As the days grow longer and the Indiana sun shines brighter, your lawn needs to shift from spring awakening to summer survival and enjoyment. The heat and potential for drought can stress your turf, but with the right care, you can maintain a lush, healthy, and vibrant lawn throughout the hottest months.  

This guide is designed to be comprehensive, much like our popular Indiana Homeowners Spring Lawn Care: Ultimate Guide, providing you with actionable steps to keep your lawn thriving all summer long. 

While heavy fertilization is best left for spring and fall, your lawn still benefits from a summer feeding, depending on its condition. 

• Go Slow-Release: If you fertilize in the summer, use a slow-release nitrogen fertilizer. This provides a steady supply of nutrients without promoting excessive top growth, which can be stressful for the grass in high heat.  
• Avoid Over-Fertilizing: Too much nitrogen in the summer can lead to weak growth, increase susceptibility to disease, and burn the lawn, especially during dry periods. 
• Timing is Everything: If applying fertilizer, do so before a predicted rainfall or be prepared to water it thoroughly to prevent burning and help it reach the root zone. 

Weeds compete with your grass for water, nutrients, and sunlight.

Summer is prime time for certain types of weeds in Indiana. 

• Identify Your Weeds: Common Indiana summer weeds include crabgrass, nutsedge, plantain, and clover. Knowing what you're dealing with helps in choosing the most effective control method. 
• Spot Treat, Don't Just Broadcast: For scattered weeds, spot treatment with a post-emergent herbicide is preferable to broadcasting herbicide over the entire lawn. Always read and follow label directions carefully. 
• Hand-Pulling: For smaller infestations or in garden beds, hand-pulling can be effective, especially after rain when the soil is moist. Ensure you get the entire root. 

Warm, humid Indiana summers can create favorable conditions for certain lawn pests and diseases. 

• Common Summer Pests: Grubs (the larvae of Japanese beetles, June bugs, etc.) can cause significant damage by feeding on grass roots, leading to brown, spongy patches that lift easily. Other pests might include chinch bugs or sod webworms. 

• Common Summer Diseases: Brown patch, dollar spot, and pythium blight are common fungal diseases in Indiana lawns during summer. They often appear as circular patches of discolored or matted grass. 
• Disease Prevention: follow previously outlined best practices above. 
• Treatment: If you suspect a pest or disease issue, proper identification is key to effective treatment. Consider consulting with a lawn care professional for diagnosis and treatment options like Hope Grows Indy.  

 Knowing what to prune, when, and how during the summer months can make a significant difference. 

Why Prune in the Summer?

• The "Three D's" – Dead, Damaged, Diseased Wood: Summer storms in Indiana can turn a damaged limb into a hazard, and diseased wood can spread pathogens more rapidly in warm, humid conditions. 
• Improving Air Circulation & Light Penetration: Thinning out dense canopies on certain trees and shrubs can improve airflow, which helps reduce the risk of fungal diseases – a common concern during Indiana's humid summers. Better light penetration can also promote healthier growth throughout the plant. 
• Managing Suckers and Water sprouts: Many trees and shrubs send up vigorous, unwanted shoots from their base (suckers) or upright sprouts along branches (water sprouts) during the summer. Removing these diverts the plant's energy back to the main structure and desired growth. 
• Directing Growth and Maintaining Shape (Lightly): For actively growing young trees or shrubs, light summer pruning can help guide their structure and correct minor growth issues before they become bigger problems. This is also the time for light shearing formal hedges after their initial spring growth spurt. 
• Deadheading Flowering Shrubs for Rebloom or Tidiness: For certain reblooming shrubs (like some roses or hydrangeas), removing spent flowers (deadheading) in the summer can encourage a second flush of blooms. For others, it simply keeps the plant looking tidy. 

A tidy landscape is the foundation of a beautiful Indiana home. Summer, with its active growth and outdoor living, is a key time to stay on top of cleanliness and definition in your garden beds and along hardscapes. 

• Remove Debris Diligently: Improves airflow, reduces disease and pest risk, allows sunlight to reach plants, and keeps your yard looking neat and inviting. Spring storms can leave a surprising amount of fallen twigs, branches, and miscellaneous debris that as summer progresses, can become a breeding ground for fungal diseases that could spread to your lawn or plants. 
• Edge Regularly for Definition and Health: Neatly edged walkways, driveways, and flower beds create a professional, manicured look that significantly elevates your home's curb appeal. Regular edging creates a physical barrier, making bed maintenance easier and preventing your lawn from looking unruly. 

