Mold Prevention Maintenance for Home Grounds

Drainage

Make sure that ground adjacent to all exterior walls slopes away from the foundation. Without proper drainage moving water away from the foundation, water can seep into your basement or crawlspace and create a number of problems.
Make sure that discharge from downspouts is directed away from the foundation and is free to flow "downstream". Splash blocks are OK if the ground slopes away from the house but discharge may need to be piped underground to a discharge point downgrade.
Make sure that discharge from sump pumps and perimeter foundation drains is directed well away and downstream from the structure.
Inspect the outdoor deck connection to the house. This is major source of water intrusion that often goes unnoticed. This connection should be flashed and have sufficient space between the ledger board and the deck boards to allow drainage away from the house.
Call a landscaper or a weatherproofing firm if you can't figure out how to move water away from your house. One of the keys to drainage is having soil that doesn't absorb moisture. If the soil around the foundation is expansive (a clay that absorbs moisture), replace it with backfill material consisting of soils or gravels that do not expand when wet.
Inspect drainage during a heavy rain to observe the water path from the house.
Make sure that surface water is prevented from entering your garage.

Water your plants, not your house.
Redirect lawn sprinklers so they do not wet the siding, windows, decks or foundation walls.
If the sprinkler system draws from a well, it maybe necessary to treat the water to remove, iron, manganese and calcium to prevent staining and calcium deposits.

Plant shrubbery far enough from foundation walls, decks, porches and other structures so that at least 12" of clear space remains between the shrub and the structure at maturity.
Large shrubs or vegetation may need to be moved to maintain proper spacing.
Make sure they are not blocked or impeded.