Best Landscaper in Niagara Falls, Ontario

Local lawn notes

Local Know-How From the Best Landscaper in Niagara Falls

The local conservation authority says its watershed, which takes in Niagara Falls, sits between two Great Lakes in the Carolinian life zone. That sounds mild. But the lawn season can differ from the lakeshore, a short drive north.

No frost record of its own

Environment Canada's Niagara Falls station has too few years of frost data to publish averages. A nearby station with a full set is Welland, at the same 175 m height. Its 1981 to 2010 normals put the last spring frost around May 9 and the first fall frost around October 9. That's about 151 frost-free days.

St. Catharines, down by Lake Ontario, logs about 179. The federal soil survey of Niagara notes that only the northern fringe of the region sits in the fruit belt climate. The escarpment is the dividing line between it and the Lake Erie side.

Clay that holds water, then dries hard

That same survey skipped mapping the city and its outskirts. But it describes the region's Haldimand clay soils as slow to drain. It also says they can turn droughty in dry spells, because the clay holds on to its water.

So timing matters. Your crew waits out soggy spring days and keeps the grass taller in July. Health Canada says a cut of 6 to 8 cm (2.5 to 3 inches) grows deeper roots and a thicker lawn.

Water and clippings

The City says healthy lawns need only about 2.5 cm (1 inch) of water a week, watered in the morning. It warns that overwatering can bring disease and pests. Niagara Region adds that grasscycling, or leaving clippings on the lawn, can boost soil fertility by up to 30 per cent.

That's why weekly lawn mowing works well here. Short clippings drop in and feed the soil. A fall cleanup handles the leaves.

Niagara Falls rules that touch your lawn

• Long grass. The Maintaining of Land By-law (2007-41, as amended) says grass and weeds over 20 cm must be cut, on your land and the boulevard beside it. It applies inside the urban service boundary. An order gives you 72 hours, and the City can recover its cost like taxes.
• Boulevard trees. The Tree By-law (2004-173) says no one may prune, trim or damage a tree on public property. Your crew leaves those to the City. No tree out front? The City offers free boulevard trees.
• Yard waste. Niagara Region collects it weekly, all year, with no bag limit. Use paper leaf and yard bags or a container, out by 7am.
• Grass clippings. Banned from curbside pickup since 2011. Leave them on the lawn.
• Branches. Single branches must be under 7 cm across, and bundles under 22.7 kg. They go out in May or in late October to November.
• Weed spraying. Ontario bans most cosmetic pesticides on lawns, so our partner crews don't spray.

Rules change, so check first. Sources: by-law directory, trees, water tips, yard waste, mowing height, pesticides, climate normals, soil survey.