Morrisville lawn care services
Water adequately
If you want your Morrisville lawn looking lush in the fall, you shouldn't stop watering it. However, it is recommended to reduce the watering frequency to about twice a week and watering depth to 1 inch. Irrigating deeper or more frequently will expose your turf to diseases (especially fungal ones) and pests. In contrast, too little watering leads to shallow root development, and your warm season-grass won't survive the winter.
Mow properly
You should continue lowering your mower blade throughout the fall and, at the end of the season, trim at the lowest settings on your machine. Ideally, that should be around 2½ inches. Short grasses are better in the winter because long grasses will prevent sunlight from properly penetrating the grass profile, and will also expose your turf to disease attacks. On the other hand, the grasses won't be able to photosynthesize or provide nutrients for their roots if you mow too short.
Aerate
Your lawn can become compacted because of the mower's wheel running back and forth and the traffic from pattering feet. Heavy soil compaction makes it difficult for your grass's roots to get water, oxygen, and other nutrients. Worse yet, they become malnourished/lethargic and can't store up nutrients for winter.
You can use a spading fork to manually create holes in your soil to help your grasses get oxygen and allow water in. This can be quite laborious and is only suitable if your lawn is small. For larger lawns, you'll need an aerator. To save you the cost of buying or hiring an aerator, as well as the stress involved in using it, you can connect to aeration services through Morrisville lawn care.
Seed and reseed
Warm-season grasses are particularly suited to Morrisville as they don't grow quickly in the fall as compared to summer. Nonetheless, fall is the best time to seed new grasses and strengthen established root systems for winter chill and summer heat.
Seeding fescue grasses on thinning areas, bare spots, and bald patches promotes denser coverage and reduce the risk of broadleaf growth. Think of it this way: a healthy lawn in the fall is a healthy one in the spring.
It is recommended that you seed after aerating and that you seed 6 pounds of fescue per 1000 square feet. After, mulch with wheat straw to keep the soil moist and protect seeds from birds. You may choose to spread the seeds using a broadcaster or sow in targeted areas. However, your best option is to get in touch with Morrisville lawn service for the most appropriate seeding techniques and recommendations.
Control pests
Spring and fall are the friendliest times for common Morrisville lawn pests like grubs, chinch bugs, moles, fall armyworms, fire ants, voles, and occasionally, raccoons (they like to dig up lawns to find grubs). Preventing these pests is easier than fighting an already established invasion.
Maintaining a clean environment is key to keeping your turf free from pests. First, you can start by removing any standing water, clearing away leaves and debris that may be clogging your gutter, and flushing your entire water system. You can get yard cleanup and gutter cleaning services through Morrisville lawn care for professional workmanship.
Insects like fire ants like to hide in tall grasses. So, mowing relatively low is also crucial to a pest-free lawn. Watering infrequently and shallow makes your soil uncomfortable for grubs, armyworms, and moles. Lastly, you can try to attract birds/bats. One bat can eat 6000-8000 insects per night, but building a pretty birdhouse is a fancier approach to controlling insects naturally.
Leaf and debris removal
Removing fallen leaves from your lawn in this season can be quite daunting. You rake in the morning, and the next morning, there are more leaves all over the place. It might be tempting to leave it for the weekend and rake again, but that's not a good habit. Fallen leaves prevent sunlight, moisture (dew), and other nutrients from reaching your grasses. Worse yet, they create a breeding ground for diseases and fungus.
Get rid of that debris! If you don't have the time or simply would prefer to do other things, you can contact Morrisville lawn services for yard cleanup and save yourself from any stress.
Control disease
Warm-season grasses are most susceptible to diseases in late fall through early spring. Some of the most common turf diseases in Morrisville are caused by fungi. They include dollar spot, brown patch, red thread, and rust.
Like weeds, diseases are best dealt with early. Maintaining healthy turf and a clean environment is vital for a disease-free lawn. A few tips for doing so are: following proper mowing practices (as discussed earlier), aerating the soil at least once per year, watering appropriately (also mentioned earlier), and fertilizing properly. You should use pesticides when there is a severe infestation, but only with professionals found through Morrisville lawn care.
Patch
If there are bare spots, thinning layers, or bald patches on your lawn, fall is the best time to seed. Morrisville lawn care offers seeding services with a spot treatment on those bare areas and with topsoil to improve soil quality and foster grass growth.
Fertilization
Imagine you seeded your Morrisville lawn with warm-season grasses. If you did, you shouldn't worry about fertilization because your turf will go dormant in the winter, and fertilization will only foster weed development. On the other hand, you should fertilize your lawn mid-fall if you have cool-season grasses.
Best grasses to grow in Morrisville
Morrisville has an average of 221 sunny days, 4 inches of annual snowfall, and 46 inches of rain. So, warm-season grass is more suitable to the terrain than cool-season types. Some of the best warm-season grasses to grow here include:
- Bermuda grass
- St. Augustine grass
- Zoysia
- Centipede grass
