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Beat the heat.
Keep your lawn green.
Summer heat waves and heat advisories can be brutal, but they don’t have to ruin your lawn. With the right timing for watering, mowing and feeding, your grass can stay healthy all season.
Safety first
Care for yourself first
Avoid the heat of the day
Mowing and weeding in extreme heat can cause heat exhaustion, sunburn or dehydration. Work early in the day or in the evening as it cools down.
- Drink plenty of water
- Wear broad-spectrum, water-resistant sunscreen, SPF 30 or higher
- Wear a hat and protective clothing
Let the grass dry first
Before mowing first thing in the morning, give the lawn time to dry. Wet grass is slippery, cuts unevenly, tears easily and can spread disease.
Mowing in the evening gives grass the whole night to recover before the next round of heat.
Deep, not daily
When and how much to water
Water early in the morning, before the heat sets in, to reduce evaporation so grass absorbs as much as possible. Evening watering increases the chance of disease.
Water deeply and less often. Frequent light watering keeps roots shallow and weak. Let the lawn dry out before watering again, and spot-water any areas that dry out sooner.
Cut smarter
Summer mowing tips
Mow in the evening
Mowing in the early evening, as temperatures drop, keeps you cooler and helps grass roots stay moist.
Follow the one-third rule
Remove no more than one-third of the grass height at a time. Cutting too much exposes the lawn to more heat.
Normal height: 2.5 inchesSummer height: 3 inchesKeep blades sharp
Dull blades tear grass. A clean cut heals faster and reduces browning.
Hold off during drought
Mowing a heat- and drought-stressed lawn damages it further. Wait until after rainfall or watering.
Let it rest
Skip fertilizing in summer
Fertilizer pushes grass to grow, which adds stress during summer heat. For cool-season grasses, wait until fall to fertilize so the lawn can recover from summer damage and prepare for winter.
Also avoid in summer
These tasks cause temporary damage and make it harder for a heat-stressed lawn to recover.
- Aeration
- Dethatching
Summary
Your summer lawn checklist
Follow these simple steps and your lawn will stay healthy all summer long.
- Mow in the evening and protect yourself from the heat
- Water in the early morning to reduce evaporation and disease
- Water 1–2 inches per week, including rainfall
- Cut no more than one-third of the grass height; keep it taller
- Keep mower blades sharp
- Don’t mow during drought
- Don’t fertilize in the summer