Causes for Brown Spots on Lawns? | Professional Landscape

What Causes the Brown Spots on My Lawn?

Posted on: February 15, 2022

Warmer weather is right around the corner! Summer will be in full swing soon enough, and everyone will be out mowing their yards at least once a week. It’s even nice enough to have dinner outside and admire the lawn — until you notice those spots in the lawn where the green is fading. If you take great pride in your yard, those brown spots can be major eyesores. The good news is that the brown spots can be fixed with a little patience.

Lawrence Landscape has been serving Lawrence, KS, and the surrounding areas for over 30 years. We are a customer-oriented company, which means we will do everything we can to make your landscaping goals happen. Yard care is important to us, and we help make lawn maintenance easy!

How To Diagnose the Brown Spots?

The dreaded brown spots have popped up, and you might be wondering what to do. Your first step is to understand what the brown spots are and what the causes of the brown spots might be:

  • Rhizoctonia fungus – Also known as brown patch, this fungus is a disease that affects the blades of the grass but not the roots.
  • Lawn chemicals –­­­­­ We know you are trying to kill the weeds and bugs, but the chemicals in the sprays will kill the grass, too.
  • Fertilizer – This might sound like a joke, but uneven amounts of fertilizer can actually harm your grass.
  • Animal urine – Your dog is part of the family, but Fido also tends to urinate in the same spots in the yard, and that will damage the yard. But don’t go yelling at the dog just yet — birds and other animals can also damage the yard with their urine. They’re the most likely culprits for yellow lawns outside office buildings.
  • Bad soil – Your soil is not going to be the same quality in every part of your yard. To see if you need to change how you do your lawn care, try to poke a pen or screwdriver into the lawn. If it goes in easily, the quality is good; if not, look into aerating it.
  • Tree roots – Trees look great in a yard, but their roots are selfish for water.
  • Bugs – Insects and grubs can rip through the grass roots and kill patches of grass.
  • Thatch – This happens when you don’t clean up most of the grass you mowed. The cut blades bunch together and choke out the healthy grass.

green grass

The Lawn Care Steps To Fix Brown Grass Patches

The unsightly brown patches in your lawn can generally be fixed. Lawrence Landscape has been doing lawn maintenance long enough to come away with some tips for anyone with some ugly grass patches.

  • Sharpen your mower blades – Dull blades will stress and lead to a shorter life span for the grass.
  • Don’t cut your grass lower than 2 to 3 inches – Your blades should be set high enough that they aren’t unevenly cutting the grass.
  • Alternate the areas where your animals urinate – If you can’t change where Fido goes to the bathroom, you can use some water to dilute the urine. Just a little water sprayed where the dog relieved themselves will keep the grass from soaking up as much urine.
  • Water your lawn in the early morning or not at all – If the yard has some dew on it in the morning, it won’t need to be watered.
  • Be careful with fertilizer – Uneven fertilizer use or dumping more than is necessary on the grass will kill it.
  • Fungus – If you have fungus, you will want to contact a company about lawn disease to get it fixed.
  • Aerate – It will help fight the humid weather, which can damage grass and is great for regular lawn maintenance.
  • Dethatch the lawn – Thatch can choke the healthy new grass that tries to grow, so you will want to get some tools that will help you remove it.

We Offer Residential Lawn Care Services in Lawrence, KS

All these tips should help heal your grass and get your lawn back to its evergreen self. The work can be difficult, but it will do the trick. If you want to see quicker results or would like to have a professional take care of the brown spots in your yard, Lawrence Landscape is available for your call at (785) 843-4370.

If you have any questions about lawn maintenance for your home or commercial building, contact us today!

 

Lawrence Landscape Logo