Seasonal guide
A month-by-month lawn and yard calendar for Fallbrook
The short answer
In Fallbrook, plant and overseed in fall, prune in winter, cut weeds and tune sprinklers in spring, and mow high and water early through summer. The year turns on two things: rain that falls almost entirely between November and March, and a long dry season that ends with the Santa Ana winds.
The calendar
This is for inland North County: Fallbrook, Bonsall, Rainbow and the valleys around them. Temecula runs a little hotter and Vista a little cooler, but the order of the year is the same.
| Month | Lawn | Yard |
|---|---|---|
| January | Mow fescue every other week. Bermuda is dormant; leave it alone. | Prune roses and dormant fruit trees. Pull weeds while they are small and the soil is soft. |
| February | Keep sprinklers off while it is raining regularly. | Finish pruning. Cut back ornamental grasses before new growth starts. |
| March | Feed fescue. Move back toward weekly mowing as growth picks up. | Spread mulch 3 inches deep before the heat. Start watching open ground for tall weeds. |
| April | Weekly mowing for all grass types. Tune up the sprinkler system. | First defensible space cut, once the rain has stopped and before the grass turns to straw. |
| May | Feed bermuda and kikuyu now that they are growing hard. Aerate warm-season lawns. | Finish weed clearing. Check drip lines and emitters on every bed. |
| June | Raise the mowing height on fescue to about 3 inches. | Deadhead and tidy. Water early in the morning. |
| July | Water deeply and less often. Look for dry spots and fix the coverage, not the run time. | Hold off on planting. Keep new plants from spring watered. |
| August | Keep mowing high. Do not feed fescue in the heat. | Second, lighter weed cut where spring growth has come back. |
| September | Start easing sprinkler run times down as the days shorten. | Clear roofs and gutters of leaves before the Santa Ana winds. |
| October | Aerate and overseed fescue. Feed it. | Planting season opens: natives, shrubs, trees and low-water gardens. |
| November | Drop to every other week as growth slows. | Keep planting. Rake leaves off the lawn so it does not thin under them. |
| December | Turn sprinklers off after real rain and leave them off until the soil dries. | Cover frost-tender plants on cold, clear nights in low spots. |
Know which grass you have
Most of the calendar depends on it. Fallbrook lawns are usually one of two kinds, and plenty of yards have both.
Cool-season grass is mostly tall fescue. It stays green all year, grows hardest in spring and fall, and struggles in August. Mow it at about three inches in summer. Feed it in spring and fall, never in the heat. Overseed it in October.
Warm-season grass is bermuda, kikuyu or St. Augustine. It loves heat, grows fast from April to October, and slows or goes tan in winter. Bermuda and kikuyu are cut short, around an inch and a half. Feed them in late spring once they are growing.
Water follows the season, not the calendar on the controller
A lawn needs several times more water in July than in January. A controller set once and left alone is wrong for most of the year. Turn it down in fall, off when it rains, and up gradually in spring. A seasonal tune-up in April and again in October covers it, and a weather-based controller does it on its own.
Fall is planting season here
In most of the country people plant in spring. In Fallbrook, October and November are better. The soil is warm, the rain is coming, and a plant put in the ground in fall has months to root before it faces a dry summer. Spring planting works, but it means a first summer of careful watering.
Two cuts for fire season
Open ground grows tall grass through the wet months. Cut it in spring before it cures, then check it again in late summer. The second pass is usually quick, and it comes right before the windiest, driest weeks of the year. The defensible space guide covers what to clear and how far out.
Quick answers
Questions people ask.
When should I fertilize my lawn in Fallbrook?
Feed tall fescue in early spring and again in fall. Feed bermuda and kikuyu in late spring once they are growing strongly. Do not fertilize fescue in the heat of summer.
When is the best time to overseed a lawn in Fallbrook?
October. The soil is still warm, the heat has passed, and winter rain helps the seed establish. Aerate first so the seed reaches soil.
How often should I mow in Fallbrook?
Weekly from about April through October, when warm-season grasses grow fastest, and every other week from late fall through winter. Never remove more than one third of the grass height in a single cut.
Keep reading
Find out what your yard costs.
Build an estimate in about a minute, or send us your address and we will do the measuring.