What To Look For In Your Lawn As The Snow Melts

Finally we have had some warm temperature here throughout the Twin Cities and you can literally hear all of that snow melting.

As winter begins to fade and spring arrives, here are some signs you should look for in your lawn to prevent disease from spreading and ruining your lawn this year.

Damage From Ice Melt Products

If you used ice melt products around your walkways this winter, you will want to look for strip of brown grass along the edges. 

In some cases, these brown strips will recover on their own.  However, if they recover within about 6 to 8 weeks after the snow is gone, you will want to take extra measures.

Extra measures include planting new seed where the lawn doesn’t recover.  First, use a heavy rake to remove all the dead grass from the damaged area.  Next, use the rake or a shovel to loosen the top ¼ to ½ inch of soil to create a good seed bed.  Lastly, spread your lawn seed and make sure to give it plenty of water.

Look For Snow Mold

Snow mold is a fungal disease that appears in early spring as the snow melts.  There are two types of snow mold, gray and pink.

Symptoms first appear in the lawn as circular, straw colored patches when the snow melts.  The patches often continue to grow as long as the grass remains cold and wet.

With regular fertilizing and proper mowing, snow mold should go away on its own in a few weeks.  However, if you have an extreme case of snow mold, an application of fungicide might be necessary.

Early Spring Lawn Care

If you really want your lawn to get off to a healthy start this year, we recommend dethatching.  Dethatching is the process of removing all of the dead blades of grass from your lawn.

Dethatching keeps dead blades of grass from exasperating all the nutrients your lawn has to provide and ensure the healthy blades of grass a great start to the year.