Among all the seasons, summer and winter are the most challenging time for a lawn. And we all know about the fact very well. In another content, I have talked about the basic winter lawn care tips. And today, we’ll dig out some essential summer lawn care tips.
Summer is sometimes harsher than winter for your lawn, especially when drought strikes your area. So, taking care of your lawn in summer is completely different from that in winter. You should prepare it carefully so that it can survive the extremely hot weather even if summer leads the area to face a drought.
However, we formed this article with the most effective summer lawn tips, and here, the entire list of the tips is divided into three parts. We have categorized the parts according to different parts of summer. It will tell you how to take care of your lawn before summer appears, during summer, and during the time when summer is gone. So, check out the tips and make sure to follow them in a timely manner.
Early Summer Lawn Care Tips
Let’s start with the early summer lawn care tips. This time is for preparing your lawn to face summer and survive in the hot weather. It must be Spring at this time. Besides following the essential spring lawn care tips, you should also follow the suggestions below to ensure that Your lawn will survive the upcoming summer.
1. Keep the Grass Longer
Most Lawns get befitted if you mow the lawn a little higher, especially before summer is there. The extra height of the grass simply enriches them with the more pungent root and heat tolerant ability. Besides, taller grass will help keep the weeds from sprouting. Cutting the lawn grass low can make your lawn look less luscious, and it damages the grass too.
Mowing the lawn in early summer is essential, but you should also remember that dull blades will only shred your grass. Thus you may not have a proper cut of the grasses and might make it prehensile to lose their necessary moisture. Also, keeping the grass size longer is essential to keep the soil cooler and safe from direct sunshine.
At this time, one should keep the grass length different for the warm season and cool season grasses. For warm-season grass, the recommended cutting height is 2 to 3 inches tall. Additionally, for cool season grass, you should keep it at 3 to 4 inches at most.
2. Rip-Off the Weeds from the Lawn
Weeds, in general, kill the lushness and bring a very negative impact on your lawn. It is important to prevent weeds from blooming before the summer comes. In addition, you can apply pre-emergent herbicides to save the plant’s health and wipe out broadleaf weeds.
You can treat your lawn with baking soda, vinegar solution, or Castille soap before summer hits your area. However, some of the typical homemade ingredients might burn the lawn grass, so it is better if you could hand-pull weeds, especially from their roots.
3. Apply Pests Control
Naturally, the summer season invites more insects to your lawn compared to other seasons. There, you will see different types of bugs, including June bugs, Japanese Beetles, and European chafers. These insects will create a huge mess, cause bare patches, and munch on your grass. So, it is essential to prevent them from taking over your lawn.
The worst thing happens when the Japanese Beetles start hatching, resulting in grubs. Because of those insects, the lawn can grow different fungal diseases too. That’s why it is always better to use some insecticides or pest control before summer appears. To prevent the destruction of your lawn, you can apply Scotts®GrubEx®.
4. Apply Fertilizer If Necessary
Applying fertilizer is essential in the early summer if your lawn has warm-season grass. Initially, this type of lawn grass grows at about 70 degrees Fahrenheit. Applying fertilizers in early summer will strengthen the lawn and make the grass more resistant to drought conditions. The most recommended fertilizer in the North is Scotts®, TurfBuilder®, and SummerGuard® Lawn Food. And in the south, you should use Scotts®, TurfNyilder®, or Summer Lawn Food.
Adding the water along with the fertilizer will take the nutrients deep into the soil. Therefore, you may not have to face any problems regarding the summer heat that might take up all the nutrients and kill the grasses. So, make sure to feed your lawn if required. And remember to choose the right lawn fertilizer for sure.
5. Leave the Grass Clipping on Your Lawn
While mowing your lawn, you will see snippets and clippings everywhere. These clippings break down and often result in great soil fertilizer. However, it does not mean that you will make your lawn loaded with clippings because it will make a bad impression. Just consider putting a few clippings, which are enough to fertilize the soil. Eventually, they will keep the lawn soil cooler.
So, this is how you can take care of the tour in the early summer. At this time, you should only prepare your lawn for the warm days. Ensure the lawn is cold and the grass is not burned.
Mid-Summer Lawn Care Tips
The most significant part is taking care of your lawn when summer is running. The weather and temperature are different in many places. At this time, you need to ensure that your lawn gets sufficient water and food.
1. Feed your Lawn Properly
Mid-Summer feeding for your lawn is fundamental for the luscious growth of your lawn. Especially in the Southern area, you should feed your lawn with ample fertilizer every six to eight weeks. The reason is mid-summer heat quickly dry-up and burns the grass.
When the soil lacks vitamins and energy, the right fertilizer helps your lawn with the necessary nutrients. The most recommended summer fertilizer is Scotts® and Green Max™ Lawn Food. While applying the fertilizer, just make sure that the soil temperature is 54 degrees Fahrenheit or higher. Applying fertilizer is essential at this time to increase the growth of the lawn.
2. Ensure Sufficient Water
Summer heat can take up essential moisture in the lawn soil. It results in wilted grass blades and invites the weeds and mischievous insects. To avoid these disasters, you are suggested to water the lawn at least once or twice a week. If it is too hot outside and the humidity level is poor, you can water the lawn once every two days.
