Gardening experts all say the same thing about how to prevent a brittle lawn in winter

October is a crucial time for lawn care, as the state of your grass now will significantly impact its resilience throughout winter and its appearance in spring. Neglecting your lawn during these transitional months can lead to a common and frustrating problem: brittle grass. This appears as dry, straw-like blades that break easily underfoot, often displaying discoloured, brown, or bald patches.

The problem with grass going brittle in domestic gardens results from a mix of environmental factors and improper care. As Stephanie Harrod of Harrod Horticultural explains: "Low temperatures slow the plant's natural growth and repair processes" and when the ground freezes, blades "lose moisture and can't replenish it quickly enough".

Cheryl Harper of Greensleeves Lawn Care adds that lawns "go into a kind of hibernation", conserving energy in roots while wind and frost draw water from the blades. Before winter, it pays to remove avoidable stress.

Richard Barker of LBS Horticulture warns that "salt runoff from grit" and "a lot of fertiliser" can burn grass, while thick thatch can prevent water and light from reaching the soil.

One thing every expert advises doing before the cold really sets in is adjusting your mowing height. Slightly longer winter cuts protect the crown and help blades retain moisture.

The LBS Horticulture expert advises "no shorter than 5cm" but Cheryl at Greensleves recommends keeping it "around 4cm". The shared principle is the same: don't scalp the lawn going into winter.

Feeding the lawn for strength rather than speed is another worthwhile venture, says Stephanie of Harrod Horticulture.

She recommends a potassium-rich autumn lawn fertiliser to improve frost resistance. Save the higher-nitrogen, balanced feeds for spring recovery.

Relieving compaction is another universal theme. Cheryl says to "start by aerating your lawn to relieve compaction and improve drainage," while Richard suggests to "aerate...a few times a year".

After aeration, Stephanie's tip is to top-dress with fine loam or compost to support soil health and resilience.

However, it is important to manage moisture wisely. A general rule of thumb is to give lawns at least an inch of water per week to encourage deeper roots, applied "early in the morning" to reduce evaporation.

You could also try deep watering before the ground freezes, because moist soil retains warmth better than dry soil.

Stephanie adds that even in winter, "watering lightly during prolonged dry spells can help," especially on free-draining sites.

If damage has already appeared, be patient and let the weather help. The experts suggest leaving brittle grass "undisturbed until the weather improves," then "gently rake away any dead or damaged material," topdress, and overseed thin areas.