In colder climates like Brampton, Ontario, grass tends to go dormant in the winter months. But that doesn’t mean it doesn’t still require some level of winter property maintenance for optimal health come spring and summer. Taking care of your grass all year round ensures that it’ll look green and lush once all the snow and ice has melted away.
Commercial landscape maintenance in Brampton during the winter months can go a long way when it comes to keeping your property looking clean and attractive. Here are eight tricks for lawncare in the winter.
Continue to Aerate the Ground
Freezing cold temperatures and ice and snow buildup cause the ground to harden during the winter months. While this is perfectly normal, it also prevents vital nutrients from reaching your grass’s root system. Aerating the ground with a spade or manual or motorized aerator creates holes to help nutrients reach your grass roots and prevent rot or other damages caused by malnutrition. This also reduces excess moisture buildup on the surface level of the grass which can drown the blades.
Avoid Salt Damage
Most commercial and industrial road salts and ice melters contain abrasive chemicals that seriously damage your grass and harm local ecosystems. It’s best to avoid using these chemicals on your property as much as possible. If they get into local waterways and systems, they can even taint water supplies in your communities.
Avoid using store-bought de-icers altogether and opt for a natural option such as kitty litter. Although it won’t help melt the snow and ice, kitty litter is great for creating traction to prevent slip and fall accidents on your property.
Fertilize Your Soil
Continuously fertilizing your soil throughout the spring, summer, and fall seasons helps to balance its acidity and provides it with enough nutrients to nourish your lawn through the frigid winter season. Be sure to use a granular organic fertilizer that can easily penetrate even the most rigid ground.
Aerate the ground thoroughly before applying the fertilizer to make sure that it can effectively get down to the grass roots and work its magic. The more often you fertilize your lawn during the milder seasons, the more nutrients it’ll have available to it during the cold winter months when it’s covered in ice and snow.
It’s important to get the fertilizer balance just right. Excessive fertilization can be just as detrimental to the health of your grass as not using enough. Learn about the type of grass that you have on your property to determine the most ideal growing conditions and lawncare methods that are guaranteed to help it flourish all year round.
Monitor Winter Weather Conditions
Winter in Brampton and other parts of the GTA can be pretty harsh with massive snowfalls, storms, and ice formations taking over virtually all outdoor surfaces. There are four main types of grass that flourish in Ontario—Kentucky Bluegrass, Canada Bluegrass, fescue, and ryegrass. All of these are very resilient and can withstand a wide range of weather conditions from extreme heat to cold, but Kentucky Bluegrass is by and far the most popular choice for commercial and residential properties.
Despite being impervious to most weather conditions, however, turf still requires some winter maintenance and care. Too much snow and ice buildup on the grass can suffocate and kill it. This is a problem because when people shovel snow off of their driveways or plow it from the streets, the first place they think to pile the snow is directly on the grass where it won’t get in the way. Eventually, the snow and ice will meld together to form a large thick barrier over top the grass and prevent it from absorbing necessary nutrients. If you notice this happening or there’s a large cold front rolling in, break apart as much of the ice and snow as possible with a shovel to allow for the grass to continue to breathe through the winter.
Prepare Your Property Ahead of Time
Fall preparation is a crucial aspect of winter property maintenance in Brampton and other parts of the GTA. The more you can prepare your property for the impending cold temperatures, snow, and ice, the healthier it’ll be in the long run. It’s too late to do some of these this year, but here are some important winter property preparation tips that you should perform next fall:
- Mow your grass before the first snowfall or sign of frost in November
- Aerate your lawn—you can still do this in the winter, but it may be more labour intensive due to frozen ground conditions
- Apply fertilizer
- Seed your lawn—again, it’s best to do this before the first frost and snowfall of the season
Clean Up Your Property
An important part of complete year-round Brampton property maintenance is to regularly clean up your pavement and your lawn. Pick up organic matter, debris, and litter often to prevent it from getting trapped under heavy snowfalls or caught in the rain during the winter season. These materials can degrade your asphalt pavement over time and they get matted down in the winter from all the moisture, which can flatten and kill your grass. Plus, many of them aren’t biodegradable and can cause long-term environmental damages. On mild winter days, do a full sweep of your property to clean up excess litter and organic matter.
Don’t Walk on the Grass
Your grass is already extremely vulnerable in the winter months. It’s weighed down by large amounts of snow and ice. Walking or driving on it will create further compaction and break apart frozen grass blades, which kills your turf. Avoid walking or driving on it altogether during the winter.
Hire Winter Lawncare Services in Brampton
Winter lawncare in Brampton is almost like a full-time job. If you don’t have the time, physical ability, or resources to do it properly yourself, then you should consider hiring professional winter lawncare services in Brampton. At FOREVER GREEN LAWN & MAINTENANCE INC., we specialize in keeping your grass green and healthy throughout the year, including winter. Contact us today to learn about our extensive winter property maintenance services.
