How much longer should I cut my lawn this fall?

My answer to this question is always an expression I use “keep mowing if the grass keeps growing”. Mowing heights should now begin to be lowered. Lowering the height .25” each time you mow (down to 2.25”), will allow more of the stored nutrients to enhance the root system while also preventing severe winter injury to grass tips.

As our average daily temperatures get lower, the grass will stay green, but there will not be any new grass growth. This growth usually stops around Thanksgiving which is also a great time to feed your lawn with a quick release, high nitrogen fertilizer. This late fall application does not cause your lawn to start growing again but it will give your lawn a much stronger root system, and provide a great winter and early spring color.

Denny,

I am totally confused about cutting my roses back for winter. I’ve heard to prune them back to 3 feet now to some saying to cut them back to 12 inches now. What do you say?

Rose bushes should be kept 3 feet or taller for winter. This means there is really no need to prune them at all but if you really want to prune, don’t prune the roses back shorter than 3 feet tall. The reason for keeping roses taller is, during the very cold winter, they start to die back from their ends. So if you cut the canes too short now the winter die back could kill the entire cane. Wait until mid to late March for your heavy rose pruning. Prune them back to 12 inches from the ground. Reminder - your Knock Out roses could bloom into December, maybe longer.

The above pruning instructions do not apply to climbing roses which bloom next year on this year’s new growth. On your climbers, only prune away any growth that is out of bounds, but no more.

Denny,

Do all the fallen leaves have to be removed from my lawn? Don’t they help protect my lawn during the cold winter?

All leaves should be removed from the lawn so those leaves don’t smother the grass blades. If you left the leaves on your lawn it would give you the same looking lawn that you find in the woods (which is no lawn)! . Leaves should also be removed from around your trees and shrubs as well. Left in place they will pack down like a sheet of plastic and prevent needed moisture from getting through to the soil underneath. All plants need moisture in the soil year round.

Final Note: A reminder – you can install new trees and shrubs all November and December. Do-it-yourselfers can save lots of money on new plants when planted in late fall. Nurseries and garden centers don’t want to put away any unsold plants and will greatly reduce the price this time of year. Plus any plant installed in late fall still gets off to a quicker start than spring planting.