As September rolls along (can you believe it’s halfway over already?) and a hint of fall starts to appear, it’s time to start thinking about fall lawn chores to maintain and improve your turfgrass this winter and next season. Here are a few tips on things to check off your list this fall to help maintain a beautiful lawn throughout the seasons’ change.
First and foremost, it’s not time to put your mower away quite yet. Warm season turfgrass won’t go dormant until our first hard freeze, so it’s still growing- even if it’s slowed down quite a bit. Be sure to mow to the correct grass height for the species you have, as preferred height ranges from 0.5” to 3”. Cutting grass too short can obstruct or damage the root system of the turf which makes it more susceptible to stress, but keeping grass too long can introduce a host of disease and fungal issues.
In addition to mowing, be sure to remove any leaves, pine needles, thatch, or anything else that’s accumulated on your lawn. Anything that blocks out sunlight and traps moisture can kill turfgrasses and contribute to disease and insect issues. Whether you rake leaves and other organic matter gradually throughout the fall or all at once near the end, your goal is the same: prevent a layer of leaves from killing your grass!
Once you’ve mowed and raked, consider aerating your soil, particularly if you have heavy clay content. Aeration does not need to happen every year but can be done every 3-4 years. This process helps reduce compaction, break up thatch, and improve oxygen, nutrient, and water absorption by your lawn. Typically, you should aerate before applying any fall fertilizer or seed.
Two more fall chores for lawn care are overseeding and fertilizing. You may choose to overseed cool-season ryegrass into warm season bermudagrass, which maintains a pretty green lawn throughout the cooler months. This will require you to mow through the winter, however, and many folks aren’t interested in doing so. Whether you choose to overseed or not, be sure to apply an appropriate fertilizer after you’ve mowed for the last time. Select a fertilizer with a lower amount of quick-release nitrogen and look for higher potassium and phosphorus to help improve grass vigor as it heads into (and back out of) dormancy.
A final chore to complete this fall is weed control. We are in the prime time of year to put out pre-emergent herbicides to reduce weed pressure of winter annuals like bluegrass, henbit, and chickweed. Pre-emergent herbicides lay on the soil and prevent the germination of weeds as they try to grow. If you miss the window to apply them, you will need to rely on spot-treatments of post-emergent herbicides or manual removal of weeds this winter to ensure a healthy lawn in the spring.
If you have fall lawn care questions, please let us know at uge3181@uga.edu
