Each week, Spring-Green’s lawn care expert, Harold Enger, publishes lawn care tips on Spring-Green’s Ask the Expert blog. This week’s feature is all about getting ready for the Fall. Fall lawn care is an important part of ensuring your lawn is healthy and beautiful season after season. Below find tips on the best ways to care for a lawn in the fall, specific to northern and southern regions.
Northern Areas
Aerate your lawn
Fall is the time when a lawn
naturally repairs itself from the ravages of summer stresses. You can help this along by aerating to open up your lawn to allow more air, water and nutrients to reach the root zone. Lawn aeration will also help reduce thatch problems.
Seed
Most cool season grasses take a beating during the summer and will die due to heat and dry conditions. Fall is the best time to reseed cool-season grasses. If you aerate your lawn first, the seed will have a better chance of survival.
Fertilize
Lawns are beginning to store food and transferring energy downwards to build a stronger root system. Applying a fall fertilizer will promote a stronger root system and healthier turf.
To rake or not to rake?
The answer to this is one of personal preference. I choose to grind up the leaves that fall on my lawn instead of raking them up and putting them in paper bags that I have to purchase. Research has shown that grinding up leaves and leaving them on your lawn does not contribute to the thatch layer and can actually add to the organic content on your soil.
Control Weeds
There are numerous weeds that start to germinate in the fall, such as dandelions, some thistles and Shepherd’s Purse. Applying a weed control in the fall will lead to fewer weeds in the spring.
Southern Areas
Fertilize
Avoid using high nitrogen fertilizers in the fall. You have to allow time for warm season grasses to harden-off before they go into dormancy. Apply a fertilizer that is higher in potassium (the last number on a fertilizer bag analysis) in the fall.
Control Weeds
As with northern areas, there are numerous winter annual weeds that germinate in the fall. Get these under control before they have a chance to get established in your lawn.
To rake or not to rake?
Even though you may be in an area that does not receive much snow fall, there are still trees that will lose their leaves. Grind them up with your mower instead of raking them up. You will be adding beneficial organic material to the soil.
