5 Fall Tips for a Weed-Free Lawn

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Many lawn weeds are quite hardy, thriving especially well when the lawn enters winter dormancy. Weeds can use the fall season to take root before winter, and then the weeds will really take off in late winter and early spring when the grass is still dormant. Taking steps to eradicate all weeds in the fall can mean less weed pressure to deal with the following year.  

1. Improve Soil Aeration

Poorly aerated soil becomes hard and dense. Lawn grasses won't root well in dense soil, but many weeds have long taproots that can root just fine. The result is that weeds will invade areas where the soil is no longer suited to the more fibrous grass roots. Your lawn service can perform a core aeration, a process of removing plugs of soil in order to open up the ground to allow for better grass growth. 

2. Mulch Bare Areas

Fall lawn cleanup often includes removing dead annuals and cutting back dormant perennials in the flower beds dotted around the landscape. If these areas are then left bare, weeds may invade during the winter season. After clearing your garden beds have a 2 to 3-inch layer of mulch laid down. The mulch will inhibit weed growth in your bare beds, and it helps them look nice over the winter months. 

3. Apply a Fall Treatment

Many weedy plants spend the fall months absorbing nutrients and growing strong in order to survive winter. Applying a broadleaf herbicide at this time will compromise winter nutrient storage and the plants will be too weak to survive winter, assuming they even survive the treatment. If you have a lot of weeds, your lawn service may recommend two treatments a few weeks apart to ensure the weeds die.

4. Mow Appropriately Low

A common fall lawn care mistake is to mow the grass very low at the end of the season. This may look nice while the lawn is dormant, but cutting the grass short reduces its ability to shade out weed growth. Instead, continue to mow at the usual summer height, which is usually between 2.5 to 4 inches tall. The longer grass will suppress weed incursion even when the lawn is dry and brown for winter. 

5. Rake Up the Debris

Fallen leaves and other fall debris left on the lawn can kill the grass beneath. When they are finally raked up, the lawn may be patchy and sparse due to grass dying off. Weeds can quickly move into these areas of sparse growth and take over. Raking often in the fall and leaving no debris on the lawn over winter saves the grass and prevents weeds. 

Contact a lawn care service for fall weed prevention help.

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26 October 2022

Talking About Landscaping Techniques and Tools

Hello, I’m Donna. Welcome. I am excited to share my passion for landscaping with you all. I regularly change the layout of my garden, depending on the plants I want to grow each year. I keep my garden beds full of flowers and edible plants to have a variety of vegetation to enjoy. I would like to use this site to cover all of those varieties and talk about the growing techniques and supplies that work best for each option. I invite you to visit daily to learn the information you need to help your garden grow. Thanks for visiting my site.