Fall is a perfect time to landscape your lawn. The season’s climate is ideal for landscaping. Soil warmth during this period encourages root growth ahead of winter, making it the best time to plant. Fall’s dependable weather, fewer disease and pest problems, and cooler weather are other reasons to add new plants to your lawn. However, there’s a risk of landscaping mishaps that can impact your yard’s look, minimizing curb appeal. Outlined below are five common fall landscaping mistakes you should avoid.

1. Skipping fall cleanup

While routine lawn maintenance is crucial for a healthy yard all year round, seasonal cleanups are just as vital. Skipping fall yard cleanups is a common mistake many homeowners make. When leaf and debris clutter creates a thick layer on your lawn’s surface, it crushes the grass and keeps new grass from growing during springtime. Letting organic matter, leaf, and old debris buildup remain in your backyard suffocates your lawn and keeps water from evaporating, trapping moisture and encouraging lawn diseases like fungi and mold growth, destroying your lawn and eventually killing it.

Winter brings cold, wet weather, and failing to prepare your lawn for it can cause significant damage. Failure to clean your yard properly before winter weakens your lawn and makes it prone to damage from pests, diseases, and the cold. Leaf and debris clutter can suffocate your lawn, which robs it of the air and sunlight crucial for its growth.

Considering how time-consuming and demanding fall cleanups can be, a professional service from a reliable provider, such as Verified Outdoor services landscaping, can be helpful. These experts have the experience and knowledge to execute a detailed fall cleanup. Scheduling yearly fall cleanup not only saves time but also prevents pest infestations while helping maintain plant and lawn health.

2. Failing to fertilize your lawn

Fall lawn fertilization is crucial to ensuring it remains healthy all year round. Considering how harsh the summer heat can be on your lawn, fall fertilization is vital to helping it recover. Failure to fertilize can result in winter’s cold and wet weather hurting or even killing your lawn. Fall fertilization enables grass roots to grow stronger, giving them a base to recover and thrive in spring. It reduces the damage that diseases and winters may have on your grass.

Fertilizing your lawn in the fall is key to enjoying a lush green yard in spring and the rest of the year. Grass needs nutrients such as nitrogen during its active growth seasons. However, when and how regularly you should fertilize your lawn depends on the grass type you grow. Time your fall fertilization according to your turfgrass variety and local climate.

3. Overwatering or underwatering your lawn

While your lawn may require extra water during fall, you shouldn’t overwater it. Overwatering can result in issues like:

• Fungal growth
• Thatch
• Yellow grass
• Grass suffocation
• Weed infestations
• Stunted root growth
• Standing water puddles
• Insects and more

Underwatering or depriving your lawn of the water it desperately requires in fall robs your lawn of the nutrients needed to repair summer damage. Adequate water supply is vital for nutrient uptake. With the help of a professional lawn care service, you can rest assured that your lawn will receive the correct amount of water at the right time.

4. Pruning the wrong plants

While pruning enhances plants’ health and appeal, it’s important to consider the time of the year you’re doing it and on which plants. Plants that flourish in spring usually form buds in fall, meaning the new growth will be lost if they’re trimmed during fall. This implies that your lawn won’t have spring blooms. Some of the plants you shouldn’t prune during the fall season include:

• Rhododendron and Azalea
• Lilac
• Forsythia
• Spirea
• Red Hot Poker
• Loropetalum and more

Consult a professional landscaper if you’re unsure which plants to prune in the fall.

5. Skipping fall mulching

Another mistake homeowners make is failing to mulch lawns during the fall. Fall mulching not only retains soil moisture but also suppresses weed growth while keeping the bare soil safe from erosion. It’s also vital to insulating soil, which provides a warm environment for the soil food web. Warm soil allows these organisms to remain active long into the winter season, enhancing your soil and helping plants survive through harsh winters.

Mulching insulates plant roots by improving the soil’s freezing point and evening out temperature changes. This results in studier plants that are less susceptible to stress. Skipping fall mulching can result in your planting drying and browning in winter. So, mulch your soil to ensure an evergreen lawn.

Endnote

While fall is a perfect time for landscaping, some mishaps can damage or even kill your lawn. Avoiding fall lawn landscaping mistakes such as skipping cleanup, failing to fertilize, overwatering or underwatering, and more can help ensure a healthy garden all year round.