What’s wrong with my lawn?
There are a million factors that go into the development of a healthy lawn, which means that there’s plenty of room for things to go wrong. You may find spots, patches, and any sort of damage gradually spreading. At other times, you may find that damage crops up seemingly overnight. No matter how it pops up, no one wants to see the lawn they’ve been working so hard on turn ugly. And if you want to deal with these lawn problems, it helps to know what you’re looking at.
As mentioned earlier, there are a lot of things that can cause lawn issues, but today we’ll be talking about a couple of the big ones: drought, disease, and insect damage.
Drought Stress
One issue we see everywhere in Utah is drought stress. In a Purdue University article, Zac Reicher explains that turfgrass drought stress often begins with grass turning “a bluish gray hue and eventually browning of leaf blades as the plant goes dormant. It can start in small softball size patches and eventually affect large areas… Lawns in one part of a neighbor[hood] may be lush and green while drought symptoms are seen two doors down. Thankfully, a thorough watering or two should return the droughty areas back to fully green in the next week or so.” - Zac Reicher, Turfgrass Science at Purdue University
With a historic drought going on in Utah right now, it looks like irrigation is going to be limited, which means drought stress will likely be a part of life for entire summers. Although we love green lawns, we recognize that they can be a resource drain. We support efforts to limit water usage. To get the most out of the irrigation time available to you, it is essential that you program your irrigation system properly. Clean sprinkler heads and check that they are aimed where you need them several times as season. Water in the early morning, mow at the right heights, and fertilize properly. We recommend looking into products such as Hydretain, which can decrease the amount of watering you need to do (we have no association with this company.) We also encourage homeowners to decrease the amount of turf in their landscaping. Consider getting rid of grass in curb strips, using different grass species, or xeriscaping parts of your current lawn.
Disease
Necrotic Ring Spot
Here in Utah there are several diseases that can attack your lawn. But in central Utah, one of the most dreaded fungi is Necrotic Ring Spot. The damage typically progress to “dead circles or arcs that range in size from several inches to several feet in diameter.” NRS is notoriously difficult to get rid of, however, there are things that can be done to prevent its spread, and there are some treatments that can help. However, be aware that NRS can take a long time to get under control. You can download the USU extension fact sheet on NRS here.
Insects
Billbugs
We are seeing more and more damage from billbugs here in Utah. Billbug larvae feed on grass roots and can eventually kill the root system. The damage appears as “patchy brown turf which converges to larger patches.” Certain cultural practices can help prevent billbugs from moving in, and there are products that can be used to control them. A billbug fact sheet from the USU extension is available here.
