Six Tips for Fall Lawn Care
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- Watering
- Leaves and Debris
- Blade Sharpness
- Fertilize
- Aeration
- Weed Control
This article outlines steps you can take to maintain your lawn this fall.
Watering
Turf grass requires about 1 to 1 1/2 inches of water to maintain its health and lush green appearance. During the summer, our sprinklers and irrigation systems seem to run constantly. The arrival of fall typically brings an increase in rainfall, providing some relief to the water bill. Even though rainfall increases, it is important to monitor rainfall amounts and adjust the amount applied to ensure your lawn is getting the water it needs. Paying attention to seasonal variations in rainfall will also prevent overwatering. Maintaining the correct watering amount will prepare your lawn for the dormant season that follows.
Leaves and Debris
Fall is the time of year when homeowners see an increase in the amount of leaves and tree debris in their lawns. Turf grass, like all plants, requires sunlight. Piles of leaves prevents sunlight from reaching your lawn. This lack of light can damage your lawn. It is important to remove this debris before damage occurs. If your property has few mature trees and minimal amounts of leaf litter, using your mower on the mulch setting can covert this litter into free fertilizer for your lawn. Chopping up leaves into tiny pieces makes them easier to compost naturally and allows the sunlight to reach your lawn. However, if you have more leaf debris than mulching with your mower can handle, you will have to grab the rake and the leaf blower. While few of us enjoy leaf removal, it is a necessary step in maintaining the health of our lawns. The Mower Shop offers tune up kits for Echo blowers. These blower tune up kits will ensure that your blower is ready for leaf season. SHOP OUR HANDHELD TUNE UP KITS
Dull Blades
Our mowers work hard for us all spring and summer. After multiple months of use, hitting the occasional stick and rock, the blades may become dull. To ensure the best cut quality, blades need to be sharp. Sharp blades cut the grass cleanly. Dull blades shred the grass leading to a rough cut appearance, and increasing the likeliness of turf diseases. Fall is the perfect time to check the sharpness of your blades, finishing the cutting season with the best quality of cut your mower can deliver. There are two options available to maintain blade sharpness. The easiest way is to replace your existing blade with a new blade. The edge that comes on a new blade is the longest lasting. Having your blade sharpened is slightly more economical, but the newly sharpened edge will not last as long. A detailed article addressing mower blade sharpness can be found here. The Mower Shop offers replacement blades for all of the mowers we stock, as well as other popular models of mowers. SHOP OUR BLADE KITS
Fertilize
While leaf removal is typically the primary focus of fall lawn care, fertilizing your turf grass should not be overlooked. Fertilizing your lawn with the seasonally appropriate fertilizer will help your turf maintain its year round health. Specific fall blend fertilizer stimulates continued grass blade root growth, preparing your lawn for the winter ahead. Many times, fall blended fertilizer contains a weed control element that addresses various species of weeds that continue to grow until the first frost. Feeding your lawn in the fall will provide it with the energy it needs when the growing season starts the following spring.
Aeration
Aeration it the process of making holes in the hard to ease soil compaction, and increase nutrient, water, and oxygen flow to to the roots of your turf grass. Currently, the most popular method of aeration is performed with a core aerator. Core aerators sized for most homeowner lawns are typically the size of a 21″ lawn mower. Available at most rental equipment stores, core aerators make quick work of pulling plugs of soil from your turf. The voids created by the aerator establish a clear path for the nutrients, oxygen, and water that helps maintain the health of your lawn. Many times, neighbors coordinate the rental of an aerator over a weekend, so everyone can aerate their lawns for the price of one weekend rental. After aeration is a perfect time to apply a fall season fertilizer application.
Weed Control
While weed growth is a battle during spring and summer, weeds continue to grow up until the first frost. If you did not achieve a complete victory in the battle against weeds in your turf grass, fall provides the opportunity to attack weeds on a different front. During the summer, herbicides attack the top growth of broad leaf species. During the fall, weeds focus their energy on developing their roots. Herbicides applied in the fall attack weeds during this root growth period, eradicating them, or weakening the root system to make them more likely to die over the winter.
Fall is a great time to spend outdoors. Performing these lawn care tasks will help your lawn look its best and stay its healthiest.
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