Fall Tips

Tip. Your lawn’s success depends on your input as well.
Tip. Cut your grass at a 2-1/2″- 2-3/4″ this time of year.
Tip. It is important that your lawn receives 1″ of water per week.
Tip. Watering amounts vary depending on soil type and precipitation.
Tip. Fall is the best time of year to fertilize your lawn.
Tip. Core Aeration is the single best thing you can do for your lawn.
Tip. If your lawn needs thickening, we recommend overseeding.
Tip. When to slit seed and when to overseed.
Tip. Fall is a great time to seed and establish new turf.
Tip. After seeding, 90% of successful results fall on your follow up.
Tip. Make sure to pick up leaves from your lawn as they fall.
Tip. For the seasons final mow, cut at a height of about 2″ — 2-1/2″.
Tip. Fall is the best time to cut back your perennials.
Tip. Continue to water in the fall, even after a killing frost.
Tip. Fall is also a great time to divide or move my perennials.
Tip. Now is the time to protect your young trees from sun scald.
Tip. Make sure you have put your lawn mower to rest properly.

Remember that we are a team. Your lawn’s success depends on your input as well.

It takes three parts to have a successful yard: 1/3 watering, 1/3 feeding, 1/3 maintenance.

Cut your grass at a 2-1/2″- 2-3/4″ this time off year.

Mower height varies depending on the time of year and the weather. When it is cool (50°-69°) you can cut shorter (2-1/2″-2-3/4″), but remember the longer the grass blade is, the healthier and thicker your lawn will be. Don’t forget, the best weed control is a thick lawn. Go to our request estimate page to be contacted for an estimate.

This time of year it is important that your lawn receives 1″ of water per week.

Mother Nature usually takes care of all the necessary watering this time of year. However, always pay attention to your lawns appearance. If it needs more water, you will know. Mother Nature is not always reliable. Be careful: over watering can create severe disease problems. If you have an underground sprinkler system, please do not leave it on autopilot. Adjust the frequency and the duration when we experience rainy periods. We want to conserve water just as much as we want to protect our lawns from dryness.

Watering amounts vary greatly depending on your soil type and precipitation.

Sandy soils require more frequent and shorter duration watering (every 2-3 days). Clay based soils can be watered for a longer duration less frequently (once to twice a week). Following these guidelines will give you a good foundation on proper watering. However, always pay attention to your lawns appearance, if it needs more water, you will know.

Fall is the best time of year to fertilize your lawn.

Fall fertilization stimulates the growth of roots, sending up new grass plants making the lawn thicker and greener, repairing summers damage as it grows. Fall is also the time your lawn stores up nutrients for the tough winter months ahead. This application provides added nutrients grass plants need to enter into winter in peak condition. Slow release granular fertilizer is recommended and will insure you will have quicker spring green-up. Go to our request estimate page to be contacted for an estimate.

Core Aeration is the single best thing you can do for your lawn each fall.

The healthiest lawns are aerated every year. Core aeration promotes root development and improves your lawns thickness. Reduces thatch, relieves soil compaction and builds disease and drought resistance. Your lawn is a lot like your body. If you get regular exercise, you stay healthier. Core aeration is to your lawn as exercise is to your body. That is why golf courses core aerate each year.

After aeration results:

• Immediately reduced soil compaction.
• Allowing much needed oxygen, nutrients and water to reach the roots.
• Thatch layer begins to decompose faster.
• Encourages roots to move rapidly to the open areas,
• Growing longer and sprouting out more grass plants, which in turn thickens your lawn.

Go to our request estimate page to be contacted for an estimate.

If your lawn needs overall thickening, we recommend overseeding right after core aeration.

It is a perfect time for the seed to find its way into the soil and grow. After aeration, premium quality seed can be applied to your lawn using a rotary spreader. Seeds fall into the holes produced by the aeration and start to grow. Results from this service are new growth and improved lawn thickness. We consistently see excellent results with our clients’ lawns when they follow this extra step each fall.

DID YOU KNOW?

• Only use the highest quality grass seed available. There should be 0% weed seed.
• Make sure you know which seed you need. There are shade and or sunny blends
• Seed emerges in 7-28 days depending on the variety. Be patient, water and it will come.
• Holes of an aeration will close after approximately 7 days thus giving the seed the bed it needs to germinate.
• We recommend overseeding your lawn every 1-3 years depending on its condition.

Go to our request estimate page to be contacted for an estimate.

