Like so many other things in life, lawn care in the wintertime can be a bit of a challenge and downright confusing here in Texas. Confusion over whether to water or not during those cold snap months can leave our grass feeling like Goldilocks – either it’s TOO WET or TOO DRY, and not quite JUST RIGHT! As the winter solstice peaks, lawn growth slows down considerably, simply because the grass is not getting nearly as much daily sunlight to use for photosynthesis. Yet, your lawn still needs water, which leads many homeowners to make one of two lawn care mistakes.
This Lawn is Too Wet
The first one is that they do nothing to alter their warm season watering schedule, and drown their lawn with much more water than it can use. The effect on the lawn’s root system is about the same as if you were yourself submerged underwater for weeks at a time. There’s also the risk of fungal development due to too much water and very cool weather conditions.
This Lawn is Too Dry
On the other end of the spectrum, there are those who simply shut their irrigation systems down for the season and let their lawns fend for themselves for three months or more. This can obviously starve the grass and roots of necessary moisture depending on the level and timing of winter rainfall in the area. Nevertheless, in the worst case, denying water to your lawn for weeks at a time can have the same effect as if it was denied to you for several weeks.
This Lawn is Just Right
Living organisms need water. Not too much and not too little, but just enough to allow your lawn to thrive and be glorious when Springtime returns. So, the question that arises is – “How much water is enough to ensure proper winter lawn care?’ As a general rule, lawns prefer getting about 2 inches of water a week in the summertime. In the slow growth season, their needs drop to about 1 inch per week.
Of course, the real trick is in knowing what percentage of an inch of water your lawn receives naturally during the course of each week, and then making up the shortfall with additional watering. A rain gauge can help, or you could turn to the old-fashioned way of simply digging into the ground a bit to see how moist the topsoil is at a depth of about 5-6 inches.
Seeking Experienced Care
Experience also provides a good rough-and-ready guide, but just remember the Goldilocks rule of lawn care: Not too much and not too little, but something in the middle ought to be just about right! On the other hand, there’s also that popular option to lawn care that many Texas residents resort to, and that is placing their landscape needs in the very capable hands of a professional landscape and lawn maintenance service.
At Archer Services, we thrive on providing professional, reliable, and trusted care for your Houston lawn and landscaping needs, so that you’ll have peace of mind, and a beautiful lawn to enjoy during all four weather seasons! View Archer Lawn and landscape services, or connect with us for questions and to schedule a consultation at 281-203-7615.
