Are you asking yourself why your lawn suddenly looks so bad? Does it have funky looking brown spots? Uneven growth? Does it look worse even with extra watering?
Well, this could be due to a lot of reasons, but the most common problems are below, and we have included ways to revive your damaged lawn from these specific conditions as well.
Lawn care is usually something left to professionals because sometimes you may have more than one thing going wrong, and without proper lawn management, you could end up causing more harm than good.
- Leaf spot fungus in the dreaded melting out phase. – Leaf spot is a widespread turf disease. Usually, you can easily control it with proper fertilization. However, when conditions are ripe, the leaf spot progresses to the very destructive melting out phase. A cooler, wetter stretch of weather, followed by temperatures climbing into the 80s, creates the optimum condition for this menace to your lawn. If you notice irregularly shaped, discolored patches with small areas of green, healthy grass in them (frog-eye), check your soil and see if the soil is moist. If it is, then it’s highly probable you have this disease.
- Over time, your lawn soil can become compacted, which means your lawn might not be getting the air it needs to remain healthy. Doing Lawn aeration fixes the problem by pulling up plugs of soil that allow the water and other critical nutrients to reach the roots of the grass. Lawn aeration will vitalize the roots, and healthy roots mean a lawn that is lush and green. Aerating a couple of times a year will usually be enough.
- Moss, moss, everywhere! – Moss is one of the most problematic and common lawn problems. It is an opportunistic invader, gaining a foothold wherever grass thins out, because of any number of factors; leaf and debris damage, bulky shape, poor drainage, excessive shade, soil compaction, acidic soil, heavy clay-based soil, dog damage, etc. The solution to the problem is quite straight forward. Make two applications per year that include moss control and at least one lime application per year (which helps raise soil Ph., suitable for the grass, bad for moss), and also offer aeration, which helps relieve soil compaction. Aeration and Lime done a minimum of once a year should be a part of every comprehensive lawn program.
- Spring fertilization is essential for azaleas and rhododendrons damaged by lace bugs in the previous summer. Lace bug damage has become incredibly widespread in affected areas, making pruning and fertilization of these specific plants extremely important. Proper fertilization of trees and shrubs done in the spring helps increase their vitality, encourages healthy new growth (especially beneficial to plants that have been previously damaged by insects or disease), increases their ability to resist new insect and disease damage, and increases flower production and fruit yield.
- Pink Snow Mold (Microdochium Nivale) is a result of an unusually high number of heavy frost days in the winter. The good news is there is no need to apply a fungicide to stop this disease. The bad news is that once you see the matted, circular areas, 3 to 6 inches in diameter with grayish or pinkish edges. And in many cases, you can also see a grayish-white mold then; most probably the damage has been done. The single most important thing you can do to aid in the recovery of your lawn is to use a blower or lawn rake to “fluff up” the damaged areas. This promotes air movement, improves turf appearance and revitalizes your lawn.
