Salting Slippery Sidewalks Safely
If you are using a product to salt your icy sidewalks, take precautions to ensure the de-icing agent is not causing damage to your lawn. Whatever you apply will eventually find its way to your yard's soil so it's important to make sure that product is not going to harm the turf health. Regular salt (sodium chloride) is harmful to your grass and will make the soil far too salty for a healthy lawn. Magnesium chloride, potassium chloride or calcium chloride based de-icing products are far safer for your lawn.
These alternatives to salt often cost more money but they'll save you a lot of time and headache in the spring when your lawn emerges from dormancy healthy and strong. Plus, using a high-quality de-icer like our very own iceSICKLE™ you will use less product per square foot and it is effective at much lower temperatures.
What you put on your sidewalk eventually ends up in your lawn
Control Heavy Foot Traffic
Try to avoid stomping the lawn during cold, frosty conditions. Grass blades become far more fragile and can break or stay bent over during winter weather causing damage that will be present in the spring. Heavily trafficked areas will compact the snow and turn to ice which will thaw out more slowly creating an uneven thawing pattern across your lawn when the sun returns. This results in a patchy, scraggly looking yard which is not our objective.
Another downside to snowy footprints on your yard is what you're bringing with you on the soles of your shoes. If you're using an ice melt product on your walkways and driveways then you may be tracking that material into the lawn with you. If you use sodium chloride that could cause additional issues that will result in a poor performing lawn.
If you have a route that you need to take frequently across your yard during winter (example: a path you take to a backyard shed), consider adding a dedicated walkway to your list of spring projects.
Avoid heavy foot traction to limit compaction
Other Winter Considerations
Winter doesn't bring about a lot of lawn chores, around the house you may need to shovel snow and lay down some de-icer. Other than that it's mostly hunker down and stay warm while we wait for spring sunshine. Here's a couple of other to-do's to consider adding to your list as you stave off cabin fever:
- Clear heavy snow and ice off your eaves. As snow and large icicles cycle between thawing and re-freezing they can form potential overhead hazards.
- Brush snow off evergreens and other bushy plants. Trees that don't drop their leaves and have flat, layered branches risk excessive snow accumulation which can eventually break the branches and damage the tree (and anything below those branches).
- Take different paths on treks across your yard. This helps spread traffic out over your entire lawn so that compaction is less likely to cause lasting harm.
- Have fun! Don't be afraid to spend some time on your lawn building snowmen and having snowball fights. Cool-season lawns can handle some traffic and use when they are snow covered, but try to spread the wear out across a wider surface area.
Longer days and warmer weather are not too far away. Enjoy the season and stay safe out there!
