Daily gardening tip · Northern hemisphere · Tuesday 18 August 2026 · late summer
Test if brown lawn grass is dead or dormant
When late summer heat turns your lawn brown, you need to know if the grass is dead or just sleeping to survive the dry spell.
5 minuteseasylawn
Find a brown patch of grass in your lawn.
Grab a small clump of the brown grass firmly at ground level.
Pull upward gently but steadily.
Look to see if the grass resists your pull or comes out easily.
Why it works
Healthy lawn grass goes dormant during dry summer weeks to conserve water, keeping its root system alive and firmly anchored in the soil. If the grass resists your tug, it is dormant and will green up when autumn rain returns. If it pulls out effortlessly with no resistance, the roots have died or pests have chewed through them.
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