You want your grass to look great, but hot summer lawn care in Florida can be complex at best. Between dealing with the heat and humidity of this season, you may be struggling to make sure your curb appeal is nothing short of amazing. Need a bit of help? These tips could be just what you need for lawn care during the summer heat.
1. Know Your Grass
There are a number of different commonly grown grasses in Florida, and each has its own benefits and drawbacks. If you don’t know exactly what type you have, though, it can be difficult to treat it well. Bahia, Bermuda, Centipede, St. Augustine, and Zoysia are just a few of the typical kinds, so if you’re not sure what’s growing out there, it might help to find out.
2. Think About Water
No matter what type of grass you have, hydration will be important at some point. Make sure you know how to water your grass. Note that it should never happen between ten a.m. and four p.m. During that period of the day, all of your moisture will evaporate, so you’re just wasting your time. To ensure you’re watering at the right time, you may want to set the times on your irrigation system.
Also, take into account how much rain you’ve already gotten during the week. If you’ve already gotten quite a bit, you may not need to water as often. The University of Florida recommends a watering schedule that hits the grass twice a week, but that will depend a bit on how much water you’ve previously gotten. It may pay off to use rain barrels to take advantage of those summer afternoon showers. You may also want to switch to a drip irrigation system as it helps to keep the grass’ roots moist. You may also want to strategically place empty containers in various spots around your yard to make sure everything is getting exactly as much water as it should.
3. Shorter Is Not Better
When you mow, how short are you mowing your grass? You want to leave about two and a half to three inches of grass behind every single time. The shorter the grass, the more you weaken the root system. Those blades do more than look nice. Like other plants, they use the sunlight to produce food and healthier roots, so leave them a bit longer, and you won’t experience the dead, brown grass that often hits Florida lawns in the late summer. You may also want to sharpen your lawnmower blades to help them cut more efficiently.
4. Keep an Eye Out for Pests and Weeds
Summer pest and lawn care actually go hand in hand. From cinch bugs and fire ants to crabgrass and dollarweed, it doesn’t take much to derail months of hard work. Often targeted control is all you can do during the summer to take care of the weeds, but there are a number of pest control solutions a professional can help you deploy. In fact, many professional pest control companies like Slug-A-Bug offer comprehensive lawn and pest control services that will not only make sure your lawn looks amazing but that it stays pest-free as well. In fact, if we don’t make your lawn look amazing, we’ll return between service visits to take care of any needs we missed just so your yard will continue to look great.
At Slug-A-Bug, we only have experienced, licensed professionals on staff who can help keep your entire landscape healthy, and we’ve been working with Brevard County residents for more than three decades to build better, healthier lawns. Ready to get started? Contact us today.