I watched as my neighbor spent 3 weekends in a row nursing his dead lawn back to life during the last days of February. Morning watering, lugging out the sprinkler to water every day, looking up at the sky with frustration and disappointment. By the end of March it looked like it had come back to life but by the end of December it had returned to the same dead patches as before with my neighbor displaying the same air of disappointment as before looking over the back fence.
If an Australian lawn is to survive the summer, the good growth of the lawn prior to the heat of the season is largely won and lost before 35 degrees C is reached. In other words, a lawn’s good growth in early spring is the start of a good summer’s growth or the beginnings of a disastrous summer.
1. Most people get the watering wrong.
Everyone waters. Not everyone waters well.
Most people get lawn watering wrong. Yes, everyone waters lawn, but that is not to say that all people water lawn well. The most common approach to watering is to water on a daily basis but to only water lightly on each occasion. The reasoning behind this form of watering is to keep the surface of the grass cool, and to keep the grass moist. This type of watering only serves one real purpose however. It causes the grass’s roots to grow close to the surface of the lawn. The top of the soil (where the surface of the lawn is) is the driest part of the soil. By growing you grass’s roots close to the surface you are creating a house made of sand on top of a pile of sand. This type of construction provides little to no protection against heat and dryness. In essence, you are building a lawn that can not withstand summer weather with the best of them. In reality, you are building a lawn with roots of a grass made of a house made of rock on top of a pile of rock. In building a lawn such as this you are building a lawn that is well equipped to handle summer weather, a lawn that is able to withstand periods of drought and heat with little to no problems.
Watering in the hottest part of the year is all about giving your lawn the best chance to get as much water as possible before the sun starts to really scorch. The best time to do this is first thing in the morning, ideally before 9am. If however it is too late in the day and you have not been able to water your lawn during the day then try to avoid watering in the evening as this can cause your lawn to be prone to fungal diseases, which can be as difficult to fix as other problems that your lawn may have.
- Water deeply, not daily — aim for about 25–30mm per session
- Use a rain gauge or straight-sided cup to actually measure what you’re putting down (most people wildly overestimate)
- Check soil moisture before you water — if you can push a screwdriver 10cm into the ground without much effort, hold off
- Mulch nearby garden beds to reduce overall soil heat, which creeps into lawn roots at the edges
Mowing high. Genuinely, higher than feels right.
When cutting your lawn in summer time, ensure you are mowing high. In fact, cut your lawn at the highest setting and water as normal as mowing high grass helps to create deep rooted grass and also shades the soil which in turn helps to keep moisture in the soil to stop it evaporating quickly in hot weather. Also remember to ensure that your mower blades are sharp. A blunt blade can tear the grass rather than cut it cleanly and in a short time the grass can turn brown and become diseased.
As I mentioned previously, by mowing high during summer time, your grass will perform far better as it will provide your soil with the required shade and root depth to retain ample amounts of moisture to combat dry weather. Allow your lawn to grow to a height of approximately 40-50mm during the warmer months and take care to keep the blades of your lawn mower sharp as possible as if they become dull they will simply ‘tear’ the grass blades instead of cutting cleanly. A sharp lawn mower is crucial to providing a lawn with a great cut during summer.
Weeds don’t take summers off
Summer stress on lawn can also weaken the existing turf in healthy lawns creating spaces for weeds to invade in the thin areas. The most common weeds active during summer months are bindii, summer grass and creeping oxalis. The best way to control weeds in lawns is to create a healthy lawn with thick even growth of grass with no thin patches or bare areas for weeds to establish themselves.
Weeds don’t take summers off and will attack thin patches of turf all year round. To stop weeds taking over your lawn the most effective thing to do is to grow a thick healthy lawn that has no bare patches for weeds to move into. If weeds do appear in your lawn it is far better to pull them out by hand then to use a broadleaf herbicide that could potentially do as much damage to your lawn as the weed itself. Spot treat any weeds that do appear in your lawn during the cooler part of the day or wait until things have eased off a bit and hold off applying any herbicides during peak summer heat.
Fertilising in summer – less is better
When it comes to fertilising your lawn, there is great concern that prior to summer passing through your neighborhood that you must ‘fertilise up’ your grass to give it extra growth so that when summer arrives your grass will be strong enough to battle through to all of the heat and stress that it will undoubtedly bring. But unfortunately, what will in fact occur, is that after the lawn has grown rapidly in the lead up to summer, when the weather begins to heat up the newly-grown grass will not be able to handle the increased amount of stress and consequently die off in the heat of the day. This would be comparable to someone who has a high fever being forced to go out for a long run in the scorching heat, it is just not going to be good for them.
Fertilising – less is better during summer. Most lawn fertilisers contain nitrogen which promotes growth. If your lawn is already stressed from the heat then adding more growth will only place more pressure on it. It is far better to wait until late spring to apply a high quality slow release fertilizer. These type of fertilizers will release the required nutrients over a period of months allowing your lawn to grow naturally without the dreaded growth spurt. If however your lawn is losing its color in February then a light application of Potassium will help your lawn combat the stresses of summer.
How the type of turf you have affects how you manage your lawn.
While the advice outlined here will be generally suitable for lawns throughout Australia it is worth noting that not all grasses are created equal. In cooler climates with winter rainfall (e.g. southern Australia) there are a number of cool-season grasses that can be grown and which perform well through summer. Examples include a number of fescue species. In most of Australia however summer rainfall dominates and the higher temperatures of late winter and early spring mean that the best grasses for lawns in these circumstances are the warm-season species. Of these by far the most suitable for use as lawn is Buffalo grass. Even where a lawn receives some shade the various Buffalo species available have been shown to perform well and in addition they have short periods of drought and low rainfall periods do not cause any problems for this grass. The reasons for the huge popularity of Buffalo turf for use in backyard lawns across Australia are clear to see.
On the subject of selecting turf for your lawn, it is imperative to select a variety of grass that will thrive in your local climate. For example, if you have a cool-season grass such as fescue it will be a losing battle to try and keep it alive during the peak summer months in places such as Sydney and Brisbane. On the other hand, there are a variety of warm-season grasses that are ideal for backyards in these climates that can handle heat, some degree of shade and have the ability to survive through periods of drought with minimal maintenance. Yes, they are not perfect but definitely a cut above trying to keep a variety of grass that is not suited to your local climate. I recommend having a look at Buffalo turf from a reputable supplier such as Bettaturf.com.
| Grass type | Heat tolerance | Drought resistance | Shade tolerance |
| Buffalo | High | Good | Good |
| Couch | Very high | Excellent | Poor |
| Kikuyu | High | Good | Poor |
| Fescue | Low | Poor | Good |
Back to grass. Some species of turf are better in warm weather than others. If you have a cool season lawn such as fescue then Sydney and Brisbane summers are going to be very hard for it. On the other hand, a warm season lawn such as Buffalo turf has been bred for lawns with some shade, that can withstand periods of drought and deal with poor lawn care from time to time. For these reasons it is now the most popular species of turf in Queensland and NSW for backyards.
I know there are no tricks or gimmicks but there are few things to do to prepare your lawn for our crazy summers and keep it a healthy happy lawn all year round. The main things are to do the right things at the right time, be to do things in moderation and to choose the right grass for your location.
