With temperatures starting to fall, it’s time to wrap up lawn care for the season, right? Wrong. Fall is actually a critical time in your lawn’s health. The better you care for your lawn in autumn, the more optimally it will grow and develop during spring and summer months. So with that in mind, what lawn care steps should Naperville, IL area homeowners take this fall? Here’s a look at 6:
#1: Deal with leaves. Some leaves here and there aren’t going to damage your lawn and in fact, can be a good source of nutrients as they break down. However, a thick layer of wet leaves is going to block out sunlight and make your lawn more susceptible to the spread of disease. That’s why you should rake and compost them, or turn them into mulch with your mower.
#2: Continue to mow and water. Just because it’s fall doesn’t mean it’s quite time to say good-bye to your mower, sprinklers and hoses. During the autumn season, it’s still important to ensure your lawn is getting adequate hydration, along with proper maintenance in the form of mowing. If your lawn gets less than one or two inches of rainwater each week, water it once a week for about an hour. Likewise, continue to mow until your lawn stops growing.
#3: Identify pests and get them under control. After a summer of lawn care, sometimes it’s tempting for Naperville area homeowners to ignore a pest control problem and deal with it next spring. But if you do, you’re simply going to cause more damage to your lawn in the long run, making it harder to repair. Instead, make sure you get pests – especially grubs, which wreak havoc in fall – under control so you don’t see more damage to your lawn.
#4: Keep soil well aerated. A healthy lawn needs good drainage and loose soil. That way, 
grass roots can better absorb water, nutrients, oxygen and sunlight. So if you’re noticing your lawn has puddles of water after rain, or is looking weak or sparse in areas, test it for compaction by sticking a screwdriver into the soil. If it’s hard to do, your lawn can benefit from aeration.
#5: Seed your lawn. The best time to seed your lawn is after you aerate it. That’s because aeration provides conditions for better seed-to-soil contact, meaning more seeds will germinate and grow into healthy, green grass.
#6: Feed your lawn. Once you aerate and seed, don’t forget to apply fertilizer to your lawn. Doing so will help your lawn recover from summer wear and tear, as well as prepare for colder, harsher winter temperatures.
Get Professional Lawn Care Help from the Naperville Area’s Experts
If you’d rather leave lawn care – whether during fall or any season – to local Naperville area experts, call Lawn Doctor of Batavia-Aurora. From one-time treatments to annual care and maintenance, we have all the solutions you need to keep your lawn in optimal health from season to season.
Interested in a free consultation? Call us today at 630.406.8535. Our lawn care company services customers across Naperville, Batavia, Aurora, Lisle, Downers Grove and St. Charles, IL, as well as in the surrounding communities.
