Fall Lawn Care Tips for Tulsa, OK

After a busy summer season many lawns in the Tulsa area can look quite worn out once fall arrives. Make sure to care for your lawn this fall by helping to repair any summer damage as well as prepare the lawn for the cooler temperatures. Check out these fall lawn care tips for Tulsa to encourage a healthy lawn for the rest of fall and into next year:

Mulch Fallen Leaves

If your yard, or even your neighbors yard, has a lot of deciduous trees you may find yourself raking up a lot of leaves during the fall season. However, instead of bagging up the leaves, consider using them in order to help feed your lawn with essential nutrients. Mulching dead leaves will allow you to cut down the size of the leaves making them easier to spread evenly over the lawn. These smaller pieces will break down naturally and provide your lawn with a boost of nutrients. If you don’t have a leaf mulcher, consider spreading the leaves out over the lawn and then mowing them without the bag in order to cut them up easily.

Keep An Eye On Pests

You may have noticed a lot of caterpillars in your lawn this fall and The Oklahoma State University Extension has reported that Fall armyworms are causing some major lawn damage for area homeowners. These green, brown, or black caterpillars feed on grass and can be very damaging to a healthy lawn. Fall armyworms have a distinctive inverted white “Y” on their head as well as a stripe down each side of their body. They love to feed on Tall Fescue but have also been documented eating on Bermudagrass and other turfgrasses. Homeowners can use a homemade rinse to guard against these pests as well as chemical insecticides. Some may choose to allow nature to work though and hope that their lawns can recover without the need for intervention.

Overseed Bare Spots

After a full summer of wear and tear your lawn may be looking a little bit worn during this time of year. Adding extra seeds to those bare spots will help to ensure that your lawn doesn’t become a breeding ground for weeds. Overseeding dead areas of the lawn is a great way to fill in spots of the lawn as well as encourage strong new growth in thin areas. Cooler fall temperatures are ideal for seeds to germinate and take hold but be sure to water the overseeded areas until the seedlings take hold of the soil.

Prevent Winter Weeds

There are many winter annual weeds that can crop up in a Tulsa lawn during the fall. Consider applying an herbicide by September 15th in order to help control annual bluegrass that can take hold of the lawn. Established bermudagrass lawns would benefit from a Kerb application in late fall or possibly an application of Roundup in early winter. Prevent these winter weeds from germinating during the fall in order to keep your lawn weed free through the spring season next year.

Continue Cutting

Many Tulsa homeowners may choose to allow their lawns to grow long in the fall which can have some devastating effects. Make sure to continue cutting the lawn to the recommended height based on your grass type. Allowing grass to grow tall can promote extra moisture in the lawn that can grow fungi as well as invite pests to take root. Cut no more than the top 1/3 of the grass blade during each mow in order to make sure that you don’t hurt the grass root as well.

Fall is an important time to care for your lawn in order to promote healthy growth. Consider these fall lawn care tips for Tulsa lawns in order to repair summer damage as well as prepare the lawn for cooler winter temperatures that are fast approaching.

Need help preparing your lawn? Visit our Tulsa lawn care page to get in touch with a professional! In addition to Tulsa, we provide lawn care services in other Oklahoma cities, including Oklahoma City.

Featured image source: Zillow Tulsa