 If you didn't refresh your mulch in the spring, early summer is still an excellent time. 

Why a Summer Mulch Refresh Matters: 

• Moisture Retention: Indiana summers can bring dry spells. A 2–3-inch layer of mulch acts like a sponge, absorbing water and releasing it slowly to plant roots, reducing the need for frequent watering. 
• Weed Suppression: Mulch blocks sunlight from reaching weed seeds, significantly reducing germination.  
• Soil Temperature Regulation: Mulch insulates the soil, keeping roots cooler during scorching summer days and preventing extreme temperature fluctuations that can affect plants. 
• Enhanced Aesthetics: Fresh mulch gives garden beds a clean, uniform, and well-cared-for appearance, making your plants pop. 
• Soil Improvement: As organic mulches (like hardwood bark or pine straw) decompose, they add valuable organic matter to the soil, improving its structure and fertility. 

Just as your lawn requires specific care to thrive under the Indiana summer sun, the rest of your home's exterior also benefits from targeted attention during these warmer months. Keeping your property well-maintained not only boosts curb appeal and your enjoyment of outdoor spaces but also prevents costly repairs down the line.  

Over time, your home's siding, decks, patios, and driveways accumulate dirt, grime, mildew, and algae, especially with Indiana's humid summers. Power washing can dramatically revitalize these surfaces. 

Why Power wash in Summer?

• Ideal Weather: Sunny, warm summer days allow surfaces to dry quickly and thoroughly after washing, preventing new mildew growth. 
• Remove Seasonal Buildup: Clears away the pollen, dirt, and grime from spring, as well as any algae or mildew that thrived in damp spring conditions. 
• Preparation for Outdoor Living: Clean decks, patios, and siding make your outdoor entertaining spaces much more inviting. 

What Can You Power Wash?

• Siding: Vinyl, wood, brick, and stucco 
• Decks & Patios: Wood, composite, concrete, pavers. 
• Driveways & Walkways: Concrete, asphalt, pavers. 
• Fences: Wood, vinyl. 
• Outdoor Furniture: Some types can be carefully power washed. 

Indiana springs and summers can bring heavy downpours. Clean, functional gutters are your home's first line of defense against water damage. 

Gutters can be clogged with remnants of spring – decomposing leaves, twigs, seeds (hello, maple tree "helicopters"!), and shingle grit. 

• Prevent Water Damage: Clogged gutters cause water to overflow, which can seep into your foundation, basement, or crawlspace, leading to costly structural damage and mold issues. It can also damage your roof, soffit, and fascia. 
• Pest Prevention: Standing water and decomposing debris in gutters are attractive breeding grounds for mosquitoes, ants, and even rodents. 
• Prepare for Heavy Rains: Summer thunderstorms can dump a lot of water quickly. Your gutters need to be clear to handle the deluge. 

Signs of Trouble: 

• Water spilling over the sides of gutters during rain. 
• Sagging gutters. 
• Stains on your siding beneath the gutters. 
• Plant growth in gutters. 
• Puddles of water around your foundation after rain. 

Window wells are vital for bringing light into basements and providing emergency egress, but they can easily become debris traps. 

Why Summer Cleanout is Key: 

• Prevent Water Intrusion: Just like gutters, clogged window well drains can cause water to pool against your foundation and basement windows, leading to leaks, especially during heavy summer rains. 
• Remove Accumulated Debris: Leaves, dirt, grass clippings, and trash accumulated over spring and early summer. 
• Discourage Pests: Damp, debris-filled window wells can attract insects, rodents, and even snakes looking for shelter or moisture. 
• Improve Light & Airflow: Clean window wells allow more natural light into your basement and can improve airflow if the windows are opened. 
• Ensure Egress: For basement bedrooms, window wells must be clear for emergency escape. 

Summer is a time for enjoying your outdoor space. A little care goes a long way in keeping it looking its best. 

A beautiful summer lawn in Indiana is achievable with consistent, thoughtful care. By implementing the above strategies, you'll not only enhance your home's curb appeal but also create a more enjoyable outdoor environment for your family. 

If tackling summer lawn care feels overwhelming, or if you're facing persistent issues, don't hesitate to reach out to the professionals. At Hope Grows Indy, we're always here to help you achieve the lawn of your dreams. Enjoy the summer!