Winterizing Your Lawn

It is cooling down quickly in many parts of the United States. If your area hasn’t experienced the first freeze of the season yet, it is only a matter of time before the first serious cold fronts move in. Winter is the time of year that many homeowners like to take a break from lawn maintenance, but a healthy, thriving lawn requires attention year-round. Luckily, winter lawn care is much less time consuming and complicated than a spring and summer regiment. Below, you’ll find a list of tips and tricks to keep your lawn in good shape this winter. After you’ve read this article, be sure to also take a look at How to Keep Your Lawn Green During the Winter.

1. Keep it simple. Winter is not a time to overcompensate—too much mowing or watering is ultimately harmful.
2. Manage leaves, branches, nuts, and other fallen material. Allowing debris to build up can cause disease and water issues. For more information on debris management, read Autumn’s Fallen Leaves: How to Manage Them.
3. In periods of prolonged or persistent rainfall/snowmelt, monitor the lawn for patch disease and use fungicide as a preventive measure if necessary.
4. If you live in a dry area, be sure to monitor weather activity and water the lawn a few days in advance before a cold snap. The deadliest combination for lawns is dry + cold weather.
5. During the winter months, lawns mowed a bit taller are typically the healthiest. Mow as needed to mulch leaves, but be careful not to cut the grass too low or to “scalp” it.
6. If you choose to overseed, mow every 10-14 days so that it doesn’t get too long or it may cause issues for the host grass.
7. An option to keep a green lawn through the winter months is to apply a colorant. This kind of technology has come a long way in recent years and is a simple solution for dormant lawns. To learn more, read Turf Colorant: A Great Option for Maintaining Winter Color in Warm Season Lawns.

Subscribe to our e-newsletter below if you haven’t done so already to receive the latest updates from Sod University.