# I screwed up my in-laws lawn.....help!?!?!



## b0nk3rs (Aug 21, 2017)

Clickbait title. Maybe.

*BACKGROUND*
I have mowed this lawn for 10 years now and the past 3-4 have been treated by Weed Man. My FIL was impressed with the progress I had made on my lawn this past fall and was unhappy with Weed Man so he offered to pay me to take over (he only pays for my expenses). I made sure my limited knowledge and ability was known and he basically said "better than nothing". My plan going into this was basically spring and fall pre-m, 4 apps of Milorganite, spot spraying weeds as necessary, and a soil test.

*SOIL TEST*


*July 31, 2015*


*May 9, 2017*




*July 1, 2017*


As you can see the lawn looks just fine. It has always been an insane grower and even mowing every 7 days I found myself having to double cut and side discharge just to get through it.

Towards the end of 2017 I was noticing the lawn was slipping. I don't have any pics that I could find but weeds were worse than they had ever been and Weed Man aerated on a very wet morning on a very overgrown lawn which caused a ton of matted grass being held down by cores. I did the best I could to get things in shape going into winter.

Now for 2018...I apologize for the crazy number of pictures.

*April 12th[/sup]*










*June 3[sup]rd[/sup]*






*July 13[sup]th[/sup]*






*August 5[sup]th[/sup]*










*August 21[sup]st[/sup]*










*September 13[sup]th*
























*APPLICATION TRACKING*
4/26 - Prodiamine at 0.65 lb/A
5/11 - WBG spot spray
5/11 - Milorganite at 1 lb N
6/24 - WBG & WBG CCO spot spray
6/24 - Milorganite at 1 lb N
7/23 - Sedgehammer spot spray
7/23 - WBG spot spray
9/2 - Core aeration
9/2 - Milorganite at 1 lb N

*OOF*
I had been waiting and waiting for some bounce back and it's just not coming. We had a few good rainfalls over the past few weeks but followed by 90+ temps consistently. It has gotten a little worse since the last pics were taken. At this point I find it hard to believe its just roasted from heat and I had to have missed something.

My FIL says "oh it will bounce back in the spring" and "I don't water so this is what I can expect" but I can't help but feel responsible for how awful the lawn looks right now and regardless of what he says about it, I can't let this go. I need help fixing this.

*PLAN?*
As of yesterday our 90+ temps have ended and we are looking at a high of 79 for the next week with some expected rain. The quickest and easiest way I have come up with so far is to rake out these dead spots, throw down a TTTF mix across the entire lawn, peat moss the bare spots, and hope for rain. I can set up a water timer for the front lawn that will hopefully cover most of the area but I can't really rely on FIL to do any of the watering. I would prefer some KBG in there as well but average first frost date is something like 10/14 in my area and I just need rapid establishment that's going to survive next summer's full sun.


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## Alex1389 (May 23, 2018)

Did your height of cut change year over year? Did your water habits change YOY? To me that looks like heat stress.

Personally, I would de-thatch, aerate (only if you think your soil is compacted), and then overseed with TTTF.


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## b0nk3rs (Aug 21, 2017)

Alex1389 said:


> Did your height of cut change year over year? Did your water habits change YOY? To me that looks like heat stress.
> 
> Personally, I would de-thatch, aerate (only if you think your soil is compacted), and then overseed with TTTF.


Height of cut is the same as it was back in the 2015 pic.

Lawn has never been irrigated.

Aeration has already been done.


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## Miggity (Apr 25, 2018)

Consider renting a power rake or dethatcher both to save labor and get more thatch out, and then water it well. Now that you can see what you are left with, decide if there is enough KBG to fill it in (See Fall Nitrogen Blitz) or if an overseeding or spot seeding is needed. Fertilize as appropriate for your plan using fast release synthetics to get it up and growing again.

Consider using only Triple Phosphate at seed down if overseeding. Since FIL is cool about it and can't irrigate the seedlings, I'd lean towards the Blitz, just be sure you don't burn it.


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## Michael303 (Jun 12, 2017)

I'm no expert but I'd concur it does look like heat and drought stress. If it's truly never been irrigated that would make sense and makes the pictures from previous years impressive since it's at the mercy of the natural rainfall.


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## samjonester (May 13, 2018)

Did weed man do fungicide as well? One of the close ups from July looked like there may have been lesions. I know my area got hit hard this June with disease.


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## b0nk3rs (Aug 21, 2017)

samjonester said:


> Did weed man do fungicide as well? One of the close ups from July looked like there may have been lesions. I know my area got hit hard this June with disease.


I would assume they did. And that has been what I have been thinking, disease contributed to it.


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## b0nk3rs (Aug 21, 2017)

Michael303 said:


> I'm no expert but I'd concur it does look like heat and drought stress. If it's truly never been irrigated that would make sense and makes the pictures from previous years impressive since it's at the mercy of the natural rainfall.


