How to Care for Native Grasses in the Summer

Learn the best practices for maintaining your native grasses during the hot summer months. This guide will help you ensure your plants stay healthy and vibrant.

Native grasses are a fantastic addition to any garden, open space or landscape, offering beauty, resilience, and ecological benefits. However, the hot summer months can pose challenges in maintaining their health and vibrancy. Follow these tips to keep your native grasses thriving through the heat and into the cooler months.

Understanding Native Grasses

Native grasses are well-adapted to local, regional climates and soils, making them more drought-tolerant and less dependent on fertilizers and pesticides. Common types of native grasses include Big Bluestem, Little Bluestem, Switchgrass, and Indiangrass. These grasses not only add texture and movement to your garden but also provide essential habitat for wildlife.

Summer Care Tips for Native Grasses

Even though native grasses are drought-tolerant, they still need adequate water, especially during prolonged dry spells. Native grasses do not need water after they are established. 

• Deep Watering: When establishing native grasses in the first year, water as needed in the first year and deep water once to twice per week, especially though the hot summer months until the rains return in late summer fall.

Mulching helps retain soil moisture, suppresses weeds, and regulates soil temperature. Mulching is an effective weed defense especially in the first and second years as these plants mature. Since they are perennials that can take between 3-5 years to fully mature. Once they are mature you can also use mulch on living spaces to keep a more intentional manicured look if that is the desired effect. 

• Organic Mulch: Use organic mulches like hard wood chips. Spread a 2-3 inch layer around the base of the grasses, being careful not to cover the crown.

Proper mowing and trimming practices can keep your native grasses healthy and attractive.

• Trimming: Some tall grasses can get tall and flow over into living spaces such as turf grass and sidewalks. To keep them upright, use a pyramid to plant shorter grasses in front of the tall grasses to help prop them up. 
• Grasses such as little bluestem and drop seed are optimal for the pyramid planting, with shorter plants in the front towards the living space, with taller grasses and flowers towards the back. You can also trim taller grasses and flowers to keep them shorter.
• Trimming is best performed mid way through the year just as they begin to blot with the seed heads so that they have time to recover in the later months, keeping a more manicured look.
• Another solution is to use sting on posts to hold up the grass to keep walkways clear and safe. If you are looking for that wild look, let it ride on the wild side and you save yourself time to enjoy nature.

4. Pest and Disease Control: While native grasses are generally resistant to pests and diseases, occasional issues may arise.

5. Dealing with Drought

During extreme drought conditions, extra care is necessary to maintain the health of your native grasses.

• Water Conservation: Use rain barrels to collect and store rainwater for irrigation during establishment. Also direct the rain barrels into your rain garden so it can nourish you wet loving plants and replenish the water table

End-of-summer care is crucial for ensuring your native grasses are ready for the next growing season.

• Seed Collection: Collect seeds from mature grasses to propagate new plants or share with others.
• Fall Preparation: The best way for nature is to leave those plants in place for insect overwintering and mammal and bird habitat, or possibly consider conducting a min-controlled burn if it is safe. If you feel the need to perform a fall clean up, prepare the grasses for winter by cutting them back to about 6 inches above ground level. This helps protect the crowns and promotes healthy regrowth in spring. Leave spent vegetation standing and leaf litter in beds to provide shelter to birds, other small animals, and insects that may overwinter in leaves.

By following these best practices, you can ensure your native grasses remain healthy and vibrant throughout the summer. Their beauty and benefit to the soil and wildlife will continue to enhance your garden year after year. For more tips and advice on native plant care, visit Natural Communities.