Summer Lawn Care Tips from SavATree

three kids playing with a ball on a manicured lawn

Finally, summer is here and you can start enjoying the lawn you’ve worked so diligently to perfect! But don’t stop now! Your lawn needs year-round care to keep it looking its best. Follow these summer lawn care tips to avoid potential problems that could damage your summer lawn and landscape.

For additional care, SavaLawn’s lawn care experts are available to meet with you and discuss your lawn care program preferences and develop a personalized program that helps you meet your lawn care objectives. SavaLawn offer many varieties of lawn care programs including natural lawn care programs, we even offer organic lawn care options.

Summer Lawn Care Tip #1: Mow

While this may sound simple enough, how and when you mow your lawn is a critical component of summer lawn maintenance.

Mower Height
A mowing height between 2.5 to 3 inches is best for most of the season, except during summer stresses when the lawn mowing height should be raised one-half inch to mow at 3 to 3.5 inches. Raising the mowing height provides more insulation from summer heat and reduces water loss from your soil.
Grass Length
Be sure not to let your grass grow too long, because removing more than one-third of the total leaf blade height at one time could stress your lawn. Keeping your lawn mower blades sharp helps to protect the grass from lawn diseases. A dull mower blade shreds or tears the tips of the grass, leaving the grass vulnerable to lawn disease.
Grass Clippings
Many homeowners are confused about what to do with their grass clippings. Mulching and returning your clippings to the lawn returns nutrients and does not contribute to thatch. The only times it makes sense to collect clippings would be if you had a severe disease and you did not want to further contaminate the lawn, or if the leaf clippings are too long.
Mow Wet? Or Wait?
If you have the dilemma of deciding whether it’s better to cut the grass when it’s wet or let it get too tall, it’s better to cut it when it’s wet. Although this can create some clumping with your clippings, it’s better to get the grass cut, and remove the clippings rather than letting the grass get too tall. Do not mow a wet lawn if you have lawn disease in order to minimize the spread of many diseases including red thread, dollar spot, patch disease or other lawn fungus diseases.

Summer Lawn Care Tip #2: Irrigate

Like mowing, watering your lawn may sound easy enough, but many homeowners are unsure about the best frequency and amount of watering is required as a part of their total summer lawn care program. The amount of water your lawn requires can vary depending on weather conditions, soil drainage and the amount of sun or shade in your landscape. A good rule of thumb is to ensure that your summer lawn receives approximately one inch of water per week. You may use a rain gauge or a container to determine how much water you need to supplement any rainfall.

Summer Lawn Care Tip #3: Identify and Treat Lawn Diseases

A professional lawn care service like the experts at SavaLawn can survey your landscape to spot any dangers for early lawn disease and to identify the best types of weed control products or other lawn care treatments to ensure a healthy, green lawn throughout the summer.

Among the many common types of summer lawn disease is dollar spot, which can affect many types of grass. Patch disease is another common type of summer lawn disease, but the infection doesn’t become obvious until the plants go into stress, so preventive treatment as a part of your lawn care program is important.

Summer Lawn Care Tip #4: Control Weeds

An important component of a summer lawn care program is weed control. Quality weed control starts with an inspection of your turf in order to spot unwanted growth early on. The lawn care experts at SavaLawn use two basic types of lawn treatment for weed control in your landscape: pre-emergence weed control treatments and post-emergence treatments. Your lawn specialist will develop a program that addresses your personal preferences and integrates carefully targeted treatments for weeds such as crabgrass and other problems in your lawn.

Click or call today to arrange a complimentary consultation from our fully trained and certified arborists for lawn care, fertilizer and tree care services from SavATree and SavaLawn.

Summer Lawn Tips