# Cause for brown areas?



## kur1j (Jul 2, 2017)

https://imgur.com/a/ONE08

My lawn is the cut part on the right. I'm trying to figure out why that portion of my lawn looks gloomy and not green like the other parts that are right next to it (e.g. the grass on the far right of picture).

Is it starved for water? I've been cutting it every 3 days for the past 2 or so weeks so I don't feel like it's scalped.

The bottom picture is facing the opposite direction.

Also, I cannot for the life of me get the damn bermuda to grow on that one dead patch in the picture. I've aerated it with my shovel, and throw some fertilizer down but it won't grow for some reason. Any ideas on that as well?


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## Mightyquinn (Jan 31, 2017)

Looks like a water issue to me initially. Could also be a water infiltration issue. May need a surfactant to help the soil absorb the water better. How much water has that area gotten recently?


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## kur1j (Jul 2, 2017)

Mightyquinn said:


> Looks like a water issue to me initially. Could also be a water infiltration issue. May need a surfactant to help the soil absorb the water better. How much water has that area gotten recently?


Should be getting pretty much the same as the area around it. The only thing I can think is the irrigation system might not be hitting it as much, but not sure why right next to it on my neighbors yard it would be green.


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## ajmikola (Feb 18, 2017)

kur1j said:


> http://imgur.com/ONE08
> 
> 
> My lawn is the cut part on the right. I'm trying to figure out why that portion of my lawn looks gloomy and not green like the other parts that are right next to it (e.g. the grass on the far right of picture).
> ...


It looks exactly like mine. If you look carefully across the street in your pic and your neighbors yard you can see a bit a "yellowing" throughout. Check out my "science experiment" topic. It seems the area i put 34-0-0 on is starting to green up. I'm not sure where you live but we have gotten more rain than the yard knows what to do with. It could be leaching nutrients. 
Honestly, i need to get a soil test but I've put too much stuff on my yard this year to get accurate results. I'll do it next year. 
Have you fertilized lately?


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## cnet24 (Jul 14, 2017)

Looks to me like some fertilizer and heavier irrigation will help. Doesn't look like a fungus issue to me.


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## kur1j (Jul 2, 2017)

ajmikola said:


> kur1j said:
> 
> 
> > http://imgur.com/ONE08
> ...


Live in north Alabama. I have a local lawn care company doing the fertilizing and they came out about 2 weeks ago to apply fertilizer and spot treat weeds (i won't be renewing contract, first year was with house). So I don't know exactly what is being put on the yard. I did a soil test a week prior to them coming out and everything was low. I did another soil test about 1.5 weeks after they treated and waiting for those results to see how low everything is still.

We have had a lot of rain but haven't had much rain over the last 2-3 weeks or so. My Rachio is going to water tomorrow and I plan on testing how much water that area is getting.

Also is it possible that it is stressed due to treatment of weeds? I noticed that my neighbor (the one on the left), just had their weeds treated and figured it was possible that the guy oversprayed.


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## Spammage (Apr 30, 2017)

I am thinking this looks like a scalping issue. I know you said you are cutting every three days, but when you scalped, did you then raise the height of cut? If not, then you will continue cutting off any regrowth attempts by the grass.


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## kur1j (Jul 2, 2017)

Spammage said:


> I am thinking this looks like a scalping issue. I know you said you are cutting every three days, but when you scalped, did you then raise the height of cut? If not, then you will continue cutting off any regrowth attempts by the grass.


You know something...you might be on to something. I can't mow any lower. My mower is mowing as low as it will go and I just keep mowing at this height to try and promote lateral growth. This probably answers the other question I had in that every time i mow it looks splotchy in areas after I mow. I assumed that the bottom part of the stem after cutting it low would green up, but I guess that isn't the case?

While it might not be the complete answer in this particular section (i feel i've got some malnutrition, or something else in addition going on in this location as well), it's probably not helping in other.

What are the rules on mowing lower? I thought that I wasn't supposed to cut off more than a 1/3 of the blade? What I did was slowly lowered the blade from about 3" to 1.75" now. I dropped the deck a notch every 3 days until it got to the lowest point. Is there another method to do it?


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## Spammage (Apr 30, 2017)

Well, cutting it down slowly if it gets to high is technically correct, but when you have been maintaining it at that height, then you end up going below the blades to the brown stems, so it really doesn't matter. Most prefer to do that at once and apply fert and water to bring it back albeit at a lower height.

The idea of bringing it down slowly would work for say a two week vacation where it gets a little overgrown.

You really either need to raise the height or borrow a mower that will scalp at a lower level. You can't keep repeatedly scalping the grass without risking permanent damage to the plant.


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## Colonel K0rn (Jul 4, 2017)

[hijack]
Insert tuna can on the lawn suggestion here.
[/hijack]


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## Ware (Jan 28, 2017)

Colonel K0rn said:


> [hijack]
> Insert tuna can on the lawn suggestion here.
> [/hijack]


An irrigation audit wouldn't be a bad idea at all. :thumbup:


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## kur1j (Jul 2, 2017)

Actually just did that. 1" or so in 30 min in that brown area, slightly more in the greener parts.

It's pretty soggy and I think aeration would be really good for the entire yard.


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## dfw_pilot (Jan 28, 2017)

I'm with Spammage on this. If you are on your lowest setting, raise it one notch and proceed.


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