As we get into autumn, leaves begin to fall, temperatures
drop and all things green begin to go dormant.While you may be tired of lawn
care—believe me, even the most enthusiastic gardeners do!—this season is an
important time to take several key steps to ensure a beautiful lawn next
spring.
The first step is to prevent night crawler damage. While
useful in aerating your soil and a part of the ecosystem of your yard, left
unchecked, night crawlers can wreak havoc on a smooth lawn. During the summer
months, night crawler activity is minimal; the hard, dry surface of a summer
lawn is just plain tough to burrow through. But when the fall rains come, the
ground quickly softens and night crawlers get back to work leaving their
castings on your grass and creating innumerable bumps across your yard.
To reduce the population of night crawlers, spread a
granular insecticide like Sevin. A couple applications a year will help to keep
night crawlers from damaging your turf and also eliminate other insects like
cranefly larvae that can destroy grass.
A second step you should take to keep your lawn healthy going
into winter is moss control. While moss is most noticeable in early spring when
you start to work in the yard, it’s never entirely gone, and as we get into
cooler weather it begins to grow once again. If you’re starting to see moss
growing in your lawn, take swift action by applying a dose of ferrous sulfate.
Lawn grasses won’t grow much in winter, but moss will, so avoid the problem of
a moss-infested lawn next spring by killing it now.
To discourage moss
from returning, follow up your moss-killing spree with a healthy dose of lime;
a product like Lilly Miller Super Sweet will give you the best results.
Gardeners ask me all the time what our soil pH is—and some even go to the work
of having their soil tested. Unless you need to know your pH for growing a
specific type of plant, skip the testing and know that your soil is acidic.
Period. Soils in western Washington are very “sour,” or acidic, and as a
result, moss thrives. By “sweetening” your soil—balancing the pH—you can slow
the growth of moss and give your grass a better chance to thrive.
Finally, did you know that fall may be the most important
time to fertilize your lawn? It’s easy to lose steam this time of year when it
comes to lawn care—you just want to put the mower away, hang up your hat and
call it a day. But don’t forget to feed the lawn! Now, the aforementioned lawn
care steps can and should be taken this month, but don’t rush the fertilizer.
In fact, wait until you’re finished raking leaves this fall and just before you
start to think about switching out corn stalks for Christmas lights—winterizing
fertilizer should be applied in November.
Spring and summer lawn fertilizer is geared toward top
growth—the part of the lawn you see. Fall fertilizer or winterizer is for root
development and storage of nutrients for a better green-up next spring, thus,
you should wait until your grass is essentially done growing to apply it—and in
our area, that’s usually sometime in November.
It’s not a time of year when most people are trying to build
a beautiful lawn, but fall is a critical time for taking care of your lawn.
With the proper steps, you can lay the foundation for a lush, healthy start to
next year.
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