“Man masters nature not by force, but by understanding.”
—Jacob Bronowski
When it comes to the heat, humidity, and long dry stretches over the summer months, some people surrender their lawns to bare or brown patches, weeds, and insects, but these seasonal problems are not inevitable. You don’t have to give in and give up! There are a few best practices you can employ with persistence to maintain a healthy and vibrant green lawn throughout the dog days of summer.
Cutting, watering, and fertilizer
Set the deck of your lawnmower so that you are cutting off no more than one-third of the blade of grass. Taller grass helps prevent the soil from dehydrating. It also discourages weed seeds from germinating.
If you can, try to mow after 7 p.m. to reduce stress on the grass.
This is a good time of year to let grass clippings stay on the lawn, but make sure your lawnmower blades are sharp, giving you a fine cut.
Water the lawn infrequently but deeply, preferably early in the morning before the sun comes up.
How much water is just right? Apply the screwdriver test: if you jab it into the soil, does it go in easily? If too much resistance, add more water.
Warm-season grasses like Bermuda and Centipede do well in the summer, but they still need to be fed. Now is the time to fertilize these lawns.
Weed control
The best time to kill weeds is in the fall, so you will not want to broadly spray the entire lawn, but during the summer months you can spot spray weedy areas.
Use an off-the-shelf, targeted post-emergent weed killer or try a mixture of liquid dish soap and water. Apply it directly onto the weed. Another option – and it’s a good one to avoid killing nearby grass – is to pull weeds by hand.
Insect control
Insects such as June bugs and Japanese beetles will feast on your lawn this time of year, as well as lay eggs which become grubs. Before you know it, your lawn is thinning and bare spots appear. Ask your independent dealer for the insect control product that is right for your area.