August Lawn Update: North Carolina After the Rains

Rain, rain, blessed rain - a drumroll on the roofs of Raleigh, a steady tattoo on the red Carolina clay. Two weeks of it now, and the lawns are fat with green again, practically bursting at the seams. Drive through any cul-de-sac from Cary to Clayton and you'll see it: fescue shooting skyward like an overeager teenager, Bermuda thick as a shag carpet in a bachelor pad, zoysia puffed up and smug as if to say, "See? I told you I could handle the heat."

But the rains, my friends, come with strings attached. Brown patch fungus is out there lurking, crouching in the damp like a mugger under a streetlight. Crabgrass and nutsedge - oh, they've had their little revival tour, too. And the lawnmower? Well, she's groaning. Every three days now, out of the garage, chugging into the wet morning like a reluctant workhorse.

Left: lawn thick with summer crabgrass. Right: tall fescue, thinner in heat but rebounds after fall overseeding.

So what's a North Carolinian to do in mid-August, with the thermometer holding steady under 30^oC (a rare act of mercy from our Southern summer) and the soil squelching underfoot? Here's the lay of the land:

• Watering: Don't. Not this week. The skies have done the job for you. Overwatering now is like sending an engraved invitation to brown patch. Wait until the soil surface actually dries before you touch that sprinkler.
• Mowing: Keep your fescue at 3-4 inches, your Bermuda and zoysia down around 1-2.5. But for heaven's sake, wait until the yard isn't a swamp. Nothing ruins roots faster than a mower compacting soaked clay.
• Fertilizing: Hold it. Warm-season grasses would normally be taking their last summer meal right about now, but with all this rain, too much nitrogen is asking for trouble. For cool-season fescue, the first fall feeding should be your September project.
• Weeds & Diseases: Brown patch in fescue, nutsedge in Bermuda, crabgrass everywhere. Spot-treat early, don't let them become headline news in September.
• Looking Ahead: This weather shift means overseeding season for fescue could come early. Start prepping now - order your seed, check your aerator. And don't forget: pre-emergent for Poa annua and other winter weeds goes down in early September, unless you plan to overseed.

So there it is: a rare cool August, damp as a sponge, green as a dollar bill. Enjoy it while it lasts. But don't be fooled - the grass, like the weather, is always scheming.

Alex Carter is LawnProNow's North Carolina Correspondent. Reporting from Raleigh, he covers lawn care, landscaping, and environmental stories with a focus on how they affect local homeowners and communities.