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With winter coming up fast, this is the time to get out in your yard and take care of some fall yard care. Need some help planning your fall yard chores? Following is a fall yard care checklist you can use to make sure you don’t neglect any important tasks.

• Trim back your perennials and fertilize their soil.

• Rake up your fall leaves. This will probably be your most time-consuming chore (if you have a lot of trees). Get the leaves off your grass for sure. What about your garden? That is up to you, but if you leave them alone, they should act as useful compost.

• Aerate your grass if you have low spots where water has gathered.

• Once your lawn has been raked of leaves and aerated, mow it.

• Check your trees for any brittle, dead limbs which might fall under the weight of snow. If you find any, saw them down now. This will help to protect your property as well as children and animals that cross through your yard.

• If there are any plants you want to grow which do best if they are planted in autumn, don’t wait too long. If you try to plant them too close to winter, they may struggle over the months ahead.

• Check your pipes. If they have water in them which might freeze overnight, drain them thoroughly. Neglecting this step can result in ice building up in your pipes. This may block off your water supply, or worse, cause your pipes to burst.

• Replace or repair damaged yard equipment. This includes anything which was broken during spring, summer or autumn, as well as any winter supplies which may have fallen out of repair. Ensure that snow shovels and snow blowers are ready to go.

• Step inside your garden shed and make sure that all your gardening supplies for spring are also in order. Take a look at your tools and plastic bins for yard waste and gardening. Make sure that you have everything you need. Oftentimes, a successful garden relies on very specific timing. You do not want to miss out on spring planting opportunities because your shed is under-stocked.

• Consider organizing your garden shed and your lawn equipment. You might even want to think about tackling the mess in your garage. If you are telling yourself you will do this during winter, think again. By then, you will be busy with holiday preparations, and you probably will just want to stay indoors where it is warm with a mug of cocoa.

Fall yard work can be a daunting task, but you will reap the rewards when you find yourself with a beautiful lawn and garden come spring. So put in the hard work now, and enjoy taking more time to rest and relax during the cold, snowy months of winter. Get your spouse and kids involved if you can. The work will go a lot faster, and afterwards, you can celebrate by doing something fun as a family.