It’s usually not hard to tell if something has gone wrong with your lawn. Patches of dead, discolored, or weak grass send out clear signs that there’s a problem you need to fix.
Unfortunately, turf-grass problems don’t just make the lawn look bad. They also weaken the health of your grass and, if left untreated, could affect the entire lawn. You’ll want to act quickly to save your grass, so here’s a quick-guide to treating common turf-grass problems that you might encounter here in Texas.
Figure Out What’s Wrong
Before you can treat the problem you have to figure out what caused it in the first place. Lawn problems fall into two broad categories: those that are caused by a disease and those that are not.
If there isn’t a disease involved, that means the lawn was injured by something else. This could be a chemical spill on the lawn, being cut too short by a mower, or receiving the wrong amount of water/nutrients. For more information about this type of damage, read our article, “What’s Wrong With My Lawn? How To Identify Common Texas Turf Grass Problems That Aren’t Caused By Disease.”
If a disease is to blame, you’ll need to figure out what caused it. There are several different types of fungus that are responsible for lawn disease. These fungus ire present in most lawns, but they doesn’t usually cause problems unless something like damp soil conditions stresses the grass. To learn more, check out our article, “Help! My Lawn Is Dying And I Think It Has A Disease.”
How To Treat “Burned” Grass
Usually, the best thing you can do for any problem that you’re having with your lawn is to improve growing conditions. Some problems demand more immediate solutions, though.
If your lawn has been damaged by spilled chemicals or dog urine, you’ll need to flood the area with water before the chemical can burn the grass. For cases where you’ve spilled fertilizer, salt, herbicides, or some other chemical on the lawn, clean up as much of it as you can before watering. If some of the grass still dies, you can simply re-plant the bare spot.
Target Your Turf Disease
Lawn diseases will sometimes go away on their own if you fix the problems that caused the disease in the first place. But sometimes, you’ll need help from a fungicide to make the problem go away.
Many fungicides for lawns are all-purpose and treat a variety of diseases. However, it’s still a good idea to try and identify which type of fungus is attacking your lawn before picking out a fungicide. You want to make sure the fungicide you pick will target the problem you’re facing. Once you’ve selected a fungicide, apply it according to package directions.
Improve Overall Lawn Health
To prevent and treat disease, improve drainage in your lawn and fill-in low spots where water could collect. You’ll also want to make sure the grass is dry when you mow.
Speaking of mowing, make sure you’re mowing at the correct height. Mowing too short or too much all at once stresses the grass. It’s also a good idea to keep your mower blades sharp so you’re cutting the grass cleanly instead of tearing it.
You’ll also want to avoid fertilizing the grass unless it’s actively growing. Too much fertilizer stresses the grass plants and weakens their growth. On the other hand, if the grass is turning light green and then pale yellow it needs more nutrients in the soil (like nitrogen and/or iron).
It’s also a good idea to aerate your soil once a year. That will keep the soil from getting compacted. Grass growing in compacted soil can’t develop strong roots systems and it’s hard for water and nutrients to get to the roots.
Check out Richardson Saw & Lawnmower for any tools you need to take better care of your lawn. We sell mowers, spreaders, aerators, along with a variety of hand tools. And we’re more than happy to talk with you about which tools will be the right fit for your yard.
