These 6 steps are the essential fall maintenance tasks to keep a healthy yard and house, and get your property ready for the winter months. Spending time outside doing yard work will also give you a chance to enjoy the crisp fall weather and changing leaves! Read on for tips on how to make your seasonal chores easier than ever.

1. Clean gutters

Falling leaves and other debris from trees are the main culprits that cause clogged gutters and downspouts. Be sure to clean your gutters and downspouts at least once after the trees are bare. It’s important that your gutters aren’t clogged going into winter so that runoff from melting snow can drain properly.

If your gutters are clogged, your roof can leak and snow and ice can accumulate and weigh down your gutters. This is something you definitely don’t want to happen, as it can lead to needing extensive, and expensive, repairs.

2. Prune trees

Pruning your trees is important for preventing fallen snow from weighing down branches in the winter. If branches are weighed down excessively, they can snap off. This would pose an especially serious problem if your tree were close to your roof or where you park your car.

3. Maintain your garden

Remove dead annuals and vegetable plants and add them to the compost heap for nourishment. Till the soil thoroughly and add compost from your current stash on top. Come spring, you will have healthy nutrient rich soil for your next round of planting.

4. Clean up those leaves!

Raking leaves; the quintessential fall yard work task. This is a great chore to involve the kids in, although they may become preoccupied with making a game of jumping in the leaves!

Fallen leaves make great compost, so be sure to add them to your heap.

5. Seal your deck

Fall is the time to seal your deck. Summer days spent on the deck will be behind us, and the harsh winter weather is approaching. Before applying a sealing treatment, you should clean your deck with a thorough power washing and let it dry completely.

6. Care for the lawn

Fall is an important time to fertilize grass in order to get it ready to become dormant in the winter. We recommend using a fall-specific fertilizer, as this will contain the proper mix of nutrients. It’s also a great time to lay seed in order to give your lawn a head start for spring.

Fall yard and garden care is vital for preparing your property to lay dormant in the winter, and in turn having a beautiful yard come spring. Quite literally, the seeds you sow now will bare fruit come spring time. With these easy steps, fall yard maintenance will be a breeze, and you can look forward to a gorgeous yard through spring and summer.