Late-summer lawn care

Keep mowing, weeding and treating grass, says Ruth

- Ruth Hayes

1 Keep mowing your grass. During dry periods mow every 10 days or so, but when it’s damp and the grass grows faster, mow weekly with the blades on a higher setting. Keep blades sharp and your mower clean.

2 Watch out for fairy rings, which turn grass brown, and fungal red thread. Improving airflow and drainage by aeration and scarifying (raking) helps. Added nitrogen and fungal lawn treatments combat red thread.

3 In the southern half of the UK you can continue feeding lawns with a summer fertiliser, but switch to an autumn version in the north. Keep weeds at bay with a lawn weedkiller, or pull larger weeds out individually.