Prepare Your New England Lawn for the Winter with These Winterizing Tips

Winter in New England may be thrilling at times, but when it comes to properly winterizing a lawn, the season can be less fun than ever. If you don’t take the necessary steps to prepare your New England lawn for winter, you can end up with dead spots, patches of snow, and a scraggly looking turf come spring. The key to successful winterizing of a New England lawn comes down to timing and preparation.

Start the winterizing process early in autumn to give your grass the most possible time to absorb nutrients before it goes dormant. First, perform a good clean-up of the yard. Remove any leaves, sticks, or other debris that may have rolled in during the summer. The next step is to mow your grass to an inch or two length – enough to be protected by the winter frost, but not so long as to cause matting and promote mold growth. With the longer grass, you’ll also have the chance to do one final plucking of pesky weeds.

To further boost the health of the grass, use an aerator to open up the soil, allowing water, air, and nutrients to access the roots more easily. Do this in the early stages before the ground is too frozen or wet. Then, it’s time for a couple of fertilization sessions. Choose a fertilizer made for winter, as it will be heavier on potassium which helps to strengthen the grass’s roots. Spread the fertilizer with a rotary spreader, taking extra care around any garden beds or patios.

If you are faced with bare spots in the grass, now’s the time to reseed. Cover the area with a half-inch layer of aged compost, then spread your seeds using a rotary spreader. To ensure even, healthy sprouts, water the area several times a day for four to five minutes, then once a day for 15-30 minutes until the grass sprouts.

When all of that is done, don’t forget to prepare your sprinkler system as well. Shut off all outdoor water systems with enough time for them to sufficiently drain so you don’t have any frozen pipes when spring has sprung.

All in all, you should be able to winterize your New England lawn in no time. Be sure to mind any precipitation or temperature changes by raking the grass or mowing short if needed. The time you took to winterize your lawn will certainly pay off when spring arrives, so don’t skimp on these steps and enjoy your lush lawn all year long.