I have just returned from my daily walk, which is normally a pleasant activity… except at this time of year when some citizens, who could be described as the harried shovellers of spring, engage in a very particular ritual: throwing their residual snow onto the pavement. Today, I even had to ask one of them to suspend his momentum for a second, or risk receiving a nice shovelful of compacted snow right in my face.
Who are these people who throw snow in the street? Perhaps they are impatient for spring, convinced that a well-placed scoop will hasten the arrival of fine weather. Perhaps they are pragmatists who no longer know where to pile their snow. In any case, their boundless enthusiasm has a very real effect: transforming the pavement into an obstacle course for passers-by and motorists.
It must be said that this practice is not only inconvenient, but also illegal in most areas. However, few fines are handed out for these small seasonal deposits. Many years ago, one of my parents received a fine for this and was quite offended. This is the only case I know of where this law has been applied. No doubt there are others, but not enough to discourage other offenders. Sometimes I think about calling the police when I see neighbors violating this law, but who wants to create bad blood with their neighbors? So I keep quiet… and the snow continues to invade the street with impunity.
For the Good of the Lawn?
I sometimes wonder what motivates these great snow-melting strategists. Are they really afraid that these snowbanks will last until July if no one intervenes? To see their determination, you could almost believe it…
Some seem to believe that it is for the good of their lawn. However, walking on sodden grass, still soaked with meltwater, is a bit like trying to air a soufflé by jumping on it. The soil becomes compacted, the roots suffocate, and the footprints left in the mud create impressions that take time to erase.
Ironically, the lawns of the most fervent lawnmowers are often the worst in the neighborhood. If the goal is to turn your lawn into a field of dandelions, there is no better method! Recovery will be slow, very slow, and you will have to get used to seeing bare patches colonized by weeds that are less capricious than grass.
What’s more, snow is actually good for the grass. The longer it lasts, the better the grass will look afterwards. Sometimes it gets very cold in April (no, winter is not over yet, at least not here) and bare grass can be seriously damaged. Grass that is still covered with snow is protected from the cold and will be in much better condition the following summer. The slow melting snow gradually penetrates the soil and provides it with a water supply that will subsequently help it to better withstand potential droughts months later. If the snow is removed early in the season, the lawn is much more likely to suffer from summer droughts.
For a Healthy Lawn…
The best thing you can do for your lawn in early spring is… nothing. Let the snow melt. Don’t touch it. Yes, it will melt, and on its own. Once the grass is free of snow and the ground has dried out, and you can walk on the grass without sinking in, which is probably not until the end of April or even May, you can quickly go over the grass with a leaf rake to remove any troublesome dirt.
Then, if you think there might still be calcium or other de-icing products on the grass (this can be the case if the spring was very dry, but if it was rainy, Mother Nature will have already taken care of removing them), water the part closest to the street well. The cool water, as it trickles through the roots of the grass, will carry the salt deep into the soil, beyond the area of the grass roots, and thus it will not burn. This easy technique is called “leaching”. It requires much less physical strength than shoveling and does not bother anyone.
Perhaps these shoveling enthusiasts are simply looking for a way to get a little exercise after a long winter? If so, I suggest walking… once their shoveling friends stop blocking the path…
Larry Hodgson published thousands of articles and 65 books in his career, in French and English. His son, Mathieu, has made it his mission to make his father’s writings accessible to the public. This text was originally published in Le Soleil on March 31, 2007.
I’ve wondered too, are these people bored??