When to slit seed and when to overseed

Slit Seeding is the process of planting grass seed below the surface of the soil. A row of spinning metal blades cut rows into the ground, much like a farmer uses a disk to prepare his field to accept the crop seed. This service is required in areas that are extremely thin or bare. Overseeding is a service performed after core aeration. Premium quality seed is applied to your lawn with a rotary spreader. Seeds fall into the holes produced by the aeration and start to grow. Results from this service are new growth and improved lawn thickness. Holes of an aeration will close after approximately 7 days thus giving the seed the bed it needs to germinate. This service is required in lawns that are in need of a general thickening, but are overall in good condition. We recommend overseeding your lawn every 1-3 years depending on its condition. Go to our request estimate page to be contacted for an estimate.

Fall is a great time to seed and establish new turf.

Fall is the best time to establish new turf (August through early October). Weeds are generally not a major issue during this time of year and the temperatures are typically lower. Once the seed is planted, it emerges in 14-28 days. This allows plenty of time for growth and then dormancy before winter. In the spring, the new grass emerges and continues its process of thickening and maturing. By June, you should see a significant difference in your lawns density. Go to our request estimate page to be contacted for an estimate.

After seeding, 90% of successful results fall on your follow up input.

Please follow all the recommendations below to ensure positive results.

• Mower height should be at 2-1/2″ — 3″. Do not bag your lawn when mowing the first two times after seeding service.
• When renovation service was provided, do not mow the seeded areas. This allows the new growth to emerge undisturbed. Once the new growth is tall enough to cut, begin cutting at this point and continue as usual with your existing turf.
• When overseeding service was provided, mow at your normal weekly intervals. Please remember it is very important to not bag the first two times after overseeding was done.
• It is vitally important that you water about 1-3 times per day to keep your lawn moist the first 4 weeks. Water for 15-20 min. per time, just enough to keep the seed in the ground moist at all times. If it rains, skip watering until the next day. You will know by your lawn’s appearance if you need to be more frequent. Go to our request estimate page to be contacted for an estimate.

Make sure to pick up leaves from your lawn as they fall.

It is especially important to continue mowing weekly through the fall. If you allow the leaves to settle on your grass for more than 7 days, they stick to the ground and smother the grass plants oxygen and sunlight, which causes undo stress and potential death to the grass plant. If you use your mower, you can mulch or bag up the leaves with ease. Keeping up on it will insure you spend less time picking up huge accumulations of leaves. Go to our request estimate page to be contacted for an estimate.

When mowing for the last time of the year, cut at a height of about 2″ — 2-1/2″.

This will insure that your lawn is ready to stand up in the spring. Leaving the lawn long through the winter will cause the grass to be flattened and will be very stressful as it begins growing in the sprung. Besides, it is much easier to rake a lawn that has been cut short. Go to our request estimate page to be contacted for an estimate.

Fall is the best time to cut back your perennials.

Most perennials are cut back after the first hard frost in the fall. This usually occurs in October. It is important to clean off remove all plant debris after the frost to help minimize soil-borne diseases. Go to our request estimate page to be contacted for an estimate.

Continue to water in the fall, even after a killing frost.

Make sure your perennials stay well watered until the ground freezes. Quite often we have several dry weeks late in October. If the soil is dry an inch or two below the surface, give the area a thorough soaking.

Fall is also a great time to divide or move my perennials.

Many perennials can be divided or moved in fall. The main rule of thumb is if a perennial blooms in spring or early summer, it can be divided or moved in the fall. If the plant blooms in late summer or fall, it is best divided or moved in spring. There are a few exceptions. Irises and daylilies prefer to be divided in August and a few plants with tap roots don’t ever want to be disturbed. Go to our request estimate page to be contacted for an estimate.

Now is the time to protect your young trees from sun scald.

In the winter the sun reflects off the snow and warms the thin bark and it begins to thaw. As the sun sets, the temperatures drop, refreezing the plant tissue. Young trees can experience vertical splits in the bark from this stressful freeze/thaw cycle. In October or November you need to wrap the trunks of susceptible trees to prevent splitting. We recommend the inexpensive neutral brown colored wrap that comes in rolls. Simply wrap around the base of the trunk, working your way up to the lowest branches. Use black electrical tape to secure the wrap. This tape is expandable and stretches throughout the winter. DON’T USE DUCT TAPE, it is very restrictive and does not stretch. We do not recommend the plastic tubes or plastic wrap because they can leave too much of the trunk exposed. Go to our request estimate page to be contacted for an estimate.

Make sure you have put your lawn mower to rest properly.

Give your lawn mower a good season end cleaning and tune up. It worked hard for you this year. Show it some appreciation and it’ll work hard for you again next year too. Drain all the excess gas out of the tank and run it until it shuts off. Be sure that a blade sharpening and balancing is included in your tune up.