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Police the grass to keep lawn order

Lawn care jobs change with the seasons and as autumn begins it is time to renovate.
September is the optimum month to begin your lawn care due to the cooler temperatures and increased rainfall.
There are many lawn care tasks you can do to keep your lawn healthy and prepare it for the winter months.

Mowing
If you have good levels of moisture, growth should still be at its best so keep mowing regularly.
Once the temperature starts to drop the growth should slow and once it does, only mow when required and remember to raise your mowing height.

Scarifying
Scarifying is the process of removing thatch from the lawn.
Thatch is the accumulation of organic matter at the base of the lawn. A thin layer of thatch up to half an inch is beneficial for your lawn health. However, too much will cause your lawn to suffer.
You can scarify the lawn by hand using a spring tine rake however a scarifying machine would be much better if you have a large lawn or if it is particularly affected by thatch.

Gardens are not made by singing ‘Oh, how beautiful’ and sitting in the shade…
Rudyard Kipling

Aeration
In addition to scarification, you should also aerate your lawn.
Lawn aeration is required for a healthy lawn as it allows water, air and nutrients to permeate into the root zone.
You can aerate your lawns with many different tools. Small areas can be spiked with a garden fork – simply punch holes into the lawn and rock the fork to enlarge the size of the holes.
For those in need of greater lawn aeration you can use a hollow tine aerator machine, which removes plugs of soil from your lawn and deposits them on top. The soil plugs can be left and will break down over time.

Feeding
It is important to give your lawn a good feed and water after these jobs.
You can prepare your lawn for winter by applying autumn lawn feed, which is high in potassium and phosphate. This will provide your lawn with the nutrients to support healthy root growth and protect grass from frost and icy conditions.

Overseeding
One of the final things you can do for your lawn at this time of year is to overseed it.
Overseeding will help to fill damaged, worn or thin patches of your lawn as well as reduce the invasion of weeds.
September conditions are favourable for seed germination as the ground is still warm and rainfall increases.
Caring for your lawn in Autumn can be hard work. But putting in the effort now will ensure your lawn will be looking its best come spring.

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