It looks worse after another week of heat, most of the areas look DEAD and not just dormant. We had enough rain fall to jump start pretty much everyone else's lawns the past few weeks and these areas have remained brown as can be.


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## b0nk3rs (Aug 21, 2017)

Miggity said:


> Consider renting a power rake or dethatcher both to save labor and get more thatch out, and then water it well. Now that you can see what you are left with, decide if there is enough KBG to fill it in (See Fall Nitrogen Blitz) or if an overseeding or spot seeding is needed. Fertilize as appropriate for your plan using fast release synthetics to get it up and growing again.
> 
> Consider using only Triple Phosphate at seed down if overseeding. Since FIL is cool about it and can't irrigate the seedlings, I'd lean towards the Blitz, just be sure you don't burn it.


There's no filling in to be done here, the areas are simply far too large.


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## g-man (Jun 15, 2017)

The main error was waiting too long for help. Looks like you had a fungus (PB most likely). I would check for grubs too.


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## b0nk3rs (Aug 21, 2017)

g-man said:


> The main error was waiting too long for help. Looks like you had a fungus (PB most likely). I would check for grubs too.


I checked regularly for grubs and found no evidence.

Did you mean PB or BP? Didn't notice any PB but i'm no pro.


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## JohnP (Oct 24, 2017)

@@b0nk3rs I know you battled some fungus, I bet they did too. Check for grubs just in case.

I would ask FIL if he has any Weed Man invoices from previous services so you could see if they ever treated for grubs or fungus specifically. See if those areas pull up and if grubs are under.

I'd also tell him to go half in on some fungicide and maybe even something for the grubs with you from DoMyOwn as an emergency reserve.

I'd clean out those dead areas. Seed and peat. I'd do the blitz and setup some temp irrigation so you can water in the blitz that much easier. It'll pop out in the spring looking amazing and you'll be back in on the winning side. Urea is cheap and tell him you'll pay for the fert.

Then for your sanity of the lawns I'd invest in some PGR and hit it as soon as it's growing in the spring.

*Edit:* Too much multitasking and g-man beat me to it.


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## b0nk3rs (Aug 21, 2017)

JohnP said:


> @@b0nk3rs I know you battled some fungus, I bet they did too. Check for grubs just in case.
> 
> I would ask FIL if he has any Weed Man invoices from previous services so you could see if they ever treated for grubs or fungus specifically. See if those areas pull up and if grubs are under.
> 
> ...


Don't think the new seeds can take an aggressive nitrogen regimen, can they?

I've pulled plenty of these spots up and have seen zero grubs. Not just recently either, few months back when it was first setting in as well.

The irrigation isn't happening, no resources to make a full setup and highly unlikely he wants to fork out money for hoses and sprinklers. I can manage the front with my own sprinklers but would need to purchase something for the back.


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## Mozart (Jul 17, 2018)

Interesting - note that the Damage seems to radiate outward from the hardscapes (driveway, walkway and that stone circle thing in the backyard). This is probably a clue.

I would guess that the turf bordering the hardscapes gets hotter quicker and thus more susceptible to disease, particularly if the humidity is high like it has been where I live. I dealt with random PB outbreaks this year but caught them all and stopped it before it could spread.

What is those things in the corner of the lot?


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## b0nk3rs (Aug 21, 2017)

@Mozart
They are little mulch beds full of nutsedge


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## JohnP (Oct 24, 2017)

I definitely saw a Lowe's or Home Depot video on building that privacy panel.

@b0nk3rs I'd go full #lawnrebel and do seed and urea at this point. You'd just be doing 0.25# of nitrogen per week anyway. If you're really scared you could just not broadcast/spray the seed area.

If it doesn't force growth to fill in the seeds will hopefully do it for you. I'd just grab something at the Home Depot or Earl May and seed with that.


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## JohnP (Oct 24, 2017)

I'd also still get PGR and two different modes of fungicide and something like imidacloprid on hand for next year on your Christmas list. Then you can hit the ground running this spring with the PGR and be ready for grub and fungus.


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## b0nk3rs (Aug 21, 2017)

It won't be getting PGR


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## JohnP (Oct 24, 2017)

Chicken.


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## g-man (Jun 15, 2017)

@b0nk3rs do you have pictures from previous years in August/Sept?

With more time now to look at the original post, one thing was odd. The 1lb of Milo late June. Even if it is Milo, it will cause problems to feed a lawn that much in the summer if it is not irrigated.


