If the grass along your driveway, sidewalk or the street looks brown and thin every spring while the rest of the lawn greens up, de-icing salt is the likely cause. Our company has managed snow and ice for commercial properties across Bucks County and New Jersey since 2010, so we see salt damage every year.

How salt hurts grass

• It pulls water out of the roots. Salt in the soil makes it harder for grass to take up water, so the turf acts like it is in a drought even when the ground is wet.
• It burns the blades. Salt spray from plows and passing cars dries out the grass along the road.
• It damages the soil. Sodium builds up over time and breaks down soil structure, which makes it harder for new grass to establish.

Prevention this winter

• Shovel before you salt, and use only as much de-icer as you need. More salt does not melt ice faster.
• Consider a calcium chloride or calcium magnesium acetate product near lawn edges. They are generally gentler on turf than rock salt.
• Do not pile salty snow onto the lawn. Push it to a spot where the meltwater runs to the street or driveway.
• Stake the edge of the lawn along the road so plow drivers can see where the grass starts.

Repairing salt damage in spring

1. Flush the soil. Once the ground thaws, a few deep waterings help push salt below the root zone.
2. Test and correct. A soil test shows what the salt left behind. Gypsum is often used to help displace sodium in salt-affected soil.
3. Reseed the dead strips. Rake out the dead grass, loosen the top of the soil and seed with a salt-tolerant blend. Fall is the best time to seed in our area, but spring repairs can work with good watering.

Every Rockport Turf Management program starts with an on-site evaluation, and a professional soil test is included with our program. If salt is the problem, we will tell you and build the fix into your plan. See our aeration and overseeding service for thin areas.