The hotter days of summer puts the stress on our cool season blue grass lawns.Lawns that are watered, fertilized, mowed and managed properly will continue to add to the beauty of our homes in the 90 to 100 degree weather.
I recommend deep watering.Too often, folks with sprinkler systems will water frequently at short intervals.This promotes a shallow root system, which is not able to weather the hotter days like a deep rooted lawn can.Typically, our lawns need about four pounds of available nitrogen per 1000 square feel to thrive each year.That spring application starts fading about now and the lawn requires additional nitrogen.A fall application is generally applied as well.
Mowing the lawn no closer than 2 ½ inches is particularly important during hot weather.Shorter mowing exposes the turf to greater heat radiation and thus greater moisture loss and increased stress levels on the lawn.
Many of the problems I see in our bluegrass lawns are associated with thick excessive thatch. This is best remedied by having the lawn aerated with a plugging machine. Many local lawn care services do this type of turf improvement for a fee. I liken it to having by-pass surgery to open up our arteries. This process opens the lawn up to better water and air infiltration. A thick thatch promotes fungal disease as well.
