If you want a Pittsburgh lawn that can weather the storm of winter and come back lush and beautiful in the spring, you need to take some key steps in the fall. Even though the year’s winding down and it might seem like you can call it a day on your yard, the choices you make now will have real consequences in the coming months. Let’s look at best practices!
Tackling Leaf Cleanup
Before you begin any other lawn maintenance work, you need to clear all those leaves away. To do so, you have a number of options for equipment based on preferences and budget, so consider the following:
- No-clog rakes – Rakes labeled as “no-clog” are designed with wider tines that avoid skewering leaves and creating a new problem to deal with. Bigger rakes, like those thirty inches wide or more, are also a good investment because they cover more surface area and cut down on time.
- Leaf blower – Using a leaf blower can be a real time saver as well, but you need to keep a few things in mind. If leaves are wet or if it has recently rained, a blower won’t do you much good, so you’ll have to wait. With dry leaves, you can form small piles with a blower that you can then easily rake up. Also, be mindful not to blow any gravel or you could end up creating new issues for yourself, and avoid using blowers when you’ve recently applied pesticides and fertilizers for safety.
- Tarps and other options – The standard heavy-duty lawn and leaf bags from the grocery store are always a go-to, but for bigger lawns you might need something more substantial. Consider getting a tarp you can move around and easily pile up leaves on. Bagster bags are another option, which are large bags that serve as mobile dumpsters that can be hauled away by the Bagster company.
- Yard vacs and mowers – Possibly the most efficient method of leaf removal is using a yard vac since it not only collects the leaves but minces them into fragments within a connected bag for easy emptying. A mulching mower is another option as it can chop up leaves into small parts and leave them as a natural fertilizer – no cleanup necessary!
Understanding why fall leaf cleanup is so critical for your lawn’s health will help motivate you through the work ahead.
Conducting Aeration for a Healthy Lawn
Once your leaves are cleared away, it’s time to really get to work, and you’ll want to start with aeration. This process involves creating small holes in your yard’s soil that allows air, water, and important nutrients to get into your root systems.
You will need a special tool to aerate your lawn properly, and these are available at home improvement stores, but your dedicated landscaper will also have plenty on hand.
Aeration ultimately improves your yard by:
- Enhancing the soil structure
- Promoting nutrient absorption by grass and other plants
- Relieving soil compaction that can cause issues
- Creating a lusher lawn come spring
Investing in Overseeding
If you really want to boost the viability of your Pittsburgh lawn for the spring and summer, overseeding in the fall is the way to do it. At its core, overseeding is the process of adding new grass seed on top of your lawn without tearing up or turning the soil.
A professional landscaping company experienced at overseeding can help you with this, and you’ll reap benefits like:
- Filling in bad patches of your lawn
- Making your total yard lusher and healthier
- Taking advantage of fall’s cool air and warm soil, the best conditions for overseeding
Fertilizing
Work with your Pittsburgh landscaping team to determine a fertilization plan, because fall is one of the best times to do it. Fall fertilizers, often called winterizers, help to protect your lawn when the temperature starts to drop. Some of their benefits include:
- Rejuvenating your lawn following increased use in the summer, as well as intense heat and droughts
- Supplying your lawn with essential nutrients when they need them most – right before being “starved” in the winter months
- Producing a greener, lusher lawn that sprouts earlier in the spring
Performing Weed Control
When the weather starts to turn in Pennsylvania and the air becomes crisp, it’s actually one of the better times to take care of pesky weeds. This is because the cold air triggers plants to send nutrients to their root systems rather than to leaves, stems, and flowers. The exposed portions of the plant are thus weaker, so they can be wiped out with some herbicides more readily.
Spraying weeds at this time of year can help to kill them for good and prevent them from coming back in the spring and summer, making your yard just as beautiful as you’ve been dreaming of.
Need Help Prepping Your Lawn for Winter? Contact Us!
At Stockman Lawnscape, we have extensive experience helping Pittsburgh-area homeowners care for their lawns all year round, so we can prepare your property for the onslaught of winter weather. Reach out to us today and our team can assess your property and come up with a plan of action!
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