The Falling Leaves

It's time again to don the warm fall jackets and rake the leaves. The following are some tips from the University of Minnesota Extension Service for managing leaves in your yard.

As leaves begin to fall, you can just mow them into the lawn, says Bob Mugaas, with the U of M. In other words, mowing can make short work of a light covering of leaves.

If you mow on a regular basis, chances are you won't exceed the amount of leaves you can mow into the lawn, Mugaas adds. "When you're done, your lawn should look as if it's been raked," he says. "If you can see shredded leaves on top of the grass, rake the excess up. Leaves covering the grass block sunlight to the grass plants."

Some trees dump all their leaves in a short period of time. You may need to put the bagger on the mower and collect the leaves at least once, Mugaas advises.

Shredded leaves decompose faster on the lawn than whole leaves. "We have found that some mulching lawnmowers do a good job of shredding leaves into small chips," says Tom Halbach from the U of M.. You can also shred leaves by making several passes with the mower

Fertilizing the lawn will help decompose leaves and give the grass a good start next spring. Halbach says your last fall fertilizer application should go down by about Oct. 27. Apply nitrogen at a rate of one pound per 1,000 square feet. A likely fertilizer ratio will be 4-0-3. If bare patches are taunting you, try dormant seeding in late October. Work the seed into the soil, water it well and hope the soil remains cold (and germination does not begin) until next spring. "It's a bit of a gamble," says Mugaas. "The window of opportunity stays open until early November. Good soil-to-seed contact is imperative. Just scattering seeds on bare ground won't work."

On dormant seeded areas, delay using any herbicide next spring until the lawn has been mowed three or four times. This particularly includes a pre-emergence herbicide for crabgrass. As long as the daytime temperatures remain in the 55- to 60-degree range this fall, there's still time to apply broadleaf weed control products. When daytime temperatures drop below 55 degrees, it's too late.

Sodding can be done thru mid- to late October. Water it in. Exposed sites, especially, should be watered frequently to keep the sod from drying out and to promote rooting. Source Univ. of MN / Internet