Do these 3 things in the fall for the best lawn next spring

Timing is the key to success in most things related to gardening. To be successful in the yard and garden, you need to follow nature’s schedule. A great example of this is lawn care. Seeding, fertilization and weed control all need to be done according to a specific schedule to achieve the best results.

According to nature’s schedule, if you want to make considerable improvements to your lawn, the upcoming fall season is the best time. Spring is not a good time for making improvements to the lawn because it is just waking up from winter dormancy. Lawns take a while to wake up, they are similar to teenagers. The lawn will wake up, but it will take a while to start growing and moving.

We have had substantial rainfall this summer. Our lawns are green and growing. As we head into fall, this should be a great season with opportunities to improve our lawns. Here are three things you need to do in the fall.

1. Get rid of weeds now

The first step would be to eliminate as many weeds as possible. Broadleaf weeds can be selectively controlled with herbicides that will eliminate the weeds without hurting the good grass. The product I would like to recommend is Weed Free Zone from Fertilome. This product works very fast, and you can safely plant new seed after just one week.

Weeds that look like grass are a bit more challenging. Since they have the same structure as turf grass, you cannot selectively eliminate these. You need to treat these with a non-selective herbicide such as Hi-Yield Killzall. These products will also kill good grass. Some of the good grass might need to be sacrificed to get the bad.

There is a product that will kill Nut Grass also, called Nut Sedge, without hurting the turf grass. This product is called Sedgehammer. Nut Sedge is a lime-green grass that grows much faster than the turf grass.

You can start working on eliminating weeds now. It is a good idea to start now as some hard-to-kill weeds may require more than one application of the weedkiller. This is the only time of the year when you can take care of weeds before seeding. Your goal is to successfully eliminate weeds before planting any new seed.

2. It's almost time to plant new grass seed

The optimum time for planting new grass seed starts around the middle of September. Fall is the best time for seeding because we have very warm soil that will trigger quick germination. Then as the seed starts to grow into the fall, the air temperatures should be dropping. This will lead the grass to become established fairly quickly. This does not happen in the spring.

The latest you can safely seed is mid-October. Waiting longer comes with the risk that the season ends early before the grass becomes established in your lawn.

The best grass to plant for our climate and soil would be a variety of turf-type tall fescue. Fescues are very drought and disease resistant. They are durable with great color and texture for a great appearance. A highly rated variety available to use in this area is called 4th Millenium.

3. Fertilize your lawn

Fall is also the best time to fertilize your lawn. The two best times to feed your lawn are in mid-September and again in mid-November. You want to use a fertilizer that will provide one pound of nitrogen per 1,000 square feet of lawn. This can be accomplished with another Fertilome product called Lawn Food Plus Iron.

When you fertilize on this schedule you will not need to apply any heavy applications of fertilizer in the spring. In the spring all that you should do is apply pre-emergent weed control. These products usually come with a light amount of fertilizer.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: How to care for your lawn this fall in the Cincinnati climate