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Fall Lawn Care
Fall is the perfect time to rejuvenate your existing lawn.
Click on the components below to learn more:
Fertilizing
Broad-Leaved Weed and Nutsedge
Control
Prevention of Chickweed, Annual Blue-Grass, Henbit and Bitter Cress
Crabgrass
De-Thatching
Seeding
Grub Control
Aeration
Watering
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Lawn Care Programs
Fertilizing
Unless you have had a fungus (brown patch) problem, Apply
Espoma
100% Organic Lawn Food, between the 15th of August and
the 15th of September. If you have had a fungus problem, use
Turf Trust, during the same
period. To prevent rust stains, after applying Turf Trust, immediately
clean the sidewalks and patios of any fertilizer granules.
Lawns that are less
than 3 years old and lawns with really poor soil will benefit from
an application of liquid
Bio-Tone Starter microbes concurrent with the August feeding.
Bio-Tone Starter will make the lawn deeper green, with a larger root
system. It also reduces soil compaction if applied two to three
times per year over a several year period.
A second fall
application of fertilizer should be applied between the 15th and
30th of November. I recommend Turf Trust to keep the lawn remarkably
green right into the winter and for early spring green-up. Even If
you used Turf Trust in August, repeat Turf Trust for the late fall
feeding.
Sunny lawns should
be fed at the recommended rate. Shady lawns require less food and
should always be fertilized at half the rate specified on the bag.
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Broadleaf Weed and
Nutsedge Control
 For
complete eradication, broadleaf weeds require two applications of a lawn
weed killer four to five weeks apart. Usually, you will achieve 70-80%
eradication with one application. If you have only easy-to-control weeds
like dandelions and plantain, in hot weather in July and August use an
"amine" formulation liquid lawn weed killer with a
spreader sticker. (Spreader
stickers insure that the herbicide will cling to the foliage, rather
than running off, so that it can be absorbed by the weed.)
In order for lawn weed killers to achieve maximum effectiveness, the
weeds must be actively growing. In hot, dry summers, this is often not
the case. If the weeds are not actively growing, delay applying weed
killers until the weeds start to sprout new leaves. If the conditions
are not right to apply the lawn weed killers until September and you
need to re-seed, delay applying the lawn weed killer until next spring.
Very important: Do not apply lawn weed killers when the temperature is
forecasted to go over 80 degrees during the 12 hours immediately
following the application. You can bend the rule a little bit if you are
applying an “amine” formula, but only for “amine” formulas. At the
minimum, you must allow 3 weeks, after the application of lawn weed
killer, before seeding.
If you have nutsedge "grass," use Sedge Hammer, plus a spreader sticker,
applied with a pump sprayer, no later than early August. (Sedge Hammer
kills only nutsedge; nothing else.) A four week interval is required
after the application of Sedge Hammer before seeding. (Sedge Hammer and
lawn weed killer can be applied concurrently.)
Difficult to control weeds like Creeping Charlie and clover will require Turflon Ester
or
Confront applied in cool weather in early September or in the spring.
All lawn weed killers, as well as Sedge Hammer, work best if they are
applied 2-4 days after the grass has been cut. Apply on a day when rain
is not forecast for 24 hours. After application, try to forgo cutting
the lawn for another 10 days.
Remember: If you apply any liquid weed killer, or Confront, this
September, you will not be able to seed this fall. If you did not start
your weed control early enough and you need a second application, and
you want to seed, make the first application no later than mid-August
(weather permitting), seed 3-4 weeks thereafter. Then make the second
application after the grass has been cut 3 times in the spring. If you
choose this route, a third application may possibly be needed in the
mid-spring 5 weeks after the second one.
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Prevention of Chickweed, Annual Blue-Grass, Henbit and Bitter Cress
 The
best way to control Chickweed is to kill the new seedlings before they
emerge in the fall. To accomplish this, apply
Dimension Crabgrass Preventer or
Portrait Weed Preventer.
Chickweed germinates in the fall when the days are shortened and the
temperatures get cool. In zones 6 & 7 the best time to apply Dimension
or Portrait is September. Applied at this time, Dimension also controls
three other cool season problem weeds: white-flowered Bitter Cress,
lavender-flowered Henbit and annual Poa (June grass or annual
blue-grass—the low growing, clumpy, chartreuse-colored grass, with the
white, fuzzy seed heads in late spring, that dies in the summer.)
Portrait prevents Chickweed, Poa and Henbit but not Bitter Cress.
However Portrait does a much better job of Chickweed control than
Dimension—but it is more expensive. Remember if you apply Dimension or
Portrait in the fall, you cannot re-seed your lawn this fall. Total
control of cool season, broadleaf weeds can be difficult to achieve with
pre-emergent products, especially Dimension. A supplemental application
of lawn weed killer may be necessary if you observe that some of these
weeds have germinated.
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Crabgrass
 True
crabgrass is an annual weed that will die in the frost. Before it dies,
it will set lots of seeds that will sprout next spring. Your best bet is
to kill the seeds as they germinate next spring. Use
Greenlight Dimension Crabgrass Preventer just as the forsythia is
approaching peak bloom early next spring. I have had poor luck with the
products that supposedly kill crabgrass in the summer and early fall.
This summer, be sure you have true crabgrass. Lots of people misidentify
wild Bermuda grass as crabgrass. Bermuda has long runners; crabgrass
grows in clumps and has lots of seed heads in mid-late August. The
control for wild Bermuda is entirely different. Eradication of Bermuda
grass requires total kill of the entire infested area with Remuda and
waiting 3 weeks. If the crabgrass is so thick that it will impede
germination of new seed, de-thatching (see below) will remove the tops
and prepare a good seed bed. The crabgrass will not grow back densely
before the frost kills it.
