Summer can be a tough time for a lawn. Not only is there a lack of rainfall and rising temperatures, but families are also spending more time outdoors on their lawns. From summer garden parties to kids playing in paddling pools or on trampolines, lawns see a lot of summer action.
A good annual lawn care regimen can help keep a lawn healthy and ready to withstand the rigors of the summer season. Plus, there are a number of simple seasonal adjustments you can make to the way you care for your lawn to keep it in top condition all summer long.
Adjusting your approach to mowing, watering, and weeding will make a difference. You can also feed a lawn in the summer to strengthen it and adjust how your family uses it to keep it green, healthy, and thriving.
(Image credit: Volokhatiuk / Getty Images)
6 Summer Lawn Care Tips for Better Grass
Summer lawn care is not difficult and many of the tasks involved in keeping it healthy are easy to understand. Including the following steps in your summer gardening checklist will keep your lawn looking great.
1. Mow at a higher height
(Image credit: Jan Hakan Dahlstrom / Stone / Getty Images)
Continue to mow regularly to keep the lawn green and thick. The ambition may still be to cut neat stripes in the lawn so that it is pristine for the summer, but it is useful to raise the mowing height to protect the grass as the temperature rises.
When the temperature spikes, grass begins to grow more slowly and raising the mower height when mowing grass in hot weather will help the lawn cope better with the heat. A slightly longer lawn provides shade to the grass, protects it from heat stress and reduces moisture loss.
2. Use short pruning waste as mulch
(Image credit: Getty Images/owngarden)
In addition to increasing the height, increasing the frequency of mowing your lawn also has benefits in the summer. While you might normally mow every 10 days, consider increasing this to every 5 days for the summer months.
By increasing the mowing frequency, you remove shorter clippings each time. These can be left on the lawn as mulch to retain moisture in the soil and prevent it from evaporating from the soil surface during hot summers.
A mulching mower is ideal for this, but if you don’t use a grass catcher on your lawn mower and install a mulching plug, the short grass clippings can spread across the lawn.
Check out the range of mulch plugs available from Amazon
3. Give plenty of water in the morning
(Image credit: Ronstik/Getty Images)
A lawn needs water during the hot summer days when there is less rain. Keep an eye on the weather forecast to see if rain is expected when planning when to water your lawn in the summer. When you get out the hose or sprinkler to water, there are optimal times to water your lawn.
It is better to water deeply and irregularly than to water your grass lightly more often. The moisture wants to penetrate deep into the root zone and not evaporate quickly from the surface. Light watering means a lawn is more susceptible to drought, while deep watering will encourage stronger, deeper roots.
Water your lawn in the morning, once a week, before the temperature rises. This gives the moisture enough time to soak into the soil. It reduces evaporation, ensures that the lawn has water during the hottest hours of the day, and reduces the chance of lawn diseases that come from evening watering and from wet leaves that stay wet overnight.
4. Apply a summer fertilizer
(Image credit: Getty Images/groveb)
July can be a great time to fertilize your lawn to protect it from the hot weather and give it a boost of nutrients to help it green up. A summer lawn fertilizer can strengthen and revitalize any lawn so it can withstand the elements and foot traffic in the months ahead.
A granular summer fertilizer is applied with a spreader to ensure even coverage and should be watered in afterwards. It is ideal to mow the lawn before applying fertilizer and apply the fertilizer after rain. If no rain is forecast, use a hose or sprinkler and water the lawn beforehand – the nutrients will not be absorbed if you apply fertilizer to dry soil.
Summerguard nourishes and strengthens the lawn against heat and drought by improving the absorption of water and nutrients by your lawn.
5. Tackle weeds by hand
(Image credit: Future/Ruth Hayes)
It may sound like a hassle, but weeds can grow wildly in the summer and pulling them out by hand is the best way to kill weeds without damaging your lawn. Weeds will compete with your grass for water and nutrients and are best dealt with before they go to seed.
A lawn can be extremely stressed by the summer heat and possible drought. Using weed killers is not ideal in hot weather and there is little point in using weed killers and fertilizers in the summer as it is a preventative product and the weeds are already there.
Many perennial weeds, including dandelions and plantain, have deep roots and must be removed in their entirety to prevent them from returning. Pay close attention to weeds in the lawn and remove them one by one.
Any bare spots in the grass can then be reseeded with fast-growing grass seed. This will quickly restore the bare spots. Keep the seed moist to promote germination.
A standing weeder works great for those large taprooted weeds like dandelions, thistles, and nettles. Solid, durable construction ensures long-term use.
6. Keep garden toys mobile
(Image credit: Getty Images/redmar)
A family lawn can see a lot of action and footfall in the summer and that will have an impact. Any toys, slides, paddling pools, slides or trampolines are best moved around the garden regularly to reduce the impact on one area.
Such items affect the health of your lawn, from choking out grass and limiting the amount of light that reaches your lawn to compacting the soil with heavy action. Move such lawn toys at least weekly to give affected areas time to recover.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I scarify my lawn in July?
It is not advisable to scarify a lawn in the middle of summer. Grass growth will slow as temperatures rise and scarifying or dethatching in the hottest months of the year can stress the grass and it may struggle to recover in the summer. When planning when to scarify a lawn, carrying out the task in the spring or fall will yield the best results.
Should I scalp my lawn in the summer?
Scalping a lawn is the process of cutting the lawn extremely short. It can be beneficial, especially for warm season grasses in the spring. It is a task that should be done with caution, as there are risks involved. Scalping in the summer can damage a lawn, as the hot summer sun can damage the grass and it can also encourage moss.
Summer can be a busy time in any garden. In addition to tending to your lawn, there are plants that need to be fertilized, shrubs and perennials that need to finish flowering, and pruning that needs to be done. No matter how long the to-do list is, always take the time to sit back and enjoy the garden.
