Fall Lawn & Yard Care Guide

Fall Clean-up Essentials

If you don't have much time on your hands, a leaf blower can dramatically reduce the time required to rake up fallen leaves. Some blowers offer both a blowing and vacuum function that will neatly bag your leaves after you have blown them into a pile.

If time is no object, make your yard clean up a family affair! Kids will be entertained for hours if you turn an otherwise time consuming chore into a game that's fun for everyone. Raking and manually bagging leaves is more work, but a great way to get out and enjoy the crisp fall weather together. After all, playing in a pile of fallen leaves is a right of passage every kid should enjoy!

Mulching leaves provides a natural fertilizer for your lawn, and protection from frosty weather for your budding plants in the early spring. Not only does mulching save money in the long run, it is also healthy for the yard and the environment.

A composter is useful for yard cleanup and year round for disposing of your organic trimmings from the kitchen. Making your own compost is economical, eco friendly, and healthy for your plants. For more eco friendly lawn and garden care tips, take a look at this handy guide.

Lawn Preparation

 A green and healthy lawn requires maintenance all summer long, which can quickly be rendered worthless if you don't prepare it properly for the winter. These fall tips will help to give your grass all it needs to survive the cold season:

• Perforate the earth with an aerator to facilitate fertilizer penetration into the soil.
• Around mid-September, spread a potassium and phosphorus rich fertilizer (make sure it is low in azote) to help your grass resist the cold.
• When you notice growth slowing down, change the height of your lawnmower's blade from 7.5cm to 3.5cm.
• Cut grass until temperatures are low enough that it stops growing.

If you are just starting your landscaping, Autumn is the optimum time to lay sod and plant grass seed.

Fall Bed Maintenance & Planting

Beds will require clean up in preparation for the new growing season, and bulbs can be planted at the same time:

• Remove weeds from flower beds
• Clean up and remove annuals
• Wrap less hardy perennials
• Plant bulbs

Fall is also a good time to move potted plants into the house but make sure you do so when indoor and outdoor temperatures are similar. Also, carefully check that you aren't moving any insects inside with the plant.

Fall Storage

Garden sheds are a godsend for storage during the winter. They tend to act as a hold all for all summer gardening equipment and in many cases, for sporting goods and patio furniture too. Floor space is often limited but storage space and organization increases dramatically with the addition of a few shelves and hooks.