A beautiful lawn in the Spring requires preparation in the Fall
Fall is the best time of year to revive your lawn with its cooler temperatures and ideal growing conditions. There are many lawn care tasks that work best when completed in the fall. These services will make a difference in your lawn and landscape, whether completed by you or saving time (and your back) by having Grass Roots do the work for you.
To-Do List
- Fertilization: The single most important thing you can do for your lawn is to provide it with the proper nutrition by fertilizing regularly. It is the easiest, most effective, and least expensive way to make a real difference in your lawn. Two to three applications starting in the late summer into late fall are ideal. If you only fertilize once a year, the best time to apply is in the fall. Fertilizer helps the lawn recover from summer heat damage and prepares it for next spring.
- Double Core Aeration: Fall is the best time to aerate. Aeration is the process of mechanically removing small plugs of thatch and soil from your lawn. It opens up the soil, reduces compaction, improves drainage, aids root growth and reduces thatch. Aeration allows water, oxygen, and nutrients to enter the soil and reach the roots, making lime and fertilizer treatments more effective. It also helps prepare the soil for seeding, giving you better seed-to-soil contact.
- Over Seeding: This is the process of seeding an already existing lawn that is thinning, weak, damaged, and has bare spots. Tall fescue is a bunch type of grass, it does not spread out horizontally by above or below ground stems. It has a limited ability to repair itself if damaged. A single blade only lives for 40 days. For these reasons, Tall Fescue lawns must be overseeded to fill in bare or thinning spots and create a thick lawn. The new seeds will germinate and grow to fill in the empty patches, creating thicker, stronger turf. Water the seeds right away and continue watering daily until the seeds sprout. Then water every few days as needed.
- Soil Testing: This is the only way you will know your soil’s nutrient status and pH level. Lab results will provide recommendations for nutrients such as nitrogen, boron, lime, etc., if needed, to create the perfect environment for your lawn to thrive.
- Top Dressing: A process of applying a very thin layer of compost or other soil amendments to the surface of the lawn. The material is spread evenly, typically ¼” to ½” thick, then settles down to the existing soil. This improves the quality of the soil at the root zone. Originally performed on golf courses, this practice is becoming popular with homeowners because of the many benefits it offers.
- Fall Clean up: Get your yard looking good and ready for winter. Clean up leaves, sticks, and other debris. Clear dead plants from garden beds. Cut back and divide overgrown perennials. Trim dead and damaged branches from shrubs and trees.
- Mulching: Improves the appearance of your yard by giving it a finished look. Mulch reduces weeds, moderates soil temperature, and slows water loss.
- Fall Planting: Fall is a great time to plant trees, shrubs, bulbs, perennials, containers, and grass seed.
Let Grass Roots help you check a few things off your To-Do List. Please contact us with your questions, or for more information. Also, we have additional information about the list above on our website and our Blog.
Thank you for trusting us with your lawn care.
