Your Lawn is Our Business
Locally & Family Owned for Over 17 years.
Current Conditions Lawn Tips
Finally! Some Rain.
What to expect and watch for as lawns try to recover.
Recovery can vary by turf type and area of the lawn.
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* Areas in the shade will recover faster.
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* Along concrete, foundations, and other hot areas will take longer due to excess heat and likely poor soil conditions.
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* High foot traffic areas will also take longer where turf looks trampled.
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* Most lawns have multiple varieties of turf, you may notice some splotchy areas as different varieties recover more quickly than others.
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* There can also be varying recovery based on soil structure, as many lawns have areas where the soil does not retain the moisture as well as others.
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We still need continued rain or watering for a full recovery.
Turf can take up to 2-3 weeks to recover from the extended heat and dryness we experienced. However, in order for that to occur, we need to have additional precipitation or watering, otherwise, things will go back to a dormant state, especially since the future temps do not look to be dropping much in the near future.
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Keep an eye on the lawn for possible diseases.
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With the continuation of heat along with humid conditions, especially hot and muggy nights when the turf stays moist all night long it creates prime conditions for disease and fungal growth to appear. They can recover on their own with cooler temps, lower humidity, and continued rain or watering. But don't overwater that can make things worse. Keeping the lawn fertilized regularly will help aid in regrowth and the recovery process. You may want to consider a fungicide treatment. Fungicide treatments will stop the fungus from getting any worse and spreading throughout your lawn as well as help aid in the recovery process. A fungicide application will give your lawn protection for around 30 days. To be clear, the lawn still has to regenerate in those areas and the appearance of a fully recovered lawn does take time.
Some of the common diseases in our area are Dollar Spot, Brown Patch, Summer Patch, Necrotic Ring Spot, Leaf Spot, and leaf blight.
Rust - This is also a possibility with slow-growing turf.
Rust: This is a harmless (other than the cosmetic appearance) mold that is caused by heavy dew overnight along with slowed growth, normally due to hot & dry conditions. Fungicide applications are not recommended for rust, as the turf will recover on its own with improved weather conditions. Keeping the lawn regularly fertilized and watered are the best remedies to help get rust out of your lawn. Also bagging the clippings and washing off your mower after each mowing will help eliminate spreading the mold.
Summer Watering
*Your lawn needs 1-3" of rain or watering every week. Closer to 3" when temps are mid 80's and higher for prolonged stretches.
*Water deep & infrequent 1-3 times a week, for 45 min- 1 hr in each area. About 1" in each area, per watering.
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*Early morning is the best time. Avoid watering past 7:30 PM. Doing so will invite fungus and disease as the grass blades would not have a chance to dry out overnight.
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*DO NOT water shallow and infrequent. Watering daily for 10-15 min in each area will be worse for your lawn than not watering at all.
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*If you don't want to water regularly, try to at least water every 7-10 days to cool the plant and soil. This won't help with any greening but will help the plant survive in extreme conditions.
Mowing
*Mow High 3.5 to 4" In the Summer months hold off mowing as much as possible.
Keeping the grass taller, helps shade the soil from the sun, keeping it cooler. The taller you keep the grass the deeper the roots will go, helping it cope with the heat and other stresses.
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​*Avoid cutting off more than 1/3 of the grass blade - Doing so puts added stress on the entire plant. We want to avoid this if at all possible, especially in the Summer.​
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*Keep Your Mower Blades Sharp - Dull mower blades can lead to water loss and increased disease susceptibility and your lawn will have a much more difficult time coping with heat stress which could lead to severe damage and reduced turf quality after recovery.
Just a reminder - Weed Control is a killer, not a preventer.
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*Weeds need to be actively growing to spray and kill them.
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*Hot & dry weather can make it difficult to address weeds as their growth is also slowed. Generally, they will still die off but it is a slower process.
*We spray any weeds we see on every visit, aside from the first application as it is generally too cold for weeds to be actively growing to be able to be killed.
