Fall lawn care tips
Your lawn needs special care to get through the coldest months. We give you the key information you need to look after your lawn in Autumn. Read the following article for an ideal fall lawn care schedule and all the fall lawn care tips you will need to prepare your garden for the winter.
10.03.2026
Fall Lawn CARE: Clearing the lawn before winter
Although your lawn has natural defenses from the colder seasons, a proper autumn lawn care routine can prevent major or minor damage once spring rolls around. The most important thing to care for your lawn in fall is clear your lawn before winter sets in.
Remove leaves
Remove any leaf-fall debris and twigs as the first step to preparing your lawn in autumn. If you leave your lawn covered up, oxygen will not be able to circulate, which makes it vulnerable to pests and disease.
Fall lawn care tip: You can use your lawn mower to help you if you don’t want to rake the leaves by hand. First, fit it with a collection box, then set it to a high cutting setting and run the mower over the fallen leaves. When collecting, make sure they are thick and dry to reduce clearing time. You should clear leaves from your yard by mid-November at the latest, and ideally when the sun is shining.
The last cut of the year: Fall lawn care
One fall lawn care tip is that grass should be cut short with the last mowing of the year. This is to prevent the plants from being crushed under the weight of any snowfall, and also reduces the risk of fungus taking hold. We recommend that you use a lawn mower with collection box for this, as it makes removing the cutting residue a bit less tedious – and it’s important that you do take care to remove the clippings, as it won’t be possible to clear them from the ground once the temperature drops, and they can smother the surface of your lawn.
When to mow at the end of the season:
- Before the first frost
- On a dry day
- When it’s cloudy
Lawn height in autumn
Cut your lawn to the usual height—around 5 cm. If you have shady areas in your lawn, cut to 9 cm before the cold season.
Give your lawn mower a winter inspection
Your autumn lawn care schedule should also include time to winterize your lawn mower. Empty the tank, check the oil level and carefully clean all parts of the machine. Sharpen the cutting blade and store your lawn mower somewhere dry until it is time to put it back to work.
Fall lawn care schedule: When should I mow the lawn?
You should plan to mow the lawn before the first frost, though take care not to do it too early, as a few days of nice weather will stimulate more growth. A dry day some time between the end of October and mid-November is ideal. The drier the lawn, the easier this last step will be to complete.
When should I scarify my lawn?
As the nights start to get colder and the days shorter, it’s not a good idea to include scarifying in your fall lawn care schedule. If you want to address a moss problem, it’s better to wait for the mild temperatures next spring: the ideal time to scarify your lawn is between April and May or late August and September, depending on the weather conditions. Ideally, the soil should be warm and air temperatures above 10°C.
Replenishing nutrients: applying lawn feed
Feeding is an essential part of lawn care. In autumn, it's especially important to give your lawn a final dose of fertilization. The nutrients will help your lawn make it through the long winter months. Be aware that most conventional lawn fertilizers are too nitrogen-rich, which isn't what you want in the fall. Instead, you should apply a potassium-rich fall lawn fertilizer. Potassium makes the lawn more resistant to frost and better able to withstand the darker months.
Fall lawn care: when should I apply lawn feed?
After the last cut of the season, keep up the pace by spreading fertilizer evenly over the entire lawn.
As a rule of thumb, apply lawn feed before the first ground frost and after the last cut of the season. As soon as temperatures are consistently cooler—from mid-October to the start of November—it’s time to prepare your lawn for rest with a specially formulated autumn fertilizer. The lawn’s metabolism naturally pauses between 10°C and 5°C, so you should look at the previous year’s temperatures to gauge the best time: if it was consistently below 10°C to 5°C from mid-November, you should be fertilizing in early October.
Repairing damage: overseeding new growth
Autumn is also the ideal time to sow seeds for new grass; use the last few warm weeks so the lawn has a chance to recover. Start by liberally watering scorched and damaged areas to rinse away built-up salts. Next, loosen the ground or lay down some fresh soil, then sprinkle seed over the affected areas. Finally, cover everything with potting soil and keep the lawn generously watered until the seeds germinate.
It’s ideal to make sowing grass seed part of your September fall lawn care activity, as the soil is still warm and there is usually enough rain. Try not to plant grass seed too late, as frost will prevent growth.
Summary: FALL LAWN CARE TIPS
- Remove leaves and branches from the lawn
- Keep mowing your lawn while it is growing
- Do the last mow of the year once temperatures start regularly falling below 10°C to 5°C
- cut your grass to a height of 5 cm – or 9 cm for shady lawns
- If you have a lot of moss, scarify in September at the latest
- For the last autumn lawn feed, apply a specialist fertilizer that contains potassium
- If you wish, you can overseed for new grass in September
