Don’t panic. Your lawn is going to be fine despite temperatures in the 90s and little rainfall. According to the Maryland Department of Agriculture, lawns are in dormancy, and that is okay.
“If you’re like most Maryland homeowners, you probably have cool-season grass, like tall fescue, that thrives in cooler temperatures,” said Maryland Agriculture Secretary Kevin Atticks. “Although cool-season grasses perform well in our state, most will become dormant to protect themselves against heat and lack of rain. Most lawns will recover on their own once the rains return and cooler temperatures prevail.”
But if you do water, the best time is early morning. That minimizes evaporation and maximizes absorption, according to department officials.
“Water deeply and less frequently to promote deep root growth,” officials noted in a news release.
As for mowing, raise mower blades to a higher setting to allow grass to shade its own roots and retain soil moisture, officials advised. Don’t mow in the middle of the day, and don’t mow if the grass is less than six inches tall.
The beset time to reseed bare areas is late summer or early fall with a turf-type tall fescue, the officials recommended. This type of grass has a thicker blade and deeper roots.
Grass grows best when soil has a pH of between six and seven.
