September is an important month for lawn care. If you watered diligently through the hot, dry summer, lawn care for fall will be easier.

The average temperature in Utah falls more than 10 degrees from August to September. Not only are the temperatures cooler, but the days are shorter too. This means your lawn will need less water — about 25 percent less. Even though the sun isn’t as strong or out as long in September, it’s still important to follow good watering practices so your lawn is properly hydrated and you aren’t wasting precious resources.

While the summer may be drawing to a close, you’ll still need to cut your grass throughout the month of September. Traditional lawn care wisdom says you should cut only one-third off grass blades so as not to stress them or cause burnout.

You can also affect blade growth. But you’re not thinking so much about growth in September; you’re thinking about shoring up your lawn’s strength before the long, hard winter.

Popular Mechanics says to set your mower blade at its lowest setting for the last two cuttings of the year, to allow the remaining sunlight to reach more of the grass blades.

September is also the optimal time for seeding and overseeding. Unless your grass is perfect in every way, it can probably benefit from some seed. The heat of summer can stall grass growth in its tracks, so the cooler temperatures in early fall make it the perfect time to plant.

Now’s a good time to aerate your lawn as well. If you don’t own an aerator, you can rent one. Manual aerators aren’t too expensive, or you could try the ones you strap to your feet with spikes on the bottom. But be warned, you’ll work up a sweat with even the power aerators, so consider manual only if you have a small lawn.

September is also the perfect time to fertilize your lawn, and the right mix is critical.

When you go to the home and garden store to buy some fertilizer, you will see hundreds of bags with innumerable combinations of numbers on the front, like 5-10-5. Different combinations are appropriate in different areas for different times of the year. If you don’t trust the store clerk to know which one you need, you might want to turn this job over to a professional.

Finally, keep up with the leaves that fall. You needn’t bother raking them up every weekend — just mulch them instead. This will be less work for you, and better for your lawn.

If the thought of all this lawn care makes you tired, or interferes with your plans for relaxing and enjoying your weekend, call Earthworks Landscaping. We can get your lawn in shape for the fall so it will look beautiful again come next spring.