Taking care of your lawn during the winter months.

Most of us like our lawns. They look fantastic as well as provide our kids with a nice soft and safe place to play. If you want to know how to take care of your grass during the colder months… read on.

Pick up lawn care products at bargain prices right now

Items like grass seed, fertilizer and lawn weed killers are not cheap. So, you need to do what you can to keep the cost of buying these items down. The fact that there is relatively little demand for lawn care products during the winter months means that most retailers sell their stock off, at this time of the year. Usually, you can pick up what you need for the coming year at an extremely low price.

So, next time you visit a garden centre or DIY store take a look and see what bargains you can grab. But, before you buy, be careful to look at the expiry date. This is particularly important when buying grass seed. The older it is the less of it will sprout and turn into new blades of grass. If the inner packaging is damaged in any way leave it there. Even if it has been taped up the air and mould spores may have got in and damaged the seeds.

Rest your grass

Resting your lawn during the colder months will help it to come back strong in the spring. If you walk or play on grass that is dormant you will kill quite a lot of it. This means that you will have to wait for the new grass to grow during the spring. It will take several extra weeks for your lawn to start to look lush and green again. If you can, keep the kids and your pets off the grass during the winter and for the first few weeks of spring.

Only mow when absolutely necessary

For the grass in your lawn, mowing is stressful. So, only cut your grass during the colder months if you have to.

Keep your lawn of debris

If your grass is covered in leaves and other debris, it will not be able to breathe. It will also be more susceptible to moss and disease. So, every now and again go out there and rake up the leaves. They make excellent mulch and are great for composting, so it really is worth your while doing this. It is easy to find out online how to make the most of your leaf litter.

Aerate your lawn

Now is a good time to aerate your lawn. Doing this ensures that oxygen reaches and nourishes the roots. You can either hire a special aeration machine or spike your lawn using a garden fork. Aeration also helps with drainage. It allows the nutrient-rich rain and snow to penetrate your lawn deeply and feed it. Keeping the air flowing will also reduce the risk of algae and moss taking hold in your lawn.

Looking after your grass during the winter does not take much time or cost a lot of money. So, it really is worth doing. If you do, in the spring your lawn will burst back into life very quickly. This means that you will be able to enjoy lovely lush, springy grass before the kids destroy it playing football!