The lawn in August

As in July, keep the blades of the mower set relatively high and mow lightly but often. If the weather is hot this will mean that the smaller of the grass clippings will act as a mulch on the soil surface, enabling moisture loss to be at its least (some mowers are actually designed to cut the grass even finer which makes them far less visible on the ground).

If your lawn is on a particularly thin soil, it may benefit from a high phosphate feed which will strengthen the grass roots for the coming winter rather than produce lush growth above the ground which will weaken the plant in winter.

It is a good idea not to use weed killlers in the warm days of later summer. Better to apply them in autumn when temperatures have reduced and the atmosphere is damper.

If you have an area which is due to be grassed later in the year, this is a good chance to make a start on it's preparation. The area should be dug over and left for a couple of weeks, giving time for the weeds to start emerging. They should be then removed with a hoe or sprayed to ensure they all have gone before laying turf or seeding later in autumn.

Brown patches that may appear will recover when the autumn rain arrives. To stop it happening next year, ensure the earth is well scarified, aerated and drained in autumn and any soil compaction is remedied before the start of next year's growing season.

If you have finer turf, especially if it is underfed and frequently cut, patches can be a problem caused by disease. For example, on sandy soils it could be red thread or in damp weather it can be dollar spot. Treat either with a feed.

If you have a summer meadow, it may need mowing around now.