Lawn Care in the Summer
Summer is certainly not the easiest time to establish a lush bed of green grass in your yard. However, if you’ve got the right tools and information, it actually is a doable project.
Let’s look at some of the key factors in establishing and/or maintaining a healthy lawn in hot weather:
Do you want to achieve the same green lawn you’d find on a golf course during the hot weather? You’ve come to the right place. Follow these tips for your dream lawn, even under the sweltering summer sun.
Lawn Maintenance Is the Key
If you want to attain that dazzling emerald green ground cover, an effective lawn care routine is your key to success. You can do it on your own, or hire one of our lawn care experts to treat yourself- and your yard. Let’s take a look at the most critical components of good lawn care.
Put Your Mower on a Higher Setting
Although it isn’t the norm, keeping your grass at a height of 3 inches can keep it looking especially lush. The longer blades also provide a more thorough shield for your root system, which can help protect it from the summer heat.
Frequent Watering
The secret to green grass in hot weather is an efficient and thorough watering schedule. Deeper watering- that is, providing about an inch of moisture- allows it to soak in deeply.
Well-saturated topsoil is less likely to lose moisture due to evaporation. While sprinkler systems are convenient, using a hand-held attachment is a sure-fire way to get hard-to-reach areas, or to spot-water any dry patches.
Water at the Right Time
The perfect time to water your grass is early in the morning, specifically between 5 and 8 AM. Why so early? Morning is typically the coolest part of the day, allowing your ground to fully absorb the water.
Early morning watering may not work for your routine if you tend to water manually. But if you’ve got a below-ground irrigation system, you can simply schedule an early watering time.
Fertilizer Application
Grass require adequate nutrition to thrive, especially when the long days and summer heat promote accelerated growth. May is typically the best month to apply fertilizer and weed control products, because your grass and other outdoor plants are growing rapidly at this point, but it’s not yet too hot to risk chemical burns. Talk to an expert to find out the specific fertilizer needs of your grass breed, including when and how often to use it.
Visit our service page to learn more about how we can help you with fertilizing and weed control.
Pest and Disease Control
Most of the insects and diseases that threaten your lawn are more active during hot weather. It is important to regularly monitor on your grass for irregularities.
The most common irregularities that indicate a problem area are brown spots caused by insects or fungus. If these spots are not gone after several waterings, this is a sign that you’re not simply dealing with a dry patch. At this point, it is advisable to get an expert to check for lawn pests or disease, and to treat accordingly.
Minimize Foot Traffic
Kids playing, outdoor pets, and large stationary objects (such as a kiddie pool) can damage your lawn over time. The good news is, you can repair a trampled turf with a method called overseeding. Treating a dry, brittle patch of grass with a fresh sprinkle of seedlings can easily revive it as long as you water thoroughly afterwards.
If you follow these steps, you’ll be enjoying a lush green lawn all summer long.