It May Be Fall, But Your Grass is Still Growing!

Fall is just about officially here, and while your flower and vegetable gardens are starting to slow down, your grass is gearing up for one last burst of growth.  If you treat your turf right—right now—you’ll be rewarded with a lush, thick lawn next spring. Here’s your season-ending to-do list:

1. Continue cutting your grass to its maximum recommended height (no more than 1/3 of the grass blade length) until it stops growing or goes dormant. Then drop the blade a notch and mow one last time.
2. Now’s the ideal time to bulk up your lawn with a fresh supply of seed. The seed will have plenty of time to establish itself during the cool fall days if you reseed about 6 weeks before the first frost is expected.
3. Rake the fallen leaves. It’s fine to leave grass clippings on your freshly cut lawn, but leaves are a different story. They can block sun and moisture from reaching the grass, so gather ‘em up and toss ‘em in the compost pile.
4. Give your grass a final fall feeding with this fortified food:
   Mix 3 pounds of Epsom salts into a bag of 10-10-10 slow-release lawn food (enough to cover 2,500 sq. ft.). With a broadcast spreader, apply half of the mixture, then one week later spread the remaining food.

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