Fall Lawn Care Tips
You wouldn’t think November would be the time to start thinking about next year’s lawn, but it is. Even though most grasses here in Jacksonville begin to go dormant for the winter, fall is the ideal time to nurture your lawn. When the temperatures start to drop, and rain is more prevalent, grassroots develop better now than during summer’s heat.
Just so you don’t get bored without too much yard work to take care of, we have come up with a list of essential fall lawn care tips to keep your yard looking beautiful come spring.
- Don’t stop mowing. Yes, you won’t need to mow as often, but grasses here in the south still grow during the cooler months. Continue to cut your grass until you are sure it has completely stopped growing. Once you do, don’t forget to winterize your mower, so it’s ready and waiting for you with the onslaught of spring growth.
- Continue to water. You’ll still have days when irrigation is needed. Long periods of dry spells in the fall are still as harmful to your grass as throughout the summer. Keep tabs on your rain gauge, and if your lawn is not receiving at least one inch of moisture throughout the week, turn on the sprinklers.
- Keep it debris free. Leaves, pine straw, and lawn debris block out the sunlight that is vital for keeping a lawn healthy. Layers of leaves will retain moisture and can lead to the growth of lawn fungi. Rake your yard often to keep it disease-free.
- It’s time to aerate. It the hot Florida sun, lawns will typically compact as they bake in the summer heat. Fall is the ideal time to use aeration to loosen up the soil, allowing nutrients to reach the grassroots.
- Fall is the ideal time to add much-needed fertilizer. Waiting until your lawn is not stressed and has been properly prepped to receive new nutrients will make for a healthy spring-fresh lawn. Please note: it’s best to aerate your lawn before adding nitrogen-rich fertilizer so it can make it to the grassroots quickly.
- Fill in bare spots. It’s normal for patches of grass to die off during the stress of summer. Fall makes the perfect time to reseed those bare spots. It is essential to loosen the soil before reseeding so the seeds can penetrate the hard ground and germinate properly.
- Check for unwanted visitors. Pests that make their home in your lawn can cause serious problems once your grass starts growing again. Walk your yard thoroughly, looking for any signs of grubs and armyworms. While you’re at it, look for weeds that can invade your lawn just as quickly as pests.
- Lastly, keep these fall lawn care tips in mind.
- If you fertilize too close to winter, the soil will be too cool to take in the nutrients.
- If you aerate when it’s too hot out, the removed soil plugs will dry out, not allowing the grassroots area to expand.
- If you reseed and not water adequately, seeds will not retain enough moisture to germinate properly.
Use these fall lawn care tips to help plan for a beautiful yard next spring.
If you are looking for quality outdoor power equipment and/or lawn mower repair in the Jacksonville, Florida area, Power Equipment Sales Corp. provides both professional and residential equipment to match all of your lawn and garden equipment needs. Conveniently located on the corner of Hamilton Street and St. Johns Avenue in Jacksonville, our service department carries a full line of OEM replacement parts to keep you up and running. Visit our showroom at 4545 St. Johns Ave, Jacksonville, FL 32210, or call us at 904.387.1512 with any questions. Be sure to visit our “Factory Promotions” page for the latest manufactures sales and specials available.