Kick Your Lawns Grass

PREPARING YOUR LAWN FOR WINTER IN 8 STEPS

1. Don’t stop mowing! It’s tempting to let nature takes its course, but don’t put the mower away just yet. Keep mowing as long as you can and try to keep your grass at around a two inch height. This will permit the grass to absorb more of that quickly waning sunlight; it will also keep the grass from matting down under leaves and snow.
   
   
2. Keep the sprinklers going. Your lawn needs water no matter what the season; if you are experiencing a particularly dry fall, give your grass a good soak one or two times each week. Water in the morning to avoid excessive evaporation.
   
   
3. Let your lawn breathe. Aerating the soil provides easier passage for oxygen and reduces thatch; it allows fertilizer to reach the roots and accommodates better drainage.
   
   
4. Pump it up. Overseed thin grass or dead areas in your lawn. There are commercial products available that will seed, feed and fertilize in one easy step.
   
   
5. Pile it on. Fall is the time to fertilize. A dose in early September and then again in late October or early November will give your grass some added incentive to look gorgeous in the spring.
   
   
6. Do a deep six. Get rid of perennial weeds now. Weeds will respond well to a spray or granular herbicide this time of the year and will put you a step ahead for spring.
   
   
7. Dress it up. Adding a thin layer of compost or soil to your lawn will improve growing conditions for your lawn; work the dressing into the soil with a rake. It also cuts down on the need for excessive fertilizer.
   
   
8. Take it off. As tempting as it is to let those leaves lie and worry about them in the spring; rake them up. Leaves piled over your grass deprives it of sunlight; and since many grasses grow their best roots in the fall, they need that light.