When to Do Fall Yard Cleanup in Durango (and What to Skip)
In Durango's high-desert climate at 6,500 feet, the fall cleanup window is short. Here is when to rake, when to cut the grass short, when to blow out sprinklers, and what is not worth your money.
The fall cleanup window in Durango is roughly late September through the end of October. First frost usually lands somewhere between the last week of September and mid-October, and once the ground freezes hard, a lot of the work gets harder and some of it stops being possible. Do it in that window and you save yourself a mess in the spring.
The Durango-specific part
Durango sits at 6,512 feet in a semi-arid valley. That changes the standard advice you find online in three ways:
- Leaves come down fast and late. Cottonwoods along the Animas can drop most of their canopy in a week or two once the cold hits. Waiting for “all the leaves” is how people get caught by the first snow.
- The ground dries out, it doesn’t stay soggy. Unlike wetter climates, dry leaf litter here blows around and piles against fences and window wells instead of matting down. It is easier to clear, but it also travels into your neighbor’s yard.
- Irrigation has to be blown out. A sprinkler system left charged through a Durango winter will crack. This is not optional here the way it is in Phoenix.
The order that works
1. Cut the grass shorter than usual on the last mow. Around 2 to 2.5 inches. Long grass matted under snow is how you get snow mold and dead patches in April.
2. Clear the leaves off the lawn — and away from the house. Leaves smothering turf all winter kill it. Leaves piled against siding, in window wells, and around the foundation hold moisture and attract mice looking for somewhere warm.
3. Pull the weeds that went to seed. Every seed head you leave in September is next June’s problem, multiplied. Cheatgrass and bindweed in particular.
4. Blow out the sprinklers before a hard freeze. Compressed air through each zone, backflow drained. Late September to mid-October is the window. If you are not sure whether yours has been done, it probably hasn’t.
5. Cut back perennials and haul the debris. Branches, dead annuals, spent garden beds. Getting it out now means the spring cleanup is a short one.
What to skip
- Bagging every last leaf off garden beds. A light layer of leaf litter over beds is free insulation and free mulch. It is only a problem on turf.
- Fertilizing late. Once growth has stopped, fertilizer mostly runs off. Save the money.
- Aerating after the ground has hardened. If you didn’t get to it in early fall, wait for spring.
- Pruning most trees in fall. Fresh cuts going into winter invite problems. Prune in late winter instead.
If you would rather not do it
Fall cleanup is our busiest service, and the calendar fills from the last week of September on. Book early if you want a specific week.
Call or text Troy at (505) 412-0956 or Malachi at (505) 901-1793. Free estimates anywhere in Durango, Colorado.