I bet you’re beginning to get excited about the fact that soon you will be able to stop cutting your grass for the year. Finally, you will have a break from the long hours spent out in your lawn. Wrong. The next four to five weeks could be the most important weeks in preparation for the health and appearance of your lawn for next spring.
Aerating will soon be in full swing for cool season grasses, like fescue, lawns. Aerating loosens the soil, which in North Georgia is generally compacted clay, and makes room for grass roots to spread out and take hold, but also allows easier access for water and fertilizer to soak into the soil and nourish your lawn.
Speaking of fertilizer, let’s talk food.
IF you are going to re-seed or inter-seed, and now is the best time for fescue, you will want to add nutrients that promote that starting growth. If you will not be seeding any this fall you can wait a few weeks, but you will want to add some winterizer to your lawn. Winterizer prepares your turf for winter. It will promote stronger roots and will prepare it for a better spring.
Soon you probably are going to need to begin raking (or quit raking and use a blower to make that job easier.) Some people will wait until every last leaf has fallen off their trees, but this is no good. Even a light layer of leaves and debris could cause mold and other diseases to form. This could make the lawn very unhealthy or even kill it. By the way, raking leaves on newer and younger grass is a definite no-no. You could really damage that new grass.
The best thing you can do is become educated to what your particular grass needs. Whether you have Fescue, Bermuda, Zoysia or some other grass, it has specific needs that you should remember. Figure out what its needs are and get on a schedule. You can do it yourself or you can contract with a lawn company who will remember for you.
Here’s one last tip for you. Are you constantly looking at your neighbor’s lawn and wondering how it is that they get it to look so beautiful? Step away from the computer and your iPhone and go knock on his door and ask. He’ll LOVE to tell you all about it! You’ll learn out how to promote the health of your lawn, but even more importantly, you’ll promote the health of the neighborhood.
