Five tips to help your lawn survive winter
Combine cold, wet days with reduced light from overcast skies and it’s no wonder lawns struggle to look their best over the winter.
Here’s what you can do to help your lawn get through this tricky season.
1. Start early
Autumn’s cool evenings, warm days and occasional rains make for perfect growing weather. Get ahead with repairs now to speed the recovery of summer damage.
2. Make repairs
Rake out moss, thatch and debris to encourage the grass to spread. Spike the lawn to improve drainage and air circulation. Over-seed to thicken grass coverage and apply a top dressing to improve soil structure and drainage. If done early enough in autumn, the lawn will bounce back before winter fully sets in.
- Remove weeds manually or with a lawn-formulated weed killer
- Control moss with Lawn Sand
- Apply an autumn feed
- Seed entire lawn to blend colour
Rake out moss, thatch and debris to encourage the grass to spread.
Remove weeds manually or with a lawn-formulated weed killer.
Over-seed to thicken grass coverage.
Apply an autumn feed.
3. Remove fallen leaves
A blanket of leaves will make lawns patchy as the grass dies of underneath. Rake up them up or collect with a rotary mower to make a great compost. Using a ratio of 20-part leaves to 1-part lawn clippings, fill a compost bin or meshed enclosure and allow to decompose. Come next autumn you’ll have a beautiful leaf mould to use as a mulch for your borders. It’ll also encourage highly prized garden friendly wildlife, such as hedgehogs, to overwinter on your plot.
4. Mowing
When mild autumn weather extends further into early winter, it prolongs the mowing season. Cutting grass encourages it to thicken, allowing it to out compete weeds. The time to stop mowing is when the daily air temperature regularly drops below 10°c.
- Encourages lawn to thicken
- Promotes shorter grass height
- Trim edges for neatness
Cutting grass encourages it to thicken, allowing it to out compete weeds.
Trim edges for neatness.
5. Don’t fret
All lawns look their worst in the dead of winter. Be assured that your preparations will give yours the best chance to bounce back with the return of Spring.
For more information on lawn care, download our dedicated guide:
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