Lawn Care - Lawn Care Maintenance Tips

Lawn Care Maintenance Tips in Winter

January 7th, 2007 Subscribe To Our Feed

During the early fall months, you may not be thinking of winter lawn care maintenance, but it is essential that the appropriate actions are taken to ensure a healthy lawn when the next spring comes.

Some of the things you could do as the winter months approach include:

1. Lowering the height of your lawn mower
Winter should begin without any tender lawn left so that it doesn’t become a breeding ground for winter lawn diseases. By the time winter is here, you should have shaved off your lawn to get it ready. However, to avoid damaging the turf you should do this in several steps and not all at once.

2. Do a final fertilization in the fall months
Your lawn won’t use the fertilizer immediately because of the inactive lawn, but your lawn will store the fertilizer in the root system and use it again in the first signs of spring. Be sure to aerate your lawn before the first sign of frost to help with your winter lawn care. A good aeration will set the stage for beautiful lawn when spring comes.

3. Clean Up For Winter Lawn Care
Clearing your lawn of any debris can be extremely important. This includes any playground equipment, pools, hoses, leaves, toys, logs, or gardening equipment. Basically anything that is sitting directly on the grass should be removed. Once the snow comes, these items can smother your grass and damage your turf. This also can leave your lawn vulnerable to disease if not taken care of properly.

Field mice can do damage to a lawn so if you live in a particularly susceptible area, then clean out under any shrubs, especially low lying ones which can act as a warm cover for the mice to eat up your lawn.

4. Storing your fertilizers and grass seeds
If stored properly, most of these stuff will be able to be used again the following year. You should keep the grass seed cool and dry, preferably in a garage where mice can’t get into the bag. If your fertilizer bags are already opened make sure that you seal it securely so that no moisture from the air can enter the bag.

Pesticide products should not be allowed to freeze, so leaving those outside might be a bad idea if you live in an especially cold area, so choose a secure area away from pets and children, and away from heat and flame. A basement with room that can be locked is excellent for storing pesticides.

Conclusion
Winter is a great time to brush up on your knowledge of winter and summer lawn care. Read as many books or magazines to find out the best way to care for your lawn so that when spring time comes around, you are prepared for the new growths.

Take this time to learn some gardening too. Applying what you have learnt to your lawn will make it something that you can be proud of.