Summer Drought in April?

My lawn looks burned! What happened last week?

The rain finally came last weekend, but not in time to keep some lawns from suffering drought stress! If you have patches in your lawn that were greening nicely and have turned a straw color in the last week, it’s very likely due to drought stress. The prolonged period without rain was just long enough that some lawns were on the edge of going dormant due to lack of moisture. (It’s the same thing that usually happens late May or early June when we transition from spring weather to summer heat. The turf-grass dries just enough to make the plant shut down; but rainfall or watering brings it back.)

No need to worry! The grass is not dead! You don’t need to do anything except be patient and wait for it to green up and grow back. (It’s kind of like getting a buzz cut, you have to wait a couple weeks for the hair to grow back!)

Moisture stress or drought damage does not harm the crown of the grass plant and with the return of soil moisture, it’s already beginning to grow again and should be recovered within 10 days to two weeks. Regular spring watering – (probably once a week if there’s no rain and the temperatures stay fairly cool) – will be fine for the next few weeks.

So don’t go out there and rake it up. Just be patient! And remember it’s likely to happen again when we get the first hot spell in June….

April Showers - FINALLY!

The April showers have arrived just in time. A couple more days and many lawns would have gone into “summer drought stress” long before summer arrives. The forecast for this week calls for cool weather and more showers throughout the week. With temperatures averaging in the 50’s we’re finally getting the spring weather our lawns need!

Many lawns started to green up but without rain or watering, they have just been sitting there waiting to grow. New seedling turf hasn’t done much. Any seeding done up to now hasn’t had much chance to sprout. And many trees and shrubs have been in a kind of suspended animation waiting to see if there was going to be spring or if we were jumping right into summer.

A week from now those lawns that were starting to go dormant will be beaming with color. The fertilizer that was applied during the past weeks will release and grass will start growing with the normal spring surge.

If you haven’t had a chance to service your lawn mower, you probably only have a few more days to get the blades sharpened and the oil changed. Spring mowing will be starting up again real soon!!

When you do start your mowing routine, remember that the ideal mowing height is 2 ½ to 3 inches. And don’t ever cut off more than 1/3 of the blade. (If the grass gets out of control, raise your mower height and cut it back in stages over the course of a couple days.) Proper mowing at this time of year helps to promote denser turf and suppresses many weeds.

Plan your mowing schedule so you can mow frequently enough to leave the clippings down on the lawn.  Clippings DO NOT make thatch, but they do return nutrients to the soil and add organic matter to your lawn.

After the showers pass, it will be time to plan your watering schedule for the spring season. As long as the weather stays cool with temperatures in the 60’s or even the 70’s, most lawns will be fine with watering only once or twice a week if there are no showers. Wait until the summer weather comes before you start a summer watering schedule. If you need help to figure out the best watering plan, just give us a call.

We still need about 6 inches more rain to get caught up from the deficit of this spring. Let’s hope we’re back into a normal weather pattern!

"April Showers" bring......?

“Summer weather” is in the forecast for the early part of the week, and people are questioning: “is it time to start watering the lawn?”

With the cool days and much cooler nights we’ve had recently, there hasn’t been much need to water lawns or landscapes. That may change with temperatures in the upper 70’s and 80’s Monday and Tuesday!

 

As of early April most of Southern New England is experiencing a rainfall deficit of at least 6” and the U.S. Geological Survey considers us to be in severe to extreme drought conditions. 

Unfortunately other than a chance for showers in the next couple days there is no sign of significant rain to help us out of drought or to give our lawns and landscapes the good soaking they would love to have right now.

Your lawn may benefit and actually need a watering this week. BUT, summer heat for a couple days NOT mean it’s time to set sprinklers to water the lawn every day. Drought conditions are already causing some rivers and streams to run at below normal levels for this time of year. Without precipitation soon, there is a good chance we will see early season restrictions on outdoor water use.

On average, lawns need about 1” of water per week. If you give the lawn a good soaking, give it another few days, check the forecast for showers and then decide on whether it actually needs watering. Cooler weather returns Wednesday and lessens heat stress on grass.

The exception to the watering rule is if you have seeded this spring, or if your lawn was newly seeded last fall and the turf-grass plants have not fully established deep rooting. New seed needs light watering every day for 21 days to ensure all the grass seeds germinate. The young turf just establishing from last fall, might need watering every few days only because the roots are still very young and have reached deep into the soil yet.

So, make your watering decision based on how your lawn looks, what the precipitation forecast is, and with concern for saving water during our early season drought!

Does the early Spring hurt?

What does the lack of winter and the early spring mean for my lawn and landscape?

Most lawns are greening up and once it warms up enough many will need the first mowing. The week of temperatures in the 70’s and low 80’s pushed most lawns out of dormancy while it also caused many early flowering trees to give us an extremely early show of color. 

Although temperatures have returned to more normal levels it looks like lawns and landscapes are running as much as 2-3 weeks ahead of “schedule”. Some lawns are slow to green and that could be due to the specific turf-grass variety (some are slow to green every spring but make up for it with amazing color the rest of the season). The open winter may have caused lawns to brown more than normal because of possible breakdown of chlorophyll in the plants. Without snow the grass plants were open to prolonged exposure to the sun during a time they are dormant and can’t replace the chlorophyll production which is what makes the leaf green.  With normal spring rain and temperatures in the coming weeks, along with our spring feeding, we expect lawns should all “catch up” and start growing in nicely.  

 And of course if you have Zoysia-grass in your lawn it will likely be mid to late May before it  greens up and blends in. It's a terrific grass in the middle of the summer but that straw color that hangs out late into spring and returns with the first frost is frustrating for those of us who love a season-long green lawn! Unfortunately there is no easy way to get rid of it. Zoysia is a warm season grass with incredible roots that just don't want to quit.

The good thing is everything will be greening up over the next few weeks. Remember it’s only the beginning of April! Last year there was still snow on lawns at this time!!