A lot of homeowners don’t feel confident about their winter lawn care choices. We know our grass is dormant, but what does that mean exactly? At Simply Organic, we’re committed to helping you achieve the beautiful landscape of your dreams using natural products and methods. Here are a few of the misconceptions we’ve heard about winter lawn care, along with the actions we recommend.
Lawns Don’t Need Care in the Winter
After nine or so months of regimented lawn maintenance, many of us would like to treat winter as a respite. It’s true that your chore list contracts when it’s cold, but it would be a mistake to leave your turf to fend for itself. You should continue to conduct regular walks around your yard to check on the health of your grass, shrubs, trees, and other plants, but you probably don’t need to do them as frequently as you ordinarily would.
Grass Doesn’t Need to Be Mowed in the Winter
There’s a big difference between the dormant state that grass enters to conserve energy when resources are scarce and actual death. For one thing, dormant grass is still growing, albeit sometimes at a barely detectable rate. The determining factor is the weather. In other parts of the country, a couple of feet of snow are a useful indicator that you don’t need to mow. In our area, if the sun is shining and the temperature is above freezing, you may well need to mow before winter is over.
Turf Doesn’t Need Fertilization in the Winter
In spring, signs of rebirth are all around us, so it’s understandable that we feel like we should hold off on fertilizing until the season is arriving. But fall and winter are the times when your grass could most benefit from an infusion of nutrients. Application of a slow-release fertilizer before it gets too cold will support grass in dormancy and help it emerge healthy and strong when the weather warms up.
It’s important to avoid quick-release fertilizers in fall and winter. The jolt of energy they provide may trick grass into thinking it’s time to start actively growing at exactly the wrong moment.
It’s Illegal to Water Your Lawn in Winter
Water restrictions in our service area are generally based on conditions other than the change of seasons. We don’t have to worry much about irrigation pipes freezing. In Georgia, the Water Stewardship Act of 2010 limits outdoor watering using public sources to the period between 4:00pm and 10:00am but exempts hand watering with a hose and irrigation systems that use drip and soaker hoses. Throw in the exemption for well water, and the result is not very restrictive. Of course, conditions change, and it’s always best to keep up with announcements from your local water authority.
We at Simply Organic want to be your partners in creating and maintaining a beautiful, healthy lawn the natural way, minimizing the use of chemicals. If you have questions about caring for your turf during the winter, or any other topic related to lawn care, our Certified Landscape Professionals are ready to help.