What’s the key to a healthy lawn in the spring when the ground thaws and landscape comes back to life? It’s continued maintenance in the fall! While many homeowners focus on the leaves during the season change, it’s important to prep your lawn for Michigan’s notorious winter. Here are some tips on getting ahead and achieving a beautiful lawn come spring-time:
- Pull weeds: This is not exclusive to fall and important all year round, but it can lead to less weeds in the spring when growth begins again.
- Overseed and fertilize: Seed dead or bare spots and overseed your entire lawn to get dense, plush grass that is vibrant in color. Additionally, fertilizer should be laid mid-September for cold-winter climates and mid-October for mild-winter climates.
- Continue Cutting Your Grass: It’s important to keep it at 2 to 2.5 inches tall, as more than 3 inches will cause it to mat, and lead to winter lawn disease problems such as snow mold. If you cut shorter than 2 inches, you’ll limit the ability to make and store food for growth in the spring and encourage weed growth.
- Rake and Remove Debris: Raking and removing your leaves in the yard may seem like common sense, but it’s important to understand the damage it can cause to your yard. Aside from a healthier lawn, built up leaves that are left to freeze and unfreeze can leave room for bacteria to grow and release forms of phosphate and nitrates.
- Prune Plants: Cut most perennials back close to the ground.
While this won’t guarantee a lush, green lawn when winter ends, following this guide will help you achieve the best lawn on the block and save time, money, and energy come spring. Of course, you can always contact Serene Landscape Group and take part in one of our lawn care programs. We are here to help!
These tips originally appeared in “A Seasonal Guide: Fall Lawn and Landscape Care” on www.loveyourlandscape.org. You can read the full article here.