6 Simple Ways to Prepare Your Lawn For Fall
As the weather begins to cool down, many homeowners neglect their lawns, but there are some simple steps you can take that will help set your lawn up for success in the spring before winter has even begun.
- Continue mowing your grass until it stops growing. For the last mow of the season, cut your grass between 1.5 and 2 inches, which is just a little bit shorter than you should have been cutting it during the spring and summer months.
- When the leaves first begin to fall, it can actually be beneficial to mow right over them. Leaves provide a great source of nutrients for your lawn. However, once they become abundant, it’s time to start raking and dethatching – getting rid of dead plant material from the surface of your lawn.
- Aerate your lawn to loosen compacted soil and remove any excess thatch. Soil compaction is one of the main causes of unhealthy grass because it prevents air, water and nutrients from being properly circulated through the soil.
- It’s important to fertilize even when your grass looks brown and dead. The soil is still working to absorb nutrients and moisture to make it through the winter. Applying fertilizer in the fall delivers nutrients which allow your grass to grow deep roots now while keeping any excess nutrients on reserve for spring.
- Early fall is a great time to overseed your lawn since too much heat in the summer can impede grass growth. There is also plenty of sunlight since the trees are beginning to shed their leaves and diseases that attack the seedlings are less active in the colder months. Be sure to continue watering your lawn after you add seed.
- Remove weeds and any remnants of dead plants. Leaving dead plants in your garden can attract harmful insects and promote the spread of disease in the winter. With perennials, cut away any dead leaves, stems and flowers. You can also mulch before winter to help protect your garden.
Although it might seem like a lot of work during months when you really hope to be getting a break from the landscaping, it can save you time and energy in the spring when you want to be enjoying your lawn. If you’d rather defer to the experts all together, Moscarino offers a number of landscape maintenance services year-round. If you’d like more information, fill out our contact form or call us at 440-236-9000.
