Summer has officially commenced, which means planting season has as well. If you want to host outdoor gatherings or want to make sure your yard will survive the Texas heat, it is important to have a healthy yard. This is arguably the best time to enjoy the outdoors and re-do the lawn. The yard is meant to be a place where people can enjoy the outdoors, so it is important that yours is aesthetically pleasing and healthy.
Any time the temperature is above 80 degrees, warm-season and cold-season grass will struggle to an extent. You will notice that growth will begin to slow, color may even start to fade and blades will become more brittle than ever. Here are some tips to make sure your yard will withstand the scorching summer temperatures:
- Ensure your yard gets one inch of water per week, especially when it is extremely hot. Keeping a rain gauge or container to track the amount of received water by rainfall and irrigation will help you to manage better watering your yard.
- Raise your mowing height to between 3 and 3.5 inches to reduce water loss and provide more protection from summer heat.
- Be sure to control weeds and identify any problem areas/treat diseases.
Once you have tackled the tips of making sure your yard will survive the summer, you’re ready to beautify your outdoor space. Planting summer flowers will make your yard appear beautiful, bright and stand out among your neighbors. A few easy summer flowers that are guaranteed to flourish throughout the summer as well as bloom into the fall are gloriosa daisies, dahlias and marigolds.
After beautifying and planting flowers and plants around the yard, you’re ready to host outdoor summer gatherings. Whether it’s just you and your family or a big get-together, we have put together a list of ten do-it-yourself projects for you to take on this summer.
These projects are unique, won’t break the bank and you and your guests will surely love:
- Turn an old chair into an outdoor swing. All you need is a repurposed chair, a tree and some rope to do the trick.
- Have a useless tree stump in your yard? Repurpose it into a table for entertaining or decorate it with flowers to make it more appealing.
- Bury a potted plant into mulch for simple landscaping and a unique look.
- Put diapers in the bottom of your hanging planters to keep them from leaking and hold water in more effectively.
- If you do not have the backyard space for a big garden, consider a single container vegetable garden. Click here for more instructions on how to.
- Turn your broken pot into a fairy garden.
- Build your own planter boxes with pallet wood.
- Create your own terrarium in a recycled container such as a light bulb, tea cup or magnetic tin. Place them around your outdoor space to enhance the aesthetics.
- No pool? No problem. A tarp and sprinkler can be used as a DIY splash pad and/or slip ‘n slide that will entertain and keep your guests cool in the summer sun.
- Repurpose wine bottles into tiki-torches (filled with citronella oil) that will bring light to your backyard as well as keep the mosquitoes away.
