How To Keep Grass Green In Winter: Winter Lawn Care Tips

Last Updated on October 29, 2020 by woodcutter

Taking care of your lawn is an all-season activity. All year round, you are supposed to make sure your lawn is in good health. Even in winter, there are some ways you can ensure that your lawn is fit and ready for spring. There are so many ways to take care of your lawn each season. Here are some tips for how to keep your lawn green in winter.

Winter lawn aeration

Heavy rains can cause soil compaction underneath the grass. When you see water not sinking when you water your lawn, this is a sign that your soil is compacted. This means that you need to aerate it.

Compacted soil is too solid, preventing proper circulation of air, water, and nutrients within the soil. This creates breathing problems for the roots. It also limits them enough food they need for survival. Drainage problems can arise as a lack of aeration creates long-term challenges.

Aeration involves making small pores into the soil to allow grassroots to have enough air, water, and nutrients. This process opens up the ground for the roots to breathe, grow deeply, and produce a more vigorous lawn.

When aerating, ensure that your soil is moist enough so that you dig deep enough. If you are using an aerating machine, make several passes, especially over the most compacted areas. If you are using a hand fork, gently strike a few holes through the soil’s top.

Winter lawn fertilizer

Fertilizing is essential even in winter because when you reach the season. Some of the nutrients might have be lost in the previous seasons; hence they should be replaced. The essential nutrients in winter fertilizers are potassium and Iron. Potassium is crucial for strengthening the whole plant and also helps with cell function. Iron helps to improve the color of the leaves. Many consider foliar fertilizers as being more effective than granular during winter. This is because the nutrient can be absorbed through the leaf.

If your region is warmer, you might want to fertilize twice, with May’s first application. These are the early days of the winter season when the soil is not frozen. Generally, this will be in May. Avoid fertilizing your lawn if the temperature is below 15°C. This ensures that your lawn gets the correct feed, thereby increasing its iron levels and general health. Missing this will bring up the problem of your lawn entering the cold season in a weakened condition. Cut short your lawn and catch clippings before fertilizing.

According to general guidelines on fertilizing, the second application should be made after eight weeks. Thus the second batch of fertilizer is due around July. This application feeds the lawn with iron and nutrients needed to sustain it for the rest of the winter season.

Winter lawn Mowing

Leaving your lawn growing tall during winter can attract mice and other rummaging animals. These breed in your lawn ends up destroying it. They build their houses to live in for a long time. Keeping your lawn short limits them from destroying it.

Cut your lawn in small intervals to avoid giving it a shock when you cut it all at once. If possible, try to pick a day when it is a little bit warmer. If not, just make sure your soil is firm enough to avoid uprooting. Set your mower, so its blades are raised higher than you used to cut in other seasons. You may consider raising about two inches higher. Cutting your lawn too low in winter has a similar risk of roots pulling up. Refrain from cutting it during very moist days.

Winter lawn Raking

After mowing your lawn, rake it to remove the grass collected during mowing. If you were wondering how to keep your grass green in winter even after mowing; raking is an extra activity that will ensure your lawn gets the little sunlight that might arise during the cold. Rake up all the leaves that have piled up in your yard. This keeps your lawn clean and free from mice. Raking helps stir up the surface soil and opens pores to the roots. When the snow has accumulated on your lawn, you can also remove it by raking. This makes your lawn not affected by too much cold. Raking is considered the best way to keep your lawn.

Winter lawn Pest control

Common pests that can trouble your lawn include ants, grubs, fleas, ticks, chinch bugs, spiders, just to mention a few. Ants, fleas, and ticks seek warmth when the temperature drops down. They can hide in the leaves for proper comfort. But they end up eating and sucking the leaves of your lawn, disrupting its health. They can also lay eggs in your lawn, thereby multiplying. The effective way to deal with these is to spray them. Visit any pest control shop to purchase pest, killing sprays appropriate for lawns.

Chinch bugs are the most destructive lawn pests. This is because they suck out the juice from your grass. They further inject an anticoagulant that obstructs vascular tissues in your lawn. They lock water and food by walling up inside the plant. They restrict movement causing plant drought. The result is that your lawn dries out, withers, and dies in large patches as the chinch bugs spread. Chinch bugs prefer hiding at the base, so they will spend time there looking for warmth in winter. To get rid of these, keep your lawn clean and well-watered. Make sure your lawn is healthy and cut short.

There are so many different types of pests that can terrorize your lawn. You may suspect pests if you see your lawn dry out or brown spots, dead and dying grass patches. Other signs include bite marks on leaves and insects in the grass. Underground pests damage from the ground, so if you notice missing roots and soil holes, it might be them. You may call a pest control expert to help you out.

Winter lawn Weeding

Weeds can compete with your lawn, especially after the rainy season. They take the same water and nutrients as your lawn. Your lawn may end up starving if you do not deal with them earlier. Many lawn growers say the easiest way to control weeds is to keep your lawn healthy. The alternative and more effective method to get rid of weeds are to apply a “pre-emergent” weed killer. It fights weed growth from its germination, stopping it from shooting in the first place. However, some weeds just dry out during winter, but you should keep on checking your lawn for unwanted plants.

Winter lawn Watering

Water is essential for your lawn hydration in all seasons. Nevertheless, the level of watering in summer is different from one in winter. In winter, you don’t have to water your lawn unless it is dry excessively. When you decide to moisturize it intensively, choose a warmer day so that your lawn is not affected by the cold.

Avoid over-watering your lawn as it makes it vulnerable to fungi. Watering your lawn in winter needs you to monitor the weather conditions closely. As the temperatures drop down, so should your watering habits. The best way to avoid over-watering is to test your lawn if it needs water. Walk on top of it and turn around to look for your footprints. If you don’t see them, it means your lawn is saturated. But if you see them, especially after some considerable time, maybe 30 to 25 minutes, your lawn needs water.

For winter watering, adjust your sprinkler to not sprinkle too much water, which might not be favorable. If your sprinkler has a timer, adjust the timer so that your sprinkler doesn’t spend much time on one area. After watering for about 10 to 15 minutes, use the screwdriver technique to test for the water level. You wouldn’t want to have a dam of water on your lawn in winter. The chances of it evaporating faster are very slim. Overwatering in winter also wastes water and money. The trick is to know your lawn watering needs to avoid it.

Minimizing movements on top of your lawn

Winter is the season when your lawn is prone to easy damage whatsoever. You should minimize movements on top of your lawn. This may damage both the newly growing and already grown lawn. If you have kids around, do not permit them to play on top of the lawn. And with the cold weather, you wouldn’t want them to catch a cold outside. Give your lawn some rest and space to grow slowly without disturbing it.

Avoiding salt damage

Winter is a season for de-icing. However, de-icing products have salts that may damage your nearby grassy leaching to it. This can cause “physiological drought,” which is a condition that impedes nutrient uptake and also creates bare spots. Choose de-icing products that have been made with calcium chloride, which doesn’t damage your lawn. Avoid piling up snow on top of your grass after you shovel it from the sidewalks. Do not leave bags of de-icing salts near your lawn. It won’t survive the salt.

Final Verdict

Now that you have read through on how to keep your grass green in winter, you are all set. Apply these Winter Lawn Care Tips so that your lawn stays healthy throughout the winter and other seasons. You shouldn’t relax taking care of your lawn because it’s the winter season. You wouldn’t want to lose the beauty of your yard, would you?