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De-Thatching
Lawns sometimes build up an extreme amount of thatch in a favorable
growing season. Layers of thatch over one half inch deep should be
mechanically removed. (In borderline situations spraying with liquid
Bio-Tone Starter will encourage the thatch to naturally decompose
more quickly). De-thatching with a power rake is ideal to remove this
build-up of debris and to create a fine, level seed bed. Usually, 2 to 3
passes, in different directions, with the power rake will be needed. If
you de-thatch, you must re-seed. Rake up all of the debris that was left
from the de-thatching. Then all you need to do is level the soil,
(adding top soil to fill in any holes, if necessary). Apply the
fertilizer and rake it in. (Never apply fertilizer, chickweed preventer
or grub preventer within a month before you de-thatch. The waiting
period for
Dylox grub killer is one week). Finally, lightly rake the seed into
the bed that the power rake has prepared.
For de-thatching small lawns and individual spots, Mantis makes a
wonderful de-thatching attachment for the Mantis tiller. The Mantis de-thatcher
is the easiest way I know to prepare the lawn for spot seeding. Use it
in place of a rake or cultivator, punch in some holes with a pitchfork,
seed, fertilize and cover with Chesapeake Green, Compro or LeafGro.
Cutting the lawn extra short, and gathering the clippings, will
facilitate de-thatching, seeding and aeration—as well as making these
procedures more effective.
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Seeding
The grass seed of choice for full to half sun areas (minimum 4 hours of
good sun) is
Black Beauty, applied at the rate of 10-12 lbs. per 1,000 square
feet for bare areas and 5-7 lbs. per 1,000 for over seeding existing
lawns.
We recommend
Shady Nooks grass seed for shady areas (minimum 2 hours of good sun)
at the rate of 1 lb. for every 750 square feet for over seeding and 1
lb. for every 375 square feet for bare areas. Shady areas are usually
subject to a lot of fall leaf litter. We recommend seeding such shady
areas at the end of August or waiting until early spring. Leaf-littered
shady areas are the one exception to the rule that fall lawn renovation
is better than spring lawn renovation. Leaves should be removed from
newly seeded shady areas with a blower, not a rake.
The earlier the grass seed is planted, the better it will establish
before winter. Black Beauty, especially, benefits from early planting.
In the mid-Atlantic region, October 10th is considered the absolute last
date for successful seeding. Throwing grass seed on hard, unprepared
ground is just a waste of good grass seed. The soil needs to be loosened
with a rake, fork, cultivator, or Mantis. (Hopefully you know someone
who has a wonderful old hand tool called a Gardevator, which makes an
excellent seed bed, but which, sadly, is no longer made). Poking holes,
an inch or so deep, with a pitchfork also helps. Spread the seed at the
recommended rate, rake it lightly and cover it with Chesapeake Green,
Compro, or LeafGro - just enough to cover the seed and keep it moist. We
do not recommend using either regular hay or straw - too many weed
seeds. On steep slopes subject to erosion, salt hay, Curlex, burlap or
"green mulch" may be needed. Adding 5% by weight of annual rye grass to
the “good” seed will also help stabilize the soil. It sprouts quickly
and roots-in with deep roots. Annual Rye grass will hold the soil while
the permanent grasses are slowly germinating. Spraying with liquid
Bio-Tone Starter beneficial microbes, immediately after the grass
has been planted, will speed-up and improve germination, retain soil
moisture and cause more roots to develop faster.
For large areas, we recommend renting a slit seeder, which will bury the
grass seed right into your soil so that it will require no additional
cover. A slit seeder will put down 7-8 lbs. of Black Beauty per 1,000
square feet.
In areas where tilling is necessary, (for example where the topography
requires change or where the soil is very poor or compacted), till good
compost into the soil. Use Compro or Chesapeake Green. Very poor soils
require about 8 bags per 100 square feet. At the same time, till in a
double rate application of
Espoma
100% Organic Lawn Food or
Turf Trust; i.e. use a 5,000 sq. ft bag on a 2,500 sq. ft. area.
Level the area, scatter the seed and cover the seed to the depth of ¼
inch by raking with the back of lawn rake. That is, hold the rake upside
down with the tines pointed skyward.
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Grub Control
If you had a significant population of Japanese beetles in your
neighborhood this summer and have not already applied a grub preventer
in late spring or summer, or if you see more than an occasional grub
while working on your lawn,
Dylox grub killer should be applied and watered in immediately.
Dylox does not affect anything else you may be doing to the lawn this
fall (seeding, fertilization, weed control) with one exception: Dylox
should not be applied within one week before de-thatching.
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Aeration
A lot of people will disagree with me, but my experience has been that
earthworms provide sufficient lawn aeration. Lawns that have been fed
gently with organic and high quality slow release fertilizers, such as
we recommend, are usually loaded with earthworms. Lawns that have been
treated with high chemical, 4 step programs, often have had their
earthworms killed. Liquid
Bio-Tone Starter also reduces soil compaction.
If you decide that aeration is necessary, core (hollow-tine) aeration is
preferred to spike aeration. Incidentally, seeding and fertilizing
before several passes of a core aerator is not a bad way to over-seed
the lawn; it is better than hand methods, but not as good as a slit
seeder.
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Watering
To germinate, new grass seed must be kept moist. To start with, it has
no roots, so deep watering is not essential -- just five minutes,
morning and evening. On a really hot windy day, a third watering at noon
may be required. As the grass germinates and sends down roots, deeper
watering may be needed. When the new grass is one inch tall, double the
watering time to ten minutes and gradually increase to twenty minutes
six to eight weeks after planting. For large areas of newly planted
grass seed, we suggest you buy a number of inexpensive sprinklers and
leave them "permanently" in place. Then all you need to do is turn the
water spigots on and off.
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