Feed & Seed in Ottawa, suggest you set aside $100 to $150 for fertilizer, seed, topsoil and other incidentals.

You'll need a lawnmower, wheelbarrow, rake, spade, fertilizer spreader and a hose, which will set you back several hundred more dollars, although the wise homeowner will often borrow some of these tools from a neighbour.

2Once the ground is dry and frost-free, get out the rake and remove dead grass, branches, leaves, gravel, pet feces and other debris. This will ensure moisture, air and fertilizer reach the intended destination -- the roots of your grass.

Mr. Dupuis recommends a de-thatching rake -- available at most home improvement stores -- for the job. He routinely removes two large brown bags of crud from his 60-foot (18.2-metre) by 80-foot lot (24.3-metre) every spring, much of which, he points out, breaks down nicely in the family's composter.

3Once daytime temperatures reach 13 to 14-degrees Celsius, it's time to apply the first hit of fertilizer, usually in the first week of May in Ottawa, but possibly later this year due to copious quantities of snow that may keep lawns soft and damp.

Look for a fertilizer that is high in nitrogen -- the first of the three numbers found in large letters on the outside of the bag -- and be sure to use a spreader and follow the instructions on the bag. Too much fertilizer will burn the grass and waste your money.

4If the weather is wet, there's no need to water your lawn, but if the forecast calls for a dry spell, haul out the hose and give your lawn a good soaking to jump-start the fertilizers effectiveness. Your lawn should green up in a matter of days.

5Next on the list is the season's first cutting, likely in mid-May, but sooner if the ground dries up and there is a good mix of rain and warm and sunny days to encourage grass growth.

During the spring, leave your grass 7.5 centimetres tall.

Mr. Dupuis lowers his mower slightly the first couple of times he cuts because the grass grows unevenly and the lower setting ensures uniformity. He uses a mulching lawnmower that slices and dices the cuttings into tiny pieces that are left on the lawn to supplement nitrogen and other nutrients from an early helping of fertilizer.

6If winter has left bare patches on your lawn, now's the time to repair them. Rough up your soil with a rake or shovel, apply seed evenly along with an application of starter fertilizer and cover the seeds with good quality soil or mulch, no deeper than six millimetres.

The key to good growth is to keep the soil damp until the new grass is three centimetres high. New grass should not be cut until it reaches a height of eight centimetres, recommends Weir.

7Once your lawn is green and healthy, expect to fertilize it twice, maybe three more times before the leaves change colour, says Ritchie. Ideal times to fertilize are in mid-June, mid-summer and in late September or early October. The final application will prepare your lawn for -- dare we say it -- the coming winter.

And don't forget about ...

n Aeration is the process of punching seven to 10-centimetre holes in a lawn to open up the soil, allowing water, air and nutrients to reach the roots. Experts recommend it be done every April, particularly on properties where the soil is hard and compacted. Most rental outlets rent motorized aerators: to make the task economical, organize a group of neighbours and do a handful of lawns on the same day.

If weeds become a problem, your best bet is to extract them by the roots individually. That way, you'll ward off major outbreaks and avoid the need to use chemicals that can be harmful to pets, young children and the environment.

"If I get weeds, I take them out a little at a time. It keeps the task manageable," says Mr. Dupuis, who applies a crabgrass control product in early spring.

- Bugs. If grubs, chinch bugs or ants begin chewing up your lawn, a variety of products are available, some in chemical forms that pose environmental risks, others that are fully organic and harmless. Consult your garden centre for advice.

Early detection is the key to preventing extensive turf damage. Watch closely for insect damage (brown, dead patches in the lawn) as the soil temperature warms up in the spring.

If all of this sounds like too much work and expense, remember, a healthy lawn is your first defense against drought, weeds and insects. Build a strong and thick lawn early in the season and there's a good chance you'll avoid extra costs and have the opportunity to spend the rest of the season admiring and enjoying your greenery.

Randy Ray is an Ottawa writer and proud cultivator of a passable front lawn.

DID YOU KNOW ...

- Green makes green: In Ottawa, there are 248,000 single-family homes, semis and townhomes. If the occupants of each of these residences invests $100 in lawn care this year, that's an outlay of nearly $25 million.

- seed or sod? There are three main types of grass: Kentucky Bluegrass, Perennial Ryegrass and Fescue. Kentucky Bluegrass propagates by underground tillers. The other two form individual plants. If you haven't the patience to wait for seed to sprout, then opt for sod. It's more expensive, but delivers immediate results. Again, make sure the ground is loosened and keep the sod wet until it roots. Always select the healthiest sod available.

- you're a millionaire: The average lawn has about three million turf plants.

- HOW TO READ A BAG OF Fertilizer: The three numbers on the fertilizer bag, such as 28-3-6 or 7-7-7, indicate the percentage of nutrients in the fertilizer. The first indicates the percentage of nitrogen, the nutrient responsible for green growth; the second number the amount of phosphorus, which helps root, flower, and fruit growth and the third the amount of Potassium, which is responsible for the overall health of the plant.

n turf the thistle The Canada thistle found in many lawns can, in a single growing season, produce 500 metres of root, equivalent to the length of three-and-a-half Canadian Football League playing fields.

Source Ottawa Citizen