While we Canadians usually associate spring as the time to do a large clean up, autumn is probably the more important season for your lawn. Winter is the hardest time on your grass, and fall-care often decides your yard’s success or failure for next year. Our Calgary landscapers and expert yard maintainers have had many years to observe which autumn chores truly help a yard to flourish come spring and which are less important, like aeration. Here is our list of fundamental fall yard maintenance.
Mowing the Lawn.
As we go into fall, make sure you aren’t cutting your grass too short. You’ll want to trim off about ⅓ of the grass every time you mow. That’ll keep it looking good without triggering the grass to throw too many resources into growing the blade instead of working on roots.
Reseeding.
If there are bare patches on your lawn, you’ll want to reseed sometime in the next couple months as well. It’s best if you can reseed when they days are starting to cool off, but before it snows. Late august to mid september is usually optimal. To help your lawn have a thicker, healthier look next spring, you can also seed the entire yard.
Dethatching.
If your lawn has a thatch layer deeper than a ½ inch, it’s too thick. The dense, thick thatch will prevent nutrients and water from getting down into the soil and to your lawn’s root system. Every fall, you should evaluate how deep the thatch is and use your rake to remove excess. In general, you’ll probably need to dethatch every other year. This is because a small layer of thatch provides important insulation from the winter.
Weed & Feed.
Just before the snow is here to stay, it’s a good idea to feed your lawn. You’ll want to choose a fertilizer that promotes healthy root system growth. It’s also a good idea to apply a weed killer. The double whammy of your herbicide and Calgary winter should be enough to wipe out all the weeds — at least for a while.
Mulch the Leaves.
As the leaves start falling and blowing through your lawn, save yourself the back strain of raking them up. Instead, use the mulching setting on your lawn mower. Your grass will love the extra nutrients, and it’s far less work. If you have numerous trees, be sure to the mulch layer is never more than a few inches thick. And remember that pine needles are acidic and burn your lawn. It’s a good idea to rake them up for compost during your clean up.
Your to do list for a fall clean up can seem a bit overwhelming, but we promise that putting the time in now will help ensure your yard looks great next spring. If scheduling the time to do all these chores yourself before the winter comes is looking impossible, our team of expert Calgary landscapers is here to help. Give us a call, and we’ll be right over!
