You've heard the expression the "grass is always greener." Just not this summer with our recent heat wave and lack of rain. Christian Farrell has more on improving your lawn with or without the help of Mother Nature.

  To view our videos, you need to
enable JavaScript. Learn how.
install Adobe Flash 9 or above. Install now.

Then come back here and refresh the page.

"We're seeing lawns and plants that are actually looking like more late July, early August conditions," said Tim McCarey of McCarey's Landscaping.

As most area homeowners and landscapers have found out brown grass doesn't grow a heck of a lot either.

"It definitely affects our business. I mean, on the maintenance side of our business, the mowing has slowed down," said McCarey.

"What happens is the lawns shut down from lack of water. They actually go into a dormant state. With enough water, they will regenerate themselves. What happens is the plant shuts down to protect itself so it can come back," said lawn maintenance manager Greg Stegman.

Lawn care experts say what's crucial to getting your grass to come back during a dry spell is learning how to properly water it.

"Ideally, you would want to water deep and infrequent. That means a large quantity at one shot," said Stegman.

In the absence of rain, healthy grass usually requires about an inch of uniform watering a week, best done early in the morning. Experts say too much water, though, can be just as damaging as too little. And one last piece of advice...

"If the lawn is stressed, stay off of it, 'cause what happens is, if you walk over a drought, dormant plant, it will actually crack and break it, which will make it harder to rejuvenate itself," said Stegman.

Lawn experts say with proper care and of course some cooperation from Mother Nature, which would include some cooler temperatures and consistent rain, your brown grass could become green again in just a few weeks.