How to care for your lawn in a heatwave

How to care for your lawn in a heatwave
In the UK, we’re more than used to a bit of rain – but one thing we’re not so familiar with is a heatwave! As temperatures soar above 20 degrees, your lawn may start to look a little worse for wear as it struggles with the unusually good weather – causing yellowing and dryness.

However, there are a few things you can do to give your grass a helping hand, and it might just thank you for it when our standard UK weather returns!

Water, water and water some more…

We say it every year, but it is incredibly important to keep your lawn watered during hot weather to keep it from dying off. Grass is very resilient and does have the ability to survive a summer scorching, but you should try to avoid any dead grass if you can. Yellowing and dryness is a sign that your lawn needs water. Another indicator is the bounce back test. Step on your lawn and off again – if your grass bounces back easily then it is being watered well. If it stays flat, then you need to boost your watering regime. Aim to water your lawn early in the morning before the sun is out and late at night when the sun is down to avoid all your efforts being wasted. Alternatively, you can purchase an oscillating timed sprinkler that should help keep your lawn hydrated throughout the day – especially if you’re back in the office!

Avoid fertilising

We’re big fans of a superbly lush green lawn, but when temperatures are high, fertilising your lawn will have to take a back seat for a few weeks until temperatures cool down again. All of our fertilisers with the exception of our REVIVE: Organic 365 fertiliser contain chemicals and need to be watered in to start them working on your lawn. In dry warm weather this may mean they require lots of watering to get them to break down and may increase the risk of fertiliser burn. Needless to say, we’re not huge fans of that – so drop the fertiliser spreader for now!

Try to keep traffic to a minimum

Hot weather stresses your grass, and heavy traffic doesn’t help it much either. So, swap your garden galivanting for some sunbathing instead and your lawn will be much happier. Whilst the problems of too much traffic may not be instantly visible, they can cause issues further down the line. Compaction of your lawns surface can lead to more moss and thatch, waterlogging and in some cases, grass may struggle to grow with the lack of moisture and movement within its soil. You can alleviate compaction by aerating your lawn. Find out how, here.

Avoid mowing

We understand the longing for those pitch perfect lawn stripes more than anyone else, but it’s time to give the mower a rest until the hot weather passes. If you simply can’t resist, make sure to mow on the highest setting of your lawnmower. Longer grass blades create a shadow that helps to keep the moisture in your soil, whilst mowing too short can stress your grass and cause it to become straw like.

Should your lawn fall foul to any heat damage, you can overseed it or patch it up to help get it in good condition once again. Some of our fastest growing grass mixes to overseed with are; FAMILY: Kids and Pets, SUPERSTAR: Back Lawn and IMPRESS: Clay Master due to their high perennial ryegrass content.

But while the weather is nice, the best thing you can do for your lawn when the weather is warm is sit back, relax and enjoy it – oh, and don’t forget the watering!