How To Prepare Your Lawn For Summer

As your trusted turf supplier, we understand the importance of a lush, green lawn — especially in the warmer months, when outdoor spaces become our Eden. Whether you’re a homeowner looking to create a floral haven or a landscaper preparing multiple properties, a healthy summer lawn starts with early preparation and wise lawn care choices. Below is our professional advice and top turf tips on how to get your lawn summer-ready.

Your Summer Lawn Essentials

• Summer fertiliser
• Weedkiller
• Weeding tool
• Garden fork
• Lawn edging iron or spade
• Lawn mower
• Garden gloves

When To Start Prepping Your Summer Lawn?

Typically, we start preparing our summer lawns in spring. This is usually when the growing season kicks off, as the weather warms up and nature wakes up. Once you notice your lawn growing, that’s the time to begin getting your grass ready to thrive and survive the summer months. There are general turf tasks you can take on each month to keep your lawn looking fresh. However, this guide focuses specifically on preparing your lawn for summer fun!

What Kind of Summer Lawn Are You Looking For?

How you prepare your lawn will depend on what style of lawn you’re looking for. If you desire a colourful, carefree, wild flower meadow that produces native flowers and attracts pollinators, then leave your lawn to do its own thing. On the other hand, if it’s a traditional, manicured green carpet you’re seeking, then now’s the time to start prepping. And we have the essential steps to help get you there.

8 Top Tips to Prepare Your Lawn for Summer

1. Start Mowing Twice A Week

With regular sunshine and warm weather, your grass will rapidly grow. To maintain a neat and tidy lawn, your turf can handle a cut twice a week. This also encourages the grass to grow a thick, healthy sward, resulting in a lush, full appearance. Regular mowing also strengthens your grass and keeps weeds at bay.

2. Edge Your Lawn

This task is often forgotten but can make all the difference to the look and condition of your lawn. Using a half-moon edging iron or flat-bladed spade, cut your way around the edge of your lawn to frame it. You only need to trim a small amount, but it’s enough to prevent your turf from spreading into the flowerbeds, and it leaves you with a crisp, clean edge for a smarter finish.

3. Let Your Lawn Breathe

A wet spring can cause lots of issues for your lawn. One in particular is compacted soil. Severe levels of soil compaction will prevent oxygen, nutrients and water from soaking through and reaching the grass roots.

Aerating is an easy task and a quick solution to revive your lawn. Using a garden fork, spike it into your lawn every 15-20cm. Push down, wiggle the fork and release. The holes will help with drainage and allow essential nutrients to feed your grass. Resulting in better grass health and growth.

4. Fertilise Your Lawn

Fertilising your lawn is usually completed in early spring as the grass wakes up and starts to grow. If you notice that your grass is struggling, then a summer fertiliser, like our slow-releasing Envy summer fertiliser, can provide the boost of nutrients it needs. If your turf is still struggling after a spring and summer application, there may be a bigger issue, and new turf may be the easiest option.

5.Leave Grass Clippings

With more visible sunshine, our turf is soaking up ample vitamin D. We can, therefore, leave a layer of grass clippings on our lawns after mowing. This helps shade the grass blades and soil from intense heat, preventing scorching, drought, and stress. As the grass cuttings decompose, they fertilise and nourish the earth below. Ultimately, encouraging stronger, healthier turf to grow. Still unsure? Our blog on whether you should leave grass clipping on your lawn might change your mind.

6. Overseeding Bare Patches

As your grass grows, you may notice bare patches where the turf is thin or struggling to grow. Rather than returf these areas, you can opt for overseeding. By lightly watering grass seed into the area, the seeds will root and produce fresh new grass, filling bare patches and repairing your lawn.

7. Water, Water, Water

The general rule of thumb for gardeners is to water your garden and lawns on the days it doesn’t rain. Especially, if summer brings a few days, weeks or months with minimal rainfall. A water butt can be a great investment, as it allows you to collect and recycle rainwater to water your lawn. To check whether your lawn needs a drink, touch the soil. If it’s moist, it’s ok. If it’s dry and crumbly, a good drink is required.

If you’re laying a new lawn, our blog on how often to water new turf can give you further insight.

8. Watch For Weeds

As the warmer weather increases, so do those pesky weeds! When it comes to your lawn, weeds will often appear in the seams of turf if the turf hasn’t been laid correctly. They can also appear around the edge of your lawn, hence why mowing and edging are key! But they can also take over in patches where grass is struggling to grow because weeds are given too much space. This is when you need to feed and seed the area, prioritising grass growth to suppress the weeds.

Summer Lawn Issues To Look Out For

• Dead or dry patches – There can be many reasons for bald or dry spots: compacted soil, drought or disease. Once you know the cause, you can find the solution.
• Red thread – More common during wet summers and high humidity. This is an infection where the mycelium fungus turns your grass pink or reddish.
• Leaf spots – These brown spots appear on the grass blades when temperatures are high. It’s heat damage, which can be resolved by mowing at a higher setting.

For further advice, read our blog on lawn fungus and treatment.

Can I Lay Turf In Summer?

Absolutely! There are a lot of pros and cons to laying turf in the summer. Pros: you’re working in nicer weather, and there’s plenty of sunshine to help your grass grow. Cons: the heat can have a detrimental effect on your turf if it’s not laid quickly, and it also requires a lot of watering. Laying turf in the summer comes down to personal preference. Our blog on laying turf in the heat can help.

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Speak To The Experts

If you need any extra support with your summer lawns or are looking for high-quality grass turf to create a new summer lawn, get in touch with the team today. For landscapers offering premium turf to their clients, be sure to check out our Trade Account too.