Getting your yard ready for Fall
As much as we’d rather ignore those looming signs of seasonal transition, it’s time to face the end of summer and get a head start on your home exterior maintenance tasks. Fall is the perfect time to take care of minor chores before they turn into much bigger problems come spring time. With a few simple tasks, you can ensure your lawn will be at its best once the winter blankets of snow melt.
Lawn Care
Tackling lawn care during this time of the year, before the weather really turns, is one of the best ways to generate a positive impact come next springtime. Be sure to rake the leaves from your lawn to prevent fungus from developing or providing a cozy home for critters. As for the garden beds; you can leave the leaves to decompose and add organic matter back into the soil.
Keep your grass cut, at about six to eight centimetres high and put your mower away once the first threat of frost arrives. If you have bare patches throughout your lawn you can fill these areas in by installing sod or by using seed in low traffic areas.
Applying a winterized fertilizer is also a task that should be done this time of year and can be done up until late November. Head to your local garden supply store and purchase a fertilizer that has a low nitrogen/high potash blend, with slow-release nitrogen.
Garden Care
Garden prep is also necessary to this time of the year. You’ll need to weed the garden bed, snip and trim deadhead blooms, and replace summer annuals with cool-weather flowers to add some colour back into your garden.
This is also a good time to amend soil along any bare patches by topping it up with a good nutrient mix, as well as mulch to protect the roots of plants. Adding in compost and peat moss is also a good way to really boost the nutrient base to really give your garden a healthy kick throughout the winter.
If you have trees, now is the time to give them a thorough watering so they can enter the winter with enough residual moisture in the soil. Also, for any young fruit-bearing trees, apply wire mesh or protection of some sort to keep pests from gnawing at the trunk.
Other Exterior Tasks to Tackle
Beyond the lawn and garden preparation make sure to store away all your tools properly in a shed or inside your home so that moisture won’t linger on them and cause rust. It’s a good idea to walk around the perimeter of your home and thoroughly look at areas that are in need of attention. This should include the walkway, driveway, front porch, deck, shutting off the hose and other outdoor water sources, and cleaning the gutters and windows.
Getting your exterior ready now while the weather is still bearable will save you so much aggravation down the road. So as difficult as it may be to face the reality of the looming seasonal change, get your home ready for fall and take advantage of the pleasant weather while you still can!
Would you rather curl up inside binging Ozark and enjoying all things Pumpkin Spice? Reach out to Hansen for all your fall maintenance needs!