7 Things in Your Home That Might Be Secretly Stressing You Out, According to Psychologists

Your summer lawn routine is coming to an end.

Credit: Bonita Cooke/Getty Images

Your lawn may still be green and growing fast when fall rolls around, but that doesn’t mean it needs the same care it did in July. Cooler temperatures and more rainfall can make some summer lawn habits unnecessary or even counterintuitive.

To help you keep your lawn healthy into the fall and winter, we spoke with lawn care experts about routines they recommend dropping now or adjusting as the season changes.

Jim Fucetola, horticulturist and founder of Earthwise Seed Company Brandon Seymour, lawn care expert and founder of Floridist in South Florida Stop Watering on a Summer Schedule

A lawn that needed frequent watering through the hottest stretch of summer may need much less once temperatures cool. “Even though the grass blades appear dry, the root zone underneath could hold more water than it needs, leading to soil compaction, fungal diseases, and root rot,” says Brandon Seymour, lawn care expert and founder of Floridist in South Florida. “As a general rule, you should be watering your lawn 25 to 50% less during the fall and winter months compared to spring and summer.”

The goal isn’t necessarily to shut the sprinklers off the minute September arrives. Fall lawn care is more about responding to what the grass and weather are actually doing rather than sticking to the watering schedule that got you through summer.

Stop Mowing as Often

Grass growth usually slows somewhat as temperatures fall, so your mowing routine should change accordingly. If you automatically mow on the same day every week, you may be cutting grass that hasn’t grown enough to need it. But you also don’t want to let the grass get too long.

“Stopping too early can allow long grass and leaf debris to mat down, while mowing too aggressively before dormancy can scalp the lawn and leave plant crowns exposed to winter stress,” says Jim Fucetola, horticulturist and founder of Earthwise Seed Company. “Homeowners should continue mowing for as long as the lawn is actively growing, but never remove more than approximately one-third of the plant’s height in a single mowing. Blades should also remain sharp to avoid tearing and weakening the grass.”

Rather than following the calendar, again use the grass itself as your cue. It may still need several cuts before winter, just not necessarily at the pace it did earlier in the season.

Stop Applying Nitrogen-Heavy Fertilizer

Fall can be an important lawn-care window, but that doesn’t make every fertilizer appropriate for the season. For example, some nitrogen-based products designed to address summer growth may no longer be necessary once conditions change.

“During the cooler months, lawns naturally require less nitrogen input. Shorter days mean a narrower growth window. That excess nitrogen can cause weak growth, making the lawn more susceptible to pest and disease pressure,” says Seymour. “Instead, look for a 1-1-4 NPK ratio (i.e., 5-5-20) that prioritizes root establishment and winter hardiness over growth color.”

Stop Using Post-Emergent Herbicide

As temperatures cool and growth slows down, the post-emergent weed control strategies you were using throughout the summer can become a little less predictable. Stop applying them altogether or use them with caution.

“Systemic herbicides generally work best when weeds are healthy, actively growing, and able to readily absorb and move the herbicide throughout the plant. Cooler temperatures and other environmental stresses can slow that process,” says Seymour. “That’s why pre-emergent applications become so important in the fall. Instead of waiting for winter weeds to emerge and trying to control them afterward, pre-emergents create a barrier in the soil that targets susceptible weeds as they germinate.”

Simply put, skip the post-emergent products and instead apply pre-emergent weed control in the fall to significantly reduce the number of weeds you have to chase later on.

Stop Ignoring Leaves

A few scattered leaves aren’t going to ruin your grass, but you need to stop ignoring them at this point in the season. “‘Leave the leaves’ has become a popular recommendation among environmentally conscious homeowners, but it matters where those leaves are left,” says Fucetola. “Allowing multiple layers of wet leaves to accumulate on a lawn can block sunlight, restrict airflow, trap moisture, and smother the grass or groundcover underneath.”

To make the job less cumbersome and avoid wasting all that free organic matter, Fucetola recommends mulching or relocating the leaves as they fall. “A light layer of dry leaves can be mulch-mowed into confetti-sized pieces that filter into the lawn, decompose, and return organic matter to the soil,” he says. But if the volume becomes too heavy to mulch effectively, he suggests moving the excess leaves into garden beds, beneath shrubs, or to a designated natural area where they can provide habitat for overwintering insects.

