Fall Lawn Care Tips for Dayton, OH

Fall means something different to just about everyone: football season, bonfires, pumpkin spice lattes, scarves and Halloween may come to mind for different people. But what about lawn care? It’s probably not the first thing that pops into your head when you hear the word “fall,” but fall is an important season for your lawn care. As the weather cools off, heading closer and closer to freezing, your lawn needs some attention. The lawn needs your care to help it prepare for winter. Here are our tips for fall lawn care in the Dayton region.

Clean up the yard

In the fall, you should regularly clean up the yard from fallen leaves and debris. When you rake up the leaves, you’re allowing air, water, fertilizer and more to get to the soil and ultimately the roots. And don’t forget to lay down a plastic tarp to rake all the leaves into -- it’ll help with clean up! You can add the raked up leaves to compost if you want to turn it into beneficial compost to use as a mulch in the spring.

Mow the grass

In the fall, you may need to change your mowing frequency a few times. Cool season grasses tend to grow faster early fall, compared to the dormant season of the summer. This typically means mowing on a weekly cadence. As winter approaches, growth will likely slow a bit, and you can switch to bi-weekly mowing, and eventually monthly until the frost hits.

Fertilize

Look for a fall fertilizer that will help your lawn in both the fall and winter, strengthening its roots so that it can survive the cold months while it waits for the weather to warm back up. Do a soil test to confirm what your lawn may need, but a high phosphorus fertilizer is often a good call this time of year. Which fertilizer to apply is dependent on both grass type and soil composition, so it’s worth getting an expert opinion on before you start.

Overseed

While not a necessary step, many Dayton, OH residents like to overseed in the fall, so that the lawn will come in strong in the spring. Overseeding involves spreading a thin layer of grass seed all over the lawn to replenish dead grass. By overseeding, you are thickening up the lawn so that it’s ready for the next growing season.

We can help you get your lawn ready this fall! Check out our Dayton, OH lawn care page to see what we can do to help.

Need help preparing your lawn? Visit our Dayton lawn care page to get in touch with a professional! In addition to Dayton, we provide lawn care services to other Ohio cities, including Cleveland.

Featured image source: Zillow Dayton