Autumn Yard Jobs

Autumn yard work isn’t just about cleaning up fallen leaves — it’s an essential opportunity to nurture your lawn, garden, and outdoor spaces so they stay healthy through winter and flourish come spring. This guide offers practical tips on weeding, pest control, pruning, planting, and fertilising to get your yard in top shape before the winter season sets in.​

Weeds

• Watch out for weeds like bindi, clover and flat weeds as they tend to invade lawns as the weather cools. Make sure to use the correct herbicide for your specific lawn.
• The recent rains will mean that your garden and lawns are ready to go crazy as soon as the sun returns. The transfer of weed seeds via overland water will mean that not only your plants will shoot, but so will the weeds. Weeding by hand while they are small and manageable (and the soil is soft) is the best plan. 

Pests

• Brown spots in your lawn might indicate lawn grub infestations. You may not have been able to mow your lawn much over the last several weeks, so grub damage may be hidden under the new, green tips of your lawn. As soon as you mow for the first time large brown areas appear. Treat for grub, and when the sun comes out and stays returns your lawn will quickly repair.
• Watch for infestations of hibiscus beetle that can cause premature bud drop. Pick up and dispose of any fallen buds, as they are likely to contain beetle.
• Check your plants for scale, sooty mould, mealy and lantana bugs.
• Inspect bulb plants for caterpillars and drench with molasses.
• Check your frangipani for rust disease. Some smaller plants can be treated with Plantvax or even Mancozeb, but you may experience mixed results. Not to worry, leaves will drop soon, and the problem will disappear!

Pruning and Planting

• Take geranium, azalea, camellia and gardenia cuttings, plus native plants.
• Trim plants that have become too rampant over the drenching summer.
• Tip prune your poinsettias, azaleas, geraniums and gardenias to encourage growth.
• Prune any mango trees still in need of trimming.
• Cut back your salvia now for strong autumn growth and flowers.
• Lift, divide and replant heliconia, ornamental gingers and related plants.
• Plant your new bulbs.

Fertilise

• Apply compost and fertiliser to the entire garden. Extra nutrients will keep new growth and buds forming on hibiscus and roses.
• Use a complete mix including trace elements on fruit trees and renew mulch.
• Repot any indoor plants, patio pots or hanging baskets that need attention and fertilise all pots with a dry or pelleted product.
• Put fertiliser on your lawn to give it a boost heading into winter.