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Credit:

Elana Designs / Photo by Peak Visuals

Add greenery or plants in unique containers to bring warmth and character to the space.Use functional decor like cutting boards and textiles to create texture and visual interest.A warm, inviting kitchen feels more lived-in and welcoming for daily use.

While there’s no reason to strive for a kitchen that’s overly decorated—you’ll then have to worry about clutter—it’s all too easy to feel as though your cooking space is stark. No one wants the room that’s dubbed “the heart of the home” to lack warmth, after all.

By implementing a few key changes, though, it’s more than possible to revive a sterile kitchen without going overboard, professional interior designers explain. Below, three experts share five examples of items that they will always add to a cold, stark-looking kitchen without fail.

Kaylee Pauley is the founder of Kaylee Pauley Interiors. Noel Gatts is the founder of beam&bloom. Elana Mendelson is the founder of Elana Designs. Live Plants or Greenery

Bring the outside into your kitchen with the addition of a live plant or even just a vase filled with greenery, suggests Kaylee Pauley, the founder of Kaylee Pauley Interiors. Then, go the extra mile by placing your green friend inside of an eye-catching vessel for even more welcome visual interest, the designer encourages.

“I tend to gravitate toward handmade pottery planters or vintage brass and copper vessels,” Pauley says. “The mix of natural greenery with those handmade and timeworn materials adds warmth, character and a sense of history to what can otherwise feel like a very new, polished space.”

A Leaning Cutting Board or Two

Mary Patton Design

Cutting boards are of course functional kitchen items, but when they’re not in use, they double as excellent countertop decor, Pauley explains.

“They also add warmth, texture and visual interest,” she says. “I love propping them against the backsplash or layering them with everyday items like salt and pepper pinch pots, olive oil dispensers, or a small plant—it’s an easy way to introduce texture and warmth without making the space feel overly decorated.”

A Pretty Window Treatment

If your kitchen windows are either bare or bland, adding some sort of window treatment is a no-brainer in Noel Gatts’s eyes.

“Upgrading to a simple woven shade or a soft Roman in a colorful pattern or texture is a worthy investment,” says the founder of beam&bloom.

Unsure of what color or pattern to choose?

“Consider tying into the color scheme of your cookware or an adjoining space,” the designer says.

Elana Mendelson, the founder of Elana Designs, feels similarly, noting that the presence of textiles “is such a small addition that makes a huge difference to any space.”

A Cookbook on a Stand

design by beam&bloom / Photo by Shannon Dupre

Gatts is a proponent of setting a cookbook stand on the kitchen counter and then swapping out what’s on display regularly.

“Not only is it an extremely affordable addition that can be a point of interest on its own, but displaying particular pages for different moods, gatherings or seasons adds so much character,” she says.

Going the secondhand route is a great way to save some cash in the process of building out your cookbook library—you’ll come across all kinds of food and beverage titles for sale at the thrift store for just a couple of dollars a pop.

Something Personal

Finally, don’t forget to add a personal touch or two to the kitchen, Mendelson says. While a cooking space is primarily utilitarian, that’s not to say it can’t benefit from the addition of something like a piece of art or special ceramic bowl on display, the designer shares—after all, you’re spending countless hours in this room of the home.

“These little touches remind us that people actually live in and use the space,” she says.

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Sign up today for the Annual Riverfest Event!  Adams Cameron sponsors the Beverage Booth's at this event and we'd love for YOU to get involved!  From Set up, to serving beverages to break down...help is needed!  We look forward to seeing you!  You can bring a friend to volunteer too!

Highlights & Activities:

Live music performances on the main stage (including bands like Hi-Lo Theory)Seafood and local food vendorsArtisan and craft marketFree Kids ZonePub areas streaming live footballAnimal rescue and adoptable pets representation (such as Sophie's Circle)

https://ormondbeachmainstreet.com/riverfest/

https://facebook.com/events/s/ormond-beach-riverfest-2026/1647212583158956/

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