We are a month away from spring and it seems that the northeast was spared by any major snowstorms. Still, we had to contend with a lot of ice and rain that took a toll on client lawns and landscapes. Spring cleanup on client’s lawns should be a priority on your list of spring duties. Spring cleanup often involves assisting lawns in recovering from winter damage. Today we will be offering 5 tips on assisting lawns in recovering from winter damage.
- Check the lawn for common winter diseases. The most common types are Crown Hydration, Snow Mold, and Winter Desiccation. Snow Mold is recognized by faded circular patches that range from few inches to several feet. Crown Hydration happens when rapid freezing and unfreezing occurs. It is common when a location has a mild winter. It is recognized by the large barren patches it leaves. Winter Desiccation occurs when plants lose moisture faster than their roots can replace it from the ground. It is recognized by the yellowish brown color of the plant’s leaves or needles. Reseeding, fertilization and resodding can all help fix these issues.
- Prune any limbs damaged by ice storms. These limbs are actually more vulnerable to insect and disease infestations.
- Give the lawn a heavy watering to heal it from salt damage. Salt draws moisture from plants which will, in turn, make them wilt and die.
- Rake down any matted thatch has accumulated on the top of the grass. It will improve the lawn’s appearance as well as allow badly needed water, light, and oxygen to the grassroots that have been covered all winter to penetrate.
- Use a leaf blower to clean up any sand that has accumulated on client hardscapes from winter maintenance.
Valley Green was founded by Charles Dooley in 1990. Headquartered in Holyoke, Massachusetts, we have grown to eight branch locations supported by inside & outside sales associates specializing in turf seed, sod production, golf sales, turf maintenance, nursery production, agriculture and arboriculture. The average green industry tenure at Valley Green is well over 20 years per associate!