Everything You Need to Know about Snow Mould

First things first, what is snow mould?

Unlike other signs of spring, such as blooming flowers and warmer temperatures, snow mould is one of the season’s uglier sidesCaused by cold-weather fungi that mainly affect cool-season grasses, the mould can be identified agrey-coloured patches on your lawn.  

What are the causes 

While that sheet of snow on your lawn may look beautiful, it is doing unseen damage during the winter months. When mother nature decides to gift your lawn with a heavy snowfall before the ground is completely frozen, snow mould becomes its most problematic. The combination of fragile grass, lawn debris and plenty of wintertime moisture is an ideal environment for mould to thrive 

Patches of snow mould on grass of lawn.

How to treat it?

In the spring when the snow has melted away, all you need to do is gently rake the affected areas to loosen any matted grass. This will allow the lawn to dry and give unaffected grass area to grow. During this time, it can be helpful to provide your lawn with essential nutrients to regrow. Hometurf’s new soil rejuvenator service is perfect for spring. Made of a premium blend of organic fertilizer, turfgrass seed, and BioChar, our soil rejuvenator is applied in the early spring and will help your lawn rebound faster from the harsh effects of Canadian winters. 

Snowy landscape showing tree and grass with snow falling.

How to impede snow mould?

Prevention, prevention, prevention! The key to treating snow mould is, you guessed it, prevention! Here are some tips to keep your lawn free of mould in the future.

  1. Mow your lawn before the first snow fall. Long grass creates a breeding ground for mould. Hometurf suggests cutting your grass 1 – 1.5 inches shorter than usual, but be cautious not to scalp your lawn!
  2. DethatchA thick thatch layer is an ideal place for mould to develop. Dethatching in the fall will help prevent snow mould from growing over winter. Check out our de-thatching services! 
  3. Don’t allow snow to pile up on your lawn. When clearing snow from your driveway and surrounding areas, avoid creating deep piles of snow on your lawn that will take time to melt when the warm spring weather arrives.

You can read more about early snow mould prevention in our dedicated snow mould prevention blog. For more information on our early spring services, contact Hometurf Lawn Care at 1-888-791-8873 or get your instant online quote for free today