6 Essential Fall Lawn Care Steps for Calgary Homeowners
Most homeowners focus on their lawns during the spring and summer months. But did you know that fall grass care is essential for maintaining a lush, green, healthy yard throughout the winter?
Following these essential fall lawn care tips will keep your grass in tip-top shape when spring rolls around again.
Why is Fall Lawn Care Important?
Even though temperatures are dropping, your lawn prepares for growth throughout fall and winter. During autumn, your lawn naturally absorbs as much energy, moisture, and nutrients as possible to survive and thrive when things become dormant. Tending to your lawn throughout the fall ensures it absorbs essential benefits for the best spring growth.
6 Tips For Successful Fall Lawn Maintenance
The snow melts away, and you’re excited for spring. You look out your window and see…..brown, dead grass. Not the image of renewal you hoped for. The following fall maintenance tips will improve your odds of finding a healthy lawn you’re proud of.
Tip #1: Clear Your Lawn of Debris
Most people associate autumn with falling, colourful leaves. Although they’re fun to play in, they aren’t good for your grass. Leaving them and any other debris on the lawn, such as tools, furniture, or toys, blocks lights and traps moisture, potentially leading to a fatal knockout for your turf.
As soon as leaves start falling, autumn is calling, meaning it’s time to rake or blow them off your lawn as often as possible. Don’t forget to tackle corners where leaves tend to pile up; otherwise, you’ll find dead grass under that soggy, decaying mat come spring.
Tip #2: Loosen the Soil
Aerating your lawn allows it to breathe and helps nutrients reach the grassroots, keeping it healthy and green for summer. Yearly aeration prevents soil from becoming compacted and covered with thick layers of roots, debris, and stems that block water, nutrients, and oxygen from reaching the soil. After aerating, wait for one to two days, then overseed and fertilize.
Wondering when to aerate your lawn in Alberta? Speak to the experts at Scott’s Sod to figure out the best aerating, seeding, fertilizing, and watering schedule for your Calgary lawn.
Tip #3: Overseed
The key to rich, green, thick grass in the spring is overseeding in the fall — spreading seed over your existing lawn to fill bare spots, thicken grass, and improve its overall health. Because grass is typically at its thinnest between late August and early October, the seed has an easier time reaching the soil and germinating before the cold winter months.
Tip #4: Fertilize
Fall fertilizing helps protect grass roots from freezing and gives your lawn enough energy to bounce back healthy in the spring. Use a slow-release granular fertilizer of 24-0-10, nitrogen, phosphorous, and potassium, respectively. Potassium is crucial as it helps with root growth, drought tolerance, disease protection, and cold resistance. Do a soil test to know how much nutrients your lawn actually requires.
Tip #5: Water
If your area doesn’t see much rain, water your lawn every 3-4 days to prevent it from drying out. Provide at least 1” of water each time to ensure a proper moisture level before winter.
Tip #6: Continue Mowing
Your grass grows right up until the first hard frost. Continue mowing your lawn throughout the fall, ideally keeping it between 2.5 -3” in height. If it gets too long, you risk fungi growth like snow mould; too short restricts the root system and impedes its ability to withstand cold and dryness.
Rather Leaf the Fall Clean Up to Professionals?
If you’re looking for fall lawn care services in Calgary, turn to Scott’s Sod — landscaping and lawn maintenance in Airdrie and Calgary — to take the guesswork out of maintaining a lush, beautiful lawn, no matter the season.
