Preparing Your Lawn for Winter in the Riverland

As the warm Riverland days start to ease off, your lawn shifts gears. Warm-season grasses like couch and kikuyu slow right down over winter, and what you do now — in late autumn — makes a big difference to how green and healthy your lawn looks when spring rolls back around.

The good news is that winter prep doesn't take much. A handful of small jobs through May will keep your lawn thicker, healthier and more resistant to the weeds and bare patches that creep in over the colder months.

Raise the mowing height

Heading into winter, let your lawn grow a touch longer than you would in summer. A slightly higher cut gives the grass more leaf to catch the weaker winter sun, which keeps it stronger and greener through the cold. Cutting too short now exposes the soil, invites weeds and leaves the lawn looking thin.

Clear the leaves and debris

Leaves left sitting on the lawn block light and trap moisture, which leads to yellow patches and disease. Rake or mow them up regularly through autumn so your grass can keep breathing.

Tackle weeds before they take hold

Winter weeds love a lawn that's slowing down. Knocking them back in autumn — before they seed — saves you a much bigger job in spring. A few quick wins now:

• Pull or spot-spray broadleaf weeds while they're small
• Keep edges and garden beds tidy so weeds don't spread into the lawn
• Don't scalp the lawn — thick, healthy turf crowds weeds out on its own

Keep mowing — just less often

Plenty of people park the mower for winter completely, but most Riverland lawns still need the odd cut to stay tidy. Easing back to a monthly mow keeps things neat and stops growth getting away from you on the warmer days we still get.

If you'd rather not think about it, this is the perfect time of year to set up a regular mowing schedule so your lawn is looked after right through the cooler months — no weekends lost, no gear to drag out.