In the spring it’s easy to feel inspired to work on your lawn and keep it well maintained, but when the middle of summer hits and the weather grows unbearably hot, it’s not that surprising that you’d lose motivation. Those summer days of blue skies and hot weather are amazing… for anything but yard work. Even so, your lawn still needs your help. The heat is getting to it too and that means the way you maintain it might need to be altered.
Here are some tips to help you keep your lawn healthy during the hottest months of summer.
Don’t Cut Your Grass too Short
When you cut your grass too short it will lower the grass's ability to make the energy it needs to grow. If your grass can’t grow it only has one other thing it can do, die.
“When cut at the proper height, however, grass develops stronger roots that support more vigorous plants that are more tolerant of stress.” - Yard Care
Healthy grass with longer roots will help the grass to seek out water underground. Not only that, but taller grass provides more shade for the soil, which means it’ll take longer for the sun to dry it out.
Water Your Lawn in the Morning
When you water your lawn early in the morning more water will soak into the soil then it will if you water it during the most intensely hot and sunny parts of the day. In the afternoon, the sun is going to evaporate a lot more water before it soaks into the soil than it would if you watered in the morning.
“As summer heat builds, your lawn will lose less water to evaporation if you time waterings for between 6 and 10 a.m. Sure, it's early—but who says you have to do it without an energizing beverage?” - Scotts
Getting up early to water might not be the most fun activity, but there isn’t a better alternative. You might be tempted to do it at night instead, but that’s definitely not a good idea. Watering at night makes for perfect conditions for disease due to the lack of evaporation. The morning is the only time that you can get lots of soil absorption and just enough evaporation.
Don’t Remove Grass Clippings
The grass clippings left behind after you mow might not be all that pleasing to the eye right afterwards, but they’ll make for a much nicer lawn in the long run. When left behind, these grass clippings act as a fertilizer as they decompose… and it’s free!
“Return clippings to the lawn by using a mulching mower. Clippings are actually beneficial to the lawn, as they act as a slow-release fertilizer for the plant as they decompose. It is important to aim the clippings away from streets, storm drains, and bodies of water.” - Yard Care
It can be very tempting to want to remove the grass clippings from your lawn as they are very noticeable immediately after you mow, but if you leave them behind they grow way less noticeable in a day or so. Water, wind, and decomposition all help it blend in.
In the end, though, a drought can come along in August. With watering restrictions in place, it can be hard to keep your lawn lush and green, but if you’ve cared and maintained your lawn well beforehand your lawn will do just fine bouncing back the next year.
Take care of your lawn in any way that you can. The heat will make it harder for your grass to stay healthy, but there are still ways you can work hard to keep it green. Just be careful. If the heat is strong enough to be getting to your lawn, it’ll get to you! Protect yourself from the sun and drink lots of water as you care for your lawn.
Contact us today for a FREE quote! We’ll come in, clean up your lawn/gardens, and leave—while you sit back, relax, and do something you enjoy!
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