Fall lawn care

It is almost September and your tall fescue turf will soon wake from its summer siesta. Growing quickly as air temperatures begin averaging a comfortable 60-75, some lawns may require a twice-a-week trim. September is also the time to lime, fertilize, dethatch, aerate, and over-seed. Ensure mower blades are sharp and you are maintaining a 3-inch residual. Do not trust your mower's factory settings. Park your mower on a firm, level surface and measure the distance from the surface to the cutting edge of the blades. r simply mow a strip, measure the residual height, and adjust as necessary. Maintaining proper residual in the fall insulates the soil and reduces winter-stress on turf grass. Not only does tall fescue grow quickly in the fall, it's gets hungry. Apply nitrogen, lime, phosphorus, and potassium if necessary. How much should you apply? What does your soil test recommend? A soil test is the only way to know what your lawn needs to look its best and stay healthy. Do not apply any amendments before submitting a soil test. Soil test kits are available at the Johnson County UT/TSU Extension Office. If you are ready to up your lawn game, consider dethatching and aerating. Thatch layers form when plants are growing rapidly and the accumulation of vegetative matter, i.e. grass clippings, stems, and leaves, exceed the rate of decay. Thatch insulates the soil from environmental fluctuations and cushions the soil against foot traffic and equipment, but an excessive thatch layer restricts movement of water, air, and nutrients into the soil while creating an excellent environment for insects and fungal pathogens. Dethatching is rarely necessary in tall fescue lawns, but your lawn will benefit if the thatch layer is thicker than half an inch. Heavy use lawns often suffer from soil compaction which can be mediated by core-aerating or spiking. Core-aerating removes soil plugs or cores from the lawn. Spiking pushes solid spikes into the soil without removing soil plugs. Both processes increase water, nutrient, and air movement into the soil which improves rooting, enhances water infiltration, and decreases the likelihood of thatch buildup. If turfgrass roots only extend 1-2 inches into the soil profile, your soil is heavy with a high clay component, your lawn is used heavily or driven over regularly, and/or turf is thin or unthrifty consider aerating. Finally, September is the only recommend time to seed or renovate thinning lawns. Broadcast 4-6 pounds of seed per 1,000 square feet or slit-seed every 2 or 3 years to maintain a uniform, dense, and weed-resistant turf. Mow low and consider dethatching or aerating prior to seeding for improved seed to soil contact. Next year's curb appeal begins today!