How to Care for a Lawn in August
- 1). Cut the grass as high as possible, ideally around 3 inches. Adjust the blade on your mower to the appropriate height setting.
- 2). Water the lawn until the top 6 to 8 inches of soil is moist. Repeat once per week, or more often if the soil is sandy and drains rapidly. Water as infrequently and deeply as possible. Add more water, even if it is early by your schedule, if the grass begins to wilt or discolor.
- 3). Improve the condition of the lawn. Aerate the lawn to reduce compaction and introduce air to the soil. Remove excess thatch built up between the soil and the grass using a mechanical dethatcher or a thatching rake.
- 4). Apply a lawn fertilizer with at least 30 to 50 percent of its nitrogen in slow-release form after aeration and dethatching, but only if it falls into the normal fertilization schedule. Spread the fertilizer evenly across the grass at a rate of 1 pound of nitrogen for every 1,000 square feet of lawn. Watch the lawn and water it frequently to keep the lawn healthy, as the fertilizer causes the grass to grow rapidly.
- 5). Spread a pre-emergence herbicide for fall weeds if you have a known weed problem. Check that the active ingredients in the herbicide work on the weeds in your yard and will not kill your type of lawn. Follow the directions and precautions on the label exactly.
- 6). Overseed the lawn to fill in any dead patches toward the end of the month, but only in cooler parts of the country. Check with the local university cooperative extension to see if August overseeding is appropriate for your area.
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