When your lawn experience a drought, you might think it'll never grow back! Dry, lifeless soil is not a good sign for any keen gardener, but don't worry, there are things you can do to inject moisture back into your lawn and bring your lawn back to life. If your lawn has dried out in the sun, these are the steps you should take...
1. Aerate the soil
Some people think that aeration is a lawn care treatment that should be reserved for waterlogged lawns only. Well, they're wrong! Lawn aeration is a valuable step in helping lawns recover after drought. Have you ever noticed that water poured onto dry ground just runs away? This is not what we want when we're trying to get water down to the roots of the grass.
Aerating the soil will help relieve some of the compaction and make space for the water to run underground. You can buy spiked shoes to aerate your lawn but this isn't always a preferred method because it takes so long! A much quicker way to aerate your lawn is to employ professionals to do it!
Here at Lawn and Weed Expert, we have a motorised aeration machine that can loosen the soil across your entire lawn in a very short amount of time. This is perfect if you're keen to help your lawn recover from drought as quickly as possible.
Our Lawn Aeration and Spiking Service >
2. Provide lawn feed
If your grass has suffered through a drought, it's likely there are very few nutrients left in the soil. The second thing you should do to help your lawn recover from drought is to apply a good quality lawn fertiliser. This will replenish the soil and prepare it to grow healthy new grass again.
Here at Lawn and Weed Expert, we use lawn fertilisers that aren't available in the supermarket. They contain a balanced blend of nitrogen, phosphorous, potassium and other elements. We often tailor our lawn fertilisers to the quality of soil at your property, the species of grass you're growing and the time of year. This gives your lawn the best chance of recovering after drought.
Lawn Fertiliser Service >
3. Don't cut too short
You might be tempted to cut your grass short after a drought and effectively 'start again', however, it's important you preserve whatever grass you have. Grass that's cut on a longer setting is likely to recover from a drought much more quickly than grass that's cut really short.
Longer grass provides some level of protection to the surrounding soil and is also effective at preventing water from evaporating too quickly. Well-established grass blades have a larger surface area and can therefore convert more sunlight into food. This means longer grass grows more quickly & has a much better chance of surviving after a drought.
Similarly, grass that's been allowed to grow for a while is likely to have longer, larger root systems that can spread out further to reach water. So, giving your grass a break from mowing after a drought and keeping your grass longer will help your lawn recover from drought.
4. Take preventative measures
If you know that a heatwave is coming, you can put preventative measures in place to ensure your grass doesn't suffer from drought again. Of course, we're not always guaranteed hot weather here in the UK, but that doesn't mean you should chance it and ignore the possibility of drought during the summer months.
Lawn care jobs in spring
Taking care of your lawn in spring, before the hottest weather hits, is a wise move if you want to protect your lawn from drought. We'd recommend aerating, scarifying and overseeding during this period to ensure your lawn grows thick and full.
Spring Lawn Care Tips >
Lawn care jobs in Autumn
Autumn is likely to be the month where your lawn is recovering from drought, so in addition to the steps we've highlighted above that directly deal with the effects of drought - we'd also recommend:
- Topdressing
- Scarifying
- Treating moss and diseases
Autumn Lawn Care Tips >
If you're trying to help your lawn recover from drought or if you'd like to implement a professional lawn care routine to maintain your lawn all year round, we can help! Get in touch with Lawn and Weed Expert for a FREE lawn survey.
