Missouri Extension Service
COLUMBIA -- Don't mow when it doesn't grow. Don't mow when it's extremely wet.
Those are two rules of thumb of lawn care during years of feast-or-famine rainfall, says University of Missouri Extension turf specialist Brad Fresenburg.
Well-maintained lawns recover quickly when rain renews them after long dry periods. Check your lawn to make sure it isn't too saturated before firing up the mower. Mowing too soon after a heavy rain leaves marks in soggy lawns and compacts soil. Mowing when the lawn is wet also produces unsightly clumps of clippings that lead to more lawn deterioration.
Walk on your lawn to test firmness before mowing. "Use common sense," Fresenburg says.
Recent heavy rains may also create other problems for lawns, especially disease occurrence. Many of these issues you may need to wait to remedy until the reseeding season in fall.
Pythium blight is a lawn disease that may follow recent heavy precipitation and high temperatures. The disease is more common on Kentucky bluegrass lawns but also can occur in tall fescue lawns, says MU Extension turf management specialist Lee Miller.
Brown patch on tall fescue has been prevalent this summer and worsens with heat and moisture, Miller says. Most products found over the counter for home use are ineffective. Fertilizer applied now makes the diseases much worse. "If you're not going to spray an expensive fungicide, then let it ride and reseed in the fall," Miller advises.
Bermuda grass, a warm-season weed, "is raging right now," Miller says. Little can be done now to get rid of this invasive, hard-to-control weed, so be patient. A professional service may be able to knock back Bermuda grass in the fall, but not now, he says.
Fresenburg and Miller also warn against using insecticides and other lawn care products in general prior to any forecasted heavy rains.
For more lawn and garden information, contact your local MU Extension center or go to extension.missouri.edu/LawnGarden.
Community on 07/21/2016