Sports Turf Agronomy Advice - August 2025
Finally, the weather patterns changed in July and we have experienced periods of rainfall which has made significant difference on turf surfaces suffering with drought stress.
The major heatwave peaked at the end of June into early July, with England recording its highest temperature of 35.8 °C. There were multiple heat alerts issued by the UK Health Security Agency and Met Office across major regions during this period but by Mid‑July there was a shift.
The jet stream shifted south, ending the sustained heat and ushering in cooler, wetter weather, especially over the northern and western UK. Several regions saw flash flooding, including record daily rainfall and widespread flooding across Wales and the Midlands. Although rain returned in places, overall drought conditions have persisted, particularly in southeast England, prompting water usage bans in certain regions.
Looking back at the figures from July, GP increased towards 95% up from 87%. With the increased moisture content, growth has been more active, aiding the recovery on damaged areas. Winter sports renovations have gone from strength to strength, although those days of extreme heat have presented challenges.
Weekly nitrogen requirements have increased nearly 1kg from 4.8 upto 5.73kg/N/Ha. Now stress has been alleviated slightly, inputs can be utilised by the grass plant and the benefits realised. GDD following the 0°C growth degree days model is now past 2,000 days, PGR applications in June and July have been in line with stress management and applications can now be made on a more regular basis following the GDD models.
Click here to review weather data in your region for July. To keep up to date with the weather throughout August visit https://academy.agrovista.co.uk/category/weather
August’s forecast looks similar to July, temperatures are showing around the early twenties and there is a mixture of rainy days forecast interspersed with sunshine. For continued recovery, this weather will be greatly beneficial. Temperatures aren’t too high, to not add additional stress and the forecast rainfall will continue to re-wet the extremely dry profiles/soils that we currently have. The growth that this should provide will also assist in anyone who has planned maintenance work booked in for August: allowing surfaces to be back in play quickly and recovery time at a minimum.
Renovations
August can be a key time for carrying out renovation work. Weather conditions can be ideal, with good temperatures and soil moisture available for good recovery and establishment if seeding has taken place.
Different sports will have varying maintenance practices, however having set objectives mapped out will increase the probability of having a successful renovation. Ensuring the right seed cultivars with the highest purity ratings are selected for the intended usage will also increase the likelihood of success.
If removing organic matter to improve playing conditions and rootzone characteristics, carefully selecting the most suitable method of removal to ensure the desired outcome is achieved efficiently is important whilst removing the maximum amount with minimal disruption to playing conditions and performance. Which is why timing is a crucial factor in achieving a successful outcome.
Nutrition
The frequent weather extremes are making managing nutritional inputs more challenging. Little and often nutrition provides a steady supply of the nutrients required, reducing any peaks and troughs in growth and assisting in providing optimum surface conditions.
However, changes in weather which brings heavy downpours, impacts on the effectiveness of this method due to increased leaching. It is becoming ever more important to be reactive to changing environments adapting any previous plans to the new conditions and subsequently and nutrient inputs.
Granular fertiliser with a portion of high-quality slow release technology offers an underlying base nutrition which can be supplemented by liquids as required. Calcium and Potassium are both key nutrients when considering biotic and abiotic stress due to their role in cell walls and water regulation. Therefore, looking out for these when selecting your fertiliser at these times is recommended. When considering nutrition around renovation work, inputs should provide sufficient level of recovery for the level of maintenance carried out.
It is not necessary to drastically increase nitrogen if the maintenance is minimal as a small boost would be sufficient. Similarly, if the maintenance is substantial then the nutritional inputs need to be enough to give the required level of recovery.
Tom Wood
B.Sc (Hons) | BASIS | FACTs