While watering, you must ensure that it reaches 4 to 6 inches deep. And you have to increase the amount if there are lots of obstacles. In this case, you can use a screwdriver to check how much water your lawn soil needs.
However, it would help if you remembered that watering too much can drown the air pockets in the soil. And it will stop the healthy growth of the lawn grass. The best you can do in summer is to water approximately 20 liters every week in every 1 meter square of your lawn.
3. Mollify The Soil with Soap Water
If you see your lawn soil has dried out due to the extreme summer heat, you should do something to soften and chill the barren soil so that the grassroots are not rotten. You can simply use washing liquids or dish soap to soften the soil. It is eventually essential to keep the soil cooler.
Rough patches obstruct the way of absorbing the water into the deep roots. Using dish soap helps to penetrate the water deep into the soil. However, if you see soap bubbles on the grass, you should quickly spray with clean water as all types of grass are incompatible with this solution.
4. Avoid Trimming for a While
Summertime heat and rain help increase the growth of your lawn grasses. It is suggested that you should never cut the lawn more than one-third of the grass blade every time. But when summer is knocking at the door, you should skip trimming for a while.
Trimming the lawn when the sun exposure is strong can turn the grass tips brown. The grass tips need shades; too much hot weather can damage the ripped surface. So, it can simply turn brown.
Late-Summer Lawn Care
Finally, when the summer is gone, you must help your lawn revive from all the damage. Undoubtedly, the summer heats cause much damage both to the grasses and the soil. So, you have to be careful of that and make necessary arrangements to get back the good condition of your lawn.
1. Overseed Your Lawn
If there are bare patches in your lawn, then overseeding will help to put back its luscious, green appearance. The summer season is packed with heat, moisture, and strong sun exposure, making it a perfect time for overseeding.
To follow overseeding steps, you first need to remove any types of weeds and debris. Then, you should scarify and apply quick-release fertilizer to the lawn. Afterward, you will sprinkle the new seeds, water them to moisten the soil, and roll the lawn.
To choose the seeds, you have to be careful. It is better to use the same seeds on the lawn. Also, you should learn how many bags of seeds you will need for the lawn. And make sure you are overseeding on a clear day when it’s not raining and the temperature is below 85 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Keep the Lawn Hydrated
In the summertime, rainwater is of great help in maintaining the hydrological cycle in your lawn. More water in your soil nourishes the grasses’ deeper roots. The recommended time for watering the lawn is before 10 am or from 4 pm to 6 pm. Certainly, it will stop the disease from spreading all over the lawn. Besides, you can set up a sprinkler system and manage your watering schedule with it.
3. Aerate the Lawn
Compacted soil does not help to bring back the healthy growth of your lawn. Also, it does not allow water to penetrate through the grassroots. A core aerator or spike aerator can be a great help in this kind of situation.
You can use these tools to create air holes so that the grass root can get enough water, nutrients, and air. This task will help your lawn breathe against the soil’s extra pressure.
So, after summer is gone, you have to aerate the lawn, fertilize it, water it, and overseed it if there is any bare spot. Eventually, you should overseed it if there is no bare spot. For sure, summer heat decreases the thickness of grass on your lawn. New seeds will germinate, and then your lawn will look beautiful.
FAQ
Q: Is nitrogen fertilizer good for the summer lawn grass?
A: Low-Nitrogen Fertilizer is mostly used for summer season grass. It brings lushness and healthy growth and lessens the stress on the lawn grass. Sometimes, rich nitrogen fertilizer can burn the grass, but Low-nitrogen fertilizer will not allow for such disasters to happen.
Q: When is the right time to apply summer fertilizer?
A: The right time to use summer fertilizer is between June and August. In this case, you should wait at least two months after using spring fertilizer. Applying the fertilizer in the summer season encourages deep-root growth. But make sure to choose a day when it is not too hot outside.
Q: Will fertilizing the lawn before or after the rain create a mess?
A: Fertilizing the lawn before rain can be a waste. The lawn food will wash away with the rainwater. That’s why it is best to apply fertilizer after the rain because there will be no chance that rain might wash away all the nutrients. You can simply wait a day after it’s raining, and it will be the best time to fertilize as the soil will have enough moisture in it.
Q: Can I fertilize and overseed the lawn at the same time in Summer?
A: You should fertilize the soil in the first place and then overseed after that. However, there must not be any weed preventative in the fertilizer as it will stop the germination of the grass seed. Also, you should wait at least a week before overseeding the lawn after you fertilize it.
Q: Should I mow the lawn before applying fertilizer in Summer?
A: Mowing your lawn before fertilizing brings a fruitful result for your lawn. Debris and other lawn waste will prevent any fertilizer from going through the soil. That is why mowing and raking will help the fertilizer to go in and enable the active growth of the grass.
Final Thought
Hopefully, summer won’t appear as a disaster to your lawn from now on. Once you make sure to follow these effective summer lawn care tips, your lawn will be lush green, even if it is the drought-bringing summer. Just try to keep your lawn clean and cold.
Make sure to water it timely and follow the mentioned tricks to keep it healthy. Remember that Summer may seem harsher because of the heat, but the time is actually good for the lawn grasses’ growth. So, if you manage to properly take care of your lawn in summer, it will grow perfectly, and you will have a lush green lawn.
Here, we are taking our leave for today and will soon come up with something new. Till then, enjoy the summer chills on your beautiful green lawn. Thanks.