Fall Lawn Prep: 9 Steps to Set Up Your Warm-Season Lawn for Winter, by Lowcountry Lawn on YouTube. 6 min 38 s.
- Video length
- 6 min 38 s
- Time to do it
- 2 hours
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Steps
- 9
What you need
Steps
Stop applying nitrogen fertiliser in fall. Nitrogen pushes soft new growth that cold weather kills and that invites disease.
Take a soil test before you buy anything. Send a sample to a lab or use a home kit and note the pH and nutrient levels.
Apply a pre-emergent herbicide when soil temperatures drop toward 70 F. Prodiamine or dithiopyr work for warm-season grass.
Prevent Large Patch fungus by applying an azoxystrobin fungicide as soil cools. Water it in and follow the label rate.
Raise your mower deck one or two notches for the last cuts. Taller grass shades the soil and holds warmth better.
Cut back on watering as growth slows. Water deeply but less often so the soil is not soggy going into winter.
Skip the mistakes: no heavy nitrogen, no scalping, no late overwatering and no dormant weed spraying.
Treat winter weeds early with a pre-emergent while soil is still warm. Waiting until weeds show means you are too late.
Winterise your gear: clean the mower deck, sharpen the blade, service the spreader and store chemicals safely.
Tips and common mistakes
Read and follow every product label, since rates and timing differ by grass type and brand.
Adjust all timing to your climate, because the South Carolina Lowcountry schedule runs later than northern areas.
Do not scalp the lawn before winter, as short grass loses cold protection.
Keep soil test results so you can compare them next fall.
Questions
When should I apply fall pre-emergent?
Apply it when soil temperatures fall toward 70 F, usually early to mid fall in warm climates. Check your local extension service for your area.
Can I use the same schedule for Bermuda and St. Augustine?
The steps are similar but rates and timing differ by grass. Always check the product label for your specific grass type.
Should I fertilise my lawn in fall?
Skip nitrogen in fall on warm-season grass. Focus on soil testing, pre-emergent and disease prevention instead.
This guide was drafted from the video's details and general task knowledge. It has not been checked against the full video. Check the video and relevant product instructions before following a procedure. Report a correction.
