As we move through the last half of October, we are reminded that there is still time to get the lawn ready for winter.
Shane Warkentin with Best Way Lawn Care and Landscaping says it is a good idea to lower the mower blade for the final cut of the year.
“Cut it down a bit shorter to prevent damage from voles and mice,” he says.
Longer grass and abundant leaf cover can make your lawn inviting for rodents to make nests and cause damage to the lawn.
Does this mean thorough raking before the snow flies? Not necessarily, he says.
“We run a mower over it and vacuum the leaves up, clean it up,” says Warkentin. He adds that some leaves on the lawn will not kill the grass.
“Do what you can and leave the rest,” he says.
Although the temperatures are now dipping below zero, Warkentin says it is not too cold for the last bit of yard work.
“When we’re going out with the crews in the morning, we prefer to wait until the frost is off the lawn before we start cutting grass,” he says. “We’ve never seen damage from cutting when it’s cold. We have in the past, we’ve actually cut on a little bit of frost, and I’ve never noticed damage from that. It’s maybe not a good idea.”
We can expect the temperatures to stay above freezing during the weekend with highs in the double digits.