As the leaves change colour and fall from the trees, gardening and lawn care may not be top-of-mind but fall is a great time to do some outdoor preparations, making your efforts in spring much for futile.

A nice lawn is more than just some green grass, it adds to the overall community appearance and can make a house feel like a home when you enjoy your own yard. With fall upon us, there are tricks you can do now to increase your chances of having a yard the Jones’ will want to keep up with.

Vanessa Young, horticulturist with gardening at the University of Saskatchewan, suggests to keep your lawn cut to about three inches high not only in fall but through spring and summer as well. This allows the grass to have a longer root system, increases photosynthesis and reduces weed issues, all aiding in a healthier more lush yard.

Young also warns against watering too much and said you want the grass to actually die back a little bit and essentially stop growing during these upcoming months. This will prevent your lawn from being a loss, as death occurs when the water that is in the tissues freezes. If you are or have been watering your lawn upwards of once a week, now is the time to cut back, saving a little money on your water bill as well.

Young said to give your lawn one good soak towards mid-October, aiming for about an inch of water. A trick to determine how much water has gotten on your lawn, is to put a couple empty tuna cans in the area you are watering, when they have been filled up with water, you are done.

There is good news for people who dislike bagging leaves, she said to mow them up once a good layer has accumulated on your lawn. The shredded pieces of leaves essentially act as mulch and the small pieces of leaves will help return the nutrients to your soil rather than bagging them up. This though, is only beneficial for the first couple layers of leaves, after which you should start to bag them.

Fertilizing is also not recommended this late in the year either, as to avoid any added nitrogen. Young stated there are winterizing fertilizers, which are high in potassium and will encourage root growth, however, in our region potassium deficiency is rarely and issue.

For an extensive list of other tips you can do from now until November for your lawn and garden, you can visit the University of Saskatchewan blog here.