Fall has finally arrived! As you settle into autumn, and the weather begins to cool, it’s important not to neglect your yard.

Keep your DFW backyard looking its best year round with our easy fall yard care tips.

Take Care of Your Lawn

Lawns can take quite a beating over the course of a hot DFW summer, so managing your lawn is an important part of fall yard care.

As the weather cools, lawn growth will slow. Make sure to continue mowing your lawn (adjust the mower blade as needed) until it becomes dormant. If any pesky weeds sprung up, get rid of them now or risk having them take over your yard by spring.

It’s also time to overseed with rye grass for a green lawn during winter and to fertilize for a healthier lawn come spring.

Did summer heat and lots of backyard activity compact your yard’s soil? Make it a point to aerate your lawn. Doing so will encourage healthy root systems, plus aerating allows water to penetrate deeper, helping to avoid runoff.

Adjust Your Watering

As temperatures dip, plants and grass need less water. Reduce manual watering and make sure to keep an eye on automatic systems, adjusting them as needed.

Fall is also an excellent time to start practicing water conservation techniques. Set up a rain bucket, if you don’t already have one. When you mow the lawn, don’t bag the clippings. Leave them on your grass to conserve water and naturally fertilize your lawn. And make sure you continue to follow the twice-weekly watering schedules for Dallas, Fort Worth, or your community.

Beautify with New Tress, Shrubs, and Annuals

Fall is the perfect time to whip your yard into ship shape!

Keep your yard looking beautiful by removing wilted summer annuals and replacing them with cool-weather varieties (make sure to fertilize the soil first). You’ll also want to stop fertilizing perennials. This will allow them to rest during winter and be healthier come spring. Replenish mulch around trees and flower beds, as well.

Planning to add trees or shrubs? Fall is a great time to do it. Cooler temperatures and occasional rainfall will help to encourage root growth before it gets too cold. Choose native plants for best results. If you need help deciding what to plant, consult the Earth-Kind Plant Selector.

Clean Up Debris

Of course, a big part of fall yard care is cleaning up debris, including dead plants or leaves.

Did you know that yard trimmings make up 20 percent of the waste generated by Texans each year? Thankfully, it’s easy to reduce your waste with a few easy tips.

First, there’s no need to remove a few straggling leaves from your lawn. Just mow right over them, and they’ll help to fertilize your lawn.

For yards with more trees, consider starting a compost pile. Compost can be used as mulch, and using it in your yard helps save on your water bills, reduces the need to fertilize (which is better for the environment), and saves you time (no bagging leaves). Simply add your yard waste to a compost pile instead of throwing it out.

You don’t need a lot of space to begin a compost pile. Check out this mulching and composting guide for tips on getting started.

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