Fall Home Maintenance: Leaves, Lawn, and Landscaping
As the weather changes, so do the life cycle of many trees, shrubs, and ornamental flowers. Deciduous trees will start putting on their annual color show and drop their leaves. While leaf cleanup is a large part of fall home maintenance, it’s by no means the only item on the checklist. There are several other steps for preparing and preserving the outside of your property.
Leaf Litter Impacts More Than the Yard
Inconvenient though it may be, clearing leaves from the yard will always be a fall home maintenance necessity. It’s important to clear the gutters of fallen leaves ahead of winter. Throughout the fall, routinely check the gutters to determine if they need to be cleaned out. Pay attention to your surroundings while you are cleaning the gutters, and don’t hesitate to ask someone to spot you from the ground in case the ladder needs to be stabilized.
A Shift in Your Approach to Lawn Care for Fall Home Maintenance
You may have already mowed the lawn for the final time this year, but the yard still needs upkeep in order to flourish this upcoming spring. Fall is a great time to spread pelletized lime throughout the yard to reduce the soil’s acidity and help the grass absorb more nutrients.
Many of the lime products on the shelves of your local home and garden center are slow-release varieties, and applying the lime during the fall season leaves adequate time for it to restore the pH balance in the soil. You’ll generally only do this once in the fall, and consider spreading lime again in the spring for good measure.
Assess the Property’s Landscaping Needs
Fall home maintenance should also include light tree pruning if branches have grown out too close to your home. This will protect your home from winter storm damage. If you choose to do more maintenance on the plants, be careful and do your research as many varieties shouldn’t be pruned in the fall. Other plants may not bloom in the spring if they’re cut back improperly or at the wrong time of year.
Fall home maintenance involves caring for both the inside and outside of your house. The sooner you get started, the sooner your tasks be done, and your home will be well-prepared when winter arrives.
Redbud Home Inspections offers home inspection services to Bartlesville, Grand Lake, Owasso, Tulsa, and the surrounding areas in Oklahoma. Contact us to request our services.