Lawn Care & Maintenance

Winter Lawn Care

Posted in Lawn Care & Maintenance on Friday, 22 April 2011

Sir Walter vs Jack Frost

As the temperature drops there are still a few things to do to keep your Sir Walter lawn looking its best - read on for valuable winter season tips for your garden.

Sir Walter is a warm season buffalo grass, which means that in the areas of Australia with colder winters, including Melbourne, Gippsland, Canberra and Southern NSW, your lawn may fall dormant until the warmer weather returns.

Don't worry; this dormancy is perfectly normal and Sir Walter turf will make a strong return to its normal luscious growth in the spring. While cool weather grasses that grow faster over the winter months do exist, they can have their disadvantages in the summer months when they suffer badly in the heat. Often the cooler climate grasses require much more  water, pesticide and herbicide than a warm season grass like Sir Walter, simply to survive. Cooler climate grasses are more likely than warm season grasses to die off and to need to be replaced.

Some Winter Season Tips for your Sir Walter Lawn

Lawn Care to be carried out before winter

It is a good idea to prepare your lawn for the winter months early, starting in May or even April. One technique to defend your lawn against the frost is to raise the height of your mower blades in the lead-up to winter and to keep them up until spring arrives. As winter approaches, you only need to shave off the very tip of the grass along with the heads of the taller weeds. Keeping your grass slightly longer over winter will keep it greener by allowing more photosynthesis to take place. The taller growth will also blanket the ground, keeping it warmer to defend against frost.

It is best to prepare for winter early by fertilising the lawn in late Autumn. This will ensure that your lawn is healthy and on its best legs to get through the winter. Also prune large trees and bushes that shade the lawn before winter to ensure that the areas beneath get some sunlight during the day.

Lawn Care to be carried out during winter

Winter is a good time to deal with any broad leaf weeds that your lawn may have growing. These weeds will be more visible in your winter lawn, and can be dealt with by manually pulling or by using a spray such as Sir Walter Weed Control, which is safe for use on Sir Walter turf and many other varieties.

Make use of the time in winter to sharpen your mower blades and to prepare your equipment for the spring. Late winter is a good time to aerate your lawn if it has become compacted. Use a garden fork to aerate, or try lawn aerator sandals for an easier way to get the job done.

Finally, remove any leaves from the lawn as they fall and try to minimise traffic on the lawn during winter, particularly when the frost is on the ground.

Lawn Care Products

You can buy Sir Walter Weed Control from your local lawn care supplier or online from the Sir Walter Lawnstore.