Your lawn is a living, breathing organism; a tiny world right outside your front door with a lot going on under the surface. When something is wrong it sends you clear signs and signals, but you may not know what you should be looking for. Here are some of the most common lawn problems we see at Lawn Love in order to help you can understand what your Kansas City lawn is trying to tell you. Who knows? You might even become a lawn whisperer.
Problem No. 1: Circles in the Grass
You might consider these circles a smaller scale version of crop circles, but these “fairy rings” are, unfortunately, not the result of a visit from extraterrestrial friends. This problem is often the end result of a fungus in the soil, and you can be sure it is if you see little mushrooms pop up within it.
This fungus will initially make the grass in the circle appear greener than the rest of the lawn because the grass is getting a little boost from the decaying organic matter in the soil. As the fungus grows deeper into the ground, however, it will cut off the supply of nutrients to the roots of your grass and kill it. You might think adding more water to the grass will solve the problem, but we warned this will only make the problem worse and cause the fungus to grow even faster.
So what should you do? You need to get a fungicide and apply it to the circle – there’s no need to apply it to the entire lawn. If that doesn’t do the trick you may have to dig up the ring and grow new grass.
Problem No. 2: Your Lawn Has Brown Spots
If you have brown spots of grass or even patches where the grass has died completely, there are a few reasons why. It could be as simple as your dog finding a favorite place to, uh, do their business and killing the grass in the process. If you don’t have a dog or you are sure that’s not the problem, then you may have to put on your detective cap and look into the problem a little more.
One common reason for brown spots is an unbalanced soil pH. You should test the pH of your soil and add whatever nutrients you need to balance it back out, or you can replace the grass and the soil completely to start again.
Another common culprit behind brown spots is an obstruction in the soil that keeps the grass roots from growing. You might want to look about an inch under the soil for a rock or other obstruction that is causing the problem.
Common Problem No. 3: Clumps of Grass Coming Up
If you can easily pull up parts of your lawn like a rug, then you probably have a problem with grubs. Lawn grubs love to munch on grass roots, and if your lawn doesn’t have a healthy root system it will cause the grass to loosen then peel away.
To find out if grubs are the problem you don’t have to dig very deep. You should easily be able to see a grub under the soil when you pull an area up that has been affected. They look like white, fat, short worms and can be easily wiped out by applying grub killer to your lawn.
If you ever need a professional translator for your lawn or have a problem you can’t figure out, don’t forget that Lawn Love speaks perfect lawn!
