Summer’s just around the corner, and that means summer parties and events like graduations and the 4th of July. If you’re hosting guests this summer, people are going to spend a lot of time looking at and hanging out on your lawn. A few easy tasks, which can be incorporated into your regular lawn care routine, go a long way toward keeping your lawn looking nice for company this summer.
Summer Lawn Mowing
Mowing wisely is the easiest way to spruce up your lawn. For a healthy summer lawn, raise the mower deck to the highest recommended cutting height for your grass. For warm-season grass, this typically means between 2 and 4 inches tall. For cool-season grass, mow 3 to 4 inches tall. This makes grass more drought resistant, and the shade from taller grass blades reduces the number of broad-leaf weeds.
As always, keep the lawnmower blades sharp to cut grass cleanly and avoid tearing. Unless you’re cutting overgrown or wet grass, leave the clippings on the lawn instead of raking or bagging them. This cuts down on the lawn’s water and fertilizer needs by returning nutrients to the soil. If you mow regularly and use a mulching mower, the clippings will hardly be noticeable.
Feeding Lawns
Water is the most important ingredient for keeping summer lawns green and growing. One of the chief concerns when watering a lawn is conserving water, even if your area is not experiencing a water shortage. If you can water, time irrigation for early in the morning so the water has a chance to soak into the ground before the sun gets hot. A few deep waterings to soak the soil are better and less wasteful than a few shallow waterings. If you can’t water, don’t worry too much – unwatered grasses will go dormant in the summer and come back when the weather cools and rain starts to fall.
If you want to save money and cut back on chemicals used in the lawn, apply compost instead of chemical fertilizer to give the lawn a summer nutrient boost. Well-rotted compost has no unpleasant smell, and there are no chemicals to worry about contributing to run-off pollution. Spread a 1/8 to 1/4-inch layer of compost over the lawn using hand tools like Corona’s shovels and rakes.
Clean Edge
A little bit of clean-up goes a long way toward creating an attractive yard. If you have landscape beds, weeding and pruning overgrowth instantly makes the yard look more well-kept. Adding a layer of new mulch also lends a professional touch to the landscaping. Mulching has the added advantage of holding moisture in the soil and suppressing weeds.
Use edgers or a spade to cut through grass that’s growing along patios, sidewalks, and landscape beds and create a crisp edge. You’d be surprised how much of a difference this makes in how the yard looks.
