For those less familiar with lawn dormancy and how our lawns adjust to winter months, here’s what you need to know:
- Dormancy is a state of rest or inactivity and a survival mechanism for stressed plants.
- Dormant plants limit growth and respiration and shift to conserve and store energy.
- Temperature, light, moisture, and nutritional levels stimulate the onset of dormancy.
- Winter dormancy is broken when temps, light availability, and daylight hours increase.
Sunday Tip:
Lawn dormancy can occur in two seasons: summer and winter. In summer dormancy, grass may go dormant to protect itself from drought or extreme heat. Cool-season grasses may go dormant in both seasons, whereas warm-season may only go dormant in one season, or not at all!
What causes lawn dormancy?
When the ground is frozen or frost is present, grass blades form ice crystals between cells to protect themselves from damage. Unfortunately, the ice crystals can only do so much. When you walk across a frozen lawn, the crunch underneath your feet is actually ice crystals breaking and puncturing cell walls within the leaf blade. Ouch!
How to care for a dormant lawn
Traffic over frozen, dormant grass can sever grass blades and damage roots, so limit high traffic on your lawn during frost or frozen temps. While occasional traffic won’t hurt too much, excessive traffic can cause:
Though not immediately apparent, these issues will require more labor-intensive and expensive lawn repair once lawns greenup. So, if you want to maintain a healthy lawn and avoid unnecessary costs come springtime, the best thing for you and yours is to embrace inactivity and admire that frosted lawn from afar.
Tips for maintaining a dormant lawn
- Have kids and need the lawn for your snowpeople and other snow activities? Build snowpeople on paved areas or mulched areas of the yard where compaction and weight of snow won’t cause future soil and lawn issues.
- Shoveling your walkway or driveway and worried about the weight of snow piles compacting your lawn? Spread out the snow as evenly as possible when shoveling so the snow doesn't become weighed down in one area.
- Don't add salt to the wound! When using ice melt this winter, opt for less corrosive salt that avoids further injury to your lawn.
While your lawn is experiencing the benefits of inactivity, you’ll be able to reap the benefits too! Less time on yard work equals more time for you.
So, make those New Year’s resolutions, immerse yourself in winter recreation activities, discover a new hiking destination, or simply sit back and do it like the lawns do: Use this time to rest, restore, and get ready to grow better this spring.
Cited sources
Cold Winter Lawn Tips. University of Arizona Cooperative Extension.
Dormancy: A Key to Winter Survival. University of New Hampshire Extension.
