Halloween is a time for celebration, a holiday like no other. If you’re getting into the spirit of the season, you may be concerned about your carefully tended lawn. Here are a few tips that will help you participate in the fun while minimizing possible damage to your grass.
Tidy up. Of course, you already use a leaf blower or a mulching mower to remove fallen leaves regularly so they don’t stop air, water, and nutrients from reaching grass blades. In this case you’ll want to clear paved areas, too, since you’ll be nudging visitors to stay on walkways and driveways to keep them off your grass. A layer of leaves can be slippery at the best of times, and a little rain will just make them more so. It’s also a good idea to do a quick check of your trees for branches that don’t look secure.
Decorate strategically. Plastic decorations should be placed on mulched or paved areas whenever possible. If you must place some on the lawn itself, limit the amount of time you leave them out to the hours when people are most likely to see them and store them before you turn in for the night.
Natural decorations will eventually break down into food for grass, flowers, or shrubs. The most popular Halloween accessory is 100% biodegradable: pumpkins. Carving jack o’lanterns is an opportunity for (careful) family fun, or deploy them in their natural state. When they start to decay, they can be added to your compost pile (although you’ll want to make sure all the seeds have been removed). Gourds are seasonal but not limited to the holiday, so they can continue to add character to your landscape when Halloween is over. Bales of straw (avoid hay!) can serve as platforms for both natural and artificial decorations. If you place them on grass, consider moving them around so they’re not covering one spot for a long period. And when Halloween is over, scatter them around the bases of shrubs or trees.
And don’t forget about all of the great decorating opportunities offered by… air. Skeletons and cobwebs can be hung on a porch, from the edge of a roof, and attached to tree limbs or tall stakes with no risk to your grass whatsoever.
Direct traffic. Halloween décor is especially suited to telling people to “keep off the grass.” For example, if you’re trying to protect a newly seeded Fescue lawn, consider fencing it off with crime scene tape. Highlight the paths you’d like people to take with light stakes or rope lighting.
As you can see, protecting your lawn from Halloween festivities doesn’t require much extra effort. And your grass will thank you! Enjoy the holiday!