Melinda's Garden Moment Video
Melinda Myers
Nationally known gardening expert, TV/Radio host, author & columnist with over 30 years of horticulture experience and tons of gardening information to share! www.melindamyers.comMelinda's Garden Moment videos will help you create that beautiful landscape you’ve always wanted. Each week throughout the growing season, a new gardening video will be added right here, so be sure to stop back. You can also watch Melinda’s Garden Moments on your local network TV station affiliate.
Caring for Drought Stressed Lawns
Drought and extremely high temperatures can leave your lawn looking like this.
If you allow your lawn to go dormant during hot dry spells, leave it dormant until cooler temperatures and rains return so nature can get it growing again. Those lawns taken in and out of dormancy with irregular watering are the most stressed and less likely to recover.
Do provide lawns with 1/4 inch of water once a month during extended droughts. This keeps the crown of the plant alive without breaking dormancy.
Further protect your lawn by minimizing foot and equipment traffic that can injure the drought-stressed grass.
And do not apply weedkillers and high nitrogen fast release fertilizers to the lawn in summer. These chemicals can damage your lawn during hot weather. Plus, new weeds are the first to replace those the herbicide killed.
A bit more information: Proper fertilization will increase your lawn's ability to survive the stresses of heat, drought, and pests. Leave short clippings on the lawn to return moisture, nutrients, and organic matter to the soil. Use a low nitrogen slow release fertilizer, like Milorganite, that encourages slow steady growth and wont burn the lawn during hot dry weather.