Cool season grasses, like fescue, tend to struggle this time of year. As their name implies, cool season turf types thrive in cooler temperatures. Conversely, they struggle in the summer heat.
As the fall season approaches, you should plan to aerate and seed your fescue lawn sometime between the end of August and the end of October. Aeration and seeding, or overseeding is one of the most beneficial services that you can offer your fescue lawn all year.
The benefits of aeration and seeding cool season lawns, like fescue, are numerous. One of the first visible benefits that you will notice following your aeration and seeding service is that it will help your cool season lawn recover faster from the summer heat. When temperatures rise and potential drought conditions set in, fescue grass often begins to go into dormancy. While it may look like the grass is dying, as long as you have been performing proper watering and maintenance practices, that is likely not the case. The grass will go dormant until conditions begin to improve and then it will slowly return from dormancy and green up again. When you aerate and seed your lawn, it allows it to recover quickly, while the new seed will also help to fill in any bare patches.
In addition to recovery from the summer season, aeration and seeding is also beneficial for your lawn’s overall health year round. At Canopy Lawn Care, we recommend core aeration. Core aeration actually removes soil cores from the earth. This process alleviates soil compaction, increases airflow to the turf roots, and allows for better water absorption.
When combined with seeding, it is easy to see the benefits of aeration because they will be literally growing in your lawn! New grass growth is critical for fescue lawns. Cool season turf grows directly from seed heads. This is why it is incredibly important to overseed your fescue lawn each fall.
Overseeding your lawn plants hundreds of thousands of seeds giving the turf the opportunity to sprout new grass heads, filling in your lawn and making it look more lush and green. If you want new grass to grow, you have to seed your fescue lawn.
Did you know? A healthy lawn is nature’s best weed control. The thicker and healthier your fescue lawn is, the more successful it will be in suppressing weeds. This is because in order for weeds to grow, they need two things; space and light. If you have a lush, healthy lawn, the fescue will crowd out any potential weeds and limit the amount of light that they can receive.
