It’s one way to stop them growing
Steven Smith Content Editor
01:56, 05 Oct 2025
It’s time to banish weeds(Image: golero via Getty Images)
While autumn may seem like an odd time to start thinking about weeding your garden, it’s the perfect time to maintain them in preparation for their full growth in early spring. Annual weeds often begin their lifecycle in the late summer and then germinate throughout autumn and winter for the spring.
Regular lawn care will help to keep grass growing strongly and deter any unwanted plants. Gardening experts at Yell reveal the common causes of weeds and how to safely control them in your garden. Yell has spoken to head of estates and landscapes at Painshill Park Trust, Simon Akeroyd, to find the best tips this autumn.
I’m a gardening expert – this is what causes excess weeds in autumnPoor drainage
When there is too much water in the soil, weeds compete with grass for resources and spread quickly. Prolonged waterlogging will kill finer grass species and allow the weeds to take over. In the autumn and winter months, increased levels of rain will cause your lawn to become even more waterlogged and weeds will thrive.
Compacted soil
While grass needs a fibrous root system to grow, weeds have a central root system; this means that even in compacted soil, weeds will grow easily and overtake grass species in your garden. Signs that you have compacted soil are bare or thin spots in your lawn – left to their own devices, these spots can become a prime spot for weed growth.
Keep weeds away from your gardenUse non-chemical weed control
While it may seem like an easy solution to buy weed killer off the shelf, these harsh chemicals can impact the quality of your soil and negatively impact plants and wildlife in your garden. There are several non-chemical solutions that you can use to combat weeds this autumn, as recommended by Simon.
Regular lawn care, such as soil aeration, can help support strong roots
Feeding and aerating your lawn play key roles in promoting healthy growth.
Simon suggested: “One of the most effective ways of improving the quality of the lawn in autumn and part of the autumn lawn care maintenance programme, is to aerate it.”
Aeration involves ensuring roots get enough oxygen, which helps them thrive. This can be achieved by maintaining well-draining soil, avoiding waterlogging, or improving soil structure with organic matter for better airflow. Lawn aeration specifically refers to creating small holes in the soil to allow air, water, and nutrients to reach the grass roots.
Simon added: “Aeration helps to relieve compaction, increases drainage, which will reduce moss problems and increases airflow in the soil, which promotes healthier roots system and therefore a better and denser sward of lawn on the surface. You can then brush top dressing into the holes left by the fork to improve the quality of the soil in the rootzone of the lawn.”
By aerating and scarifying your lawn, you encourage stronger grass growth, making it harder for weeds to take hold.
Avoid mowing the lawn very short
Mowing the lawn very short can weaken the grass and in turn make it more susceptible to weeds, amongst other things. For the healthiest and most sustainable lawn, a mowing height of 3.5 to 4 inches is ideal. Lawns cut at this height are better at outcompeting weeds and they maintain an appearance just as attractive as lawns mowed at 2.5 inches. It’s also important to rake before mowing.
Simon said: “Scarifying is a useful lawn maintenance activity to increase the health of the lawn. I use a spring-tinned rake and pull it across the surface of the lawn. This removes much of the thatch, which is the dead and decaying material at the base of the grass blades. It may look harsh but it really helps improve the lawn quality. You will be amazed at how much thatch is on the surface of the grass. The thatch can impede moisture from getting to the roots and smother out the grass blades, resulting in a mossy-looking lawn. Thatch also prevents air circulation and can retain moisture, causing lawn fungal diseases.”
Re-turf and re-seed bare patches
It’s important to re-seed bare patches of lawn in the autumn to prevent weeds from taking hold in the spring and summer.
Simon recommended: “While the soil is still warm from summer, it is a good idea to sow grass seed into any bare patches now, as there is still time for it to germinate before winter.”
Grass feed can help seedlings to root faster and deeper and will help prevent weeds from sprouting.
Simon said: “Simply scratch the surface of the soil with a rake and scatter the grass seed over the top. You can then lightly rake the seed into the soil. I usually apply grass seed at a rate of one handful per square metre.”
Use limes to help manage PH levels of soil
Applying lime will help to balance the PH of the soil and make it a less hospitable place for weeds to take hold, as weeds prefer acidic soil. Apply in the winter months, scattering evenly, at around 50 grams per square metre. Lime can help grass outcompete weeds by making the soil more conducive to grass growth.
Comments are closed.