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## Mozart (Jul 17, 2018)

Privacy panel? Interesting thanks @JohnP


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## JohnP (Oct 24, 2017)

Found it @Mozart


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## b0nk3rs (Aug 21, 2017)

g-man said:


> @B0nk3rs do you have pictures from previous years in August/Sept?
> 
> With more time now to look at the original post, one thing was odd. The 1lb of Milo late June. Even if it is Milo, it will cause problems to feed a lawn that much in the summer if it is not irrigated.


I can go back and check for any pics I may have missed.

The milo was dropped then on recommendation to fight the potential brown patch that was suspected.


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## Khy (Jul 27, 2018)

b0nk3rs said:


> g-man said:
> 
> 
> > @B0nk3rs do you have pictures from previous years in August/Sept?
> ...


Who recommended that you apply 1#N of Milo to a yard with suspected Brown Patch? Nitrogen will just push the Brown Patch spread further and harder.

Also... lets just assume for a second that it's not heat stress, as you said, it was never irrigated. It could be a combination of heat stress + some type of bug (armyworms, chinch bugs?) doesn't necessarily have to be grubs... I feel like people get caught up and forget there are other types of bugs that cause turf damage. If you see a lot of moths on the lawn and such during dusk, you may have some type of armyworm issue. And there are two different types (spring and fall armyworms) so it could stand to reason that you had spring armyworm, got fungus in the summer and now it's getting worse as the fall armyworms are coming in.


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## b0nk3rs (Aug 21, 2017)

Khy said:


> b0nk3rs said:
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Turns out the suspected diagnosis back in June was Dollar Spot, not Brown Patch.

I went back to look for the Nitrogen advice and I can't seem to find it. Maybe I read about it somewhere, i'm not really sure.

When the spot by the sidewalk and driveway first started going south I had checked it for army worms but did not see any. Also, I was under the impression that the grass would grow back from army worms, is that not the case?


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## Green (Dec 24, 2017)

How did it look this past May? Did it ever look as good as previous years? How much rain was there each month? No doubt, heat/drought had to be a major factor. But we need data.


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## TheLawnNewbie (Jul 31, 2018)

I'm no expert (obviously based on my name) but that looks similar to why I had to do a reno on my house I bought. The owners were elderly and a hot humid summer hit us up in New Hampshire that destroyed most novice lawns. 90% of people up here don't have irrigation and without the usual rain we get year round, this stressed the lawn out and disease took over and wiped my lawn out.


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## b0nk3rs (Aug 21, 2017)

Green said:


> How did it look this past May? Did it ever look as good as previous years? How much rain was there each month? No doubt, heat/drought had to be a major factor. But we need data.


It never looked great this year. We had a very late start to spring, skipped straight to summer with May being extremely dry then June had a couple 2" rainfalls. Has been a weird year no doubt.

May - less than 0.25"
June - over 4"
July - around 1"
August - around 3"
September - over 3"

Looks like we got a lot of rain but they were mostly a lot of 2"+ rainfalls followed immediately by very hot temperatures that dried everything up extremely fast.


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## Green (Dec 24, 2017)

TheLawnNewbie said:


> ...a hot humid summer hit us up in New Hampshire that destroyed most novice lawns. 90% of people up here don't have irrigation and without the usual rain we get year round, this stressed the lawn out and disease took over and wiped my lawn out.


+1

And it was even hotter and more humid some days here in CT...we had a lot of days similar to typical North Carolina Summer weather. I lost a lot of grass this Summer. All of it was established fine fescue, PR, or grass that was planted the previous Fall--including KBG and TTTF--(and therefore not as drought tolerant as esrablished grass).

The difference between my experience this Summer and that of many others, is that I don't think disease played much into it for my grass. I kept that in check pretty well. Maybe insects to a degree, but I'll never really know. It wasn't grubs, because I've used preventative for a few years.

Tough Summer.


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## Green (Dec 24, 2017)

b0nk3rs said:


> Green said:
> 
> 
> > How did it look this past May? Did it ever look as good as previous years? How much rain was there each month? No doubt, heat/drought had to be a major factor. But we need data.
> ...


Thanks. It all makes sense based on that data!

Sometimes, as your father in law said, dead looking grass will mostly or at least partially come back the following Spring...but I think it's a bit beyond that point this year. See my previous post in this thread as well as my lawn journal regarding my experience with dead grass this year. A lot of the roots raked right up.


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## b0nk3rs (Aug 21, 2017)

Green said:


> b0nk3rs said:
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Thanks, i'll check it out.

Now to figure out how to attack this and fast.....


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## Mozart (Jul 17, 2018)

This thread serves as a good reminder to address problems when they first present themselves. Personally I would have been on TLF in April asking these questions. :nod: It looks like it developed slowly over time.

I hope you are able to fix your FIL's yard. Good luck :thumbup:


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## b0nk3rs (Aug 21, 2017)

Mozart said:


> This thread serves as a good reminder to address problems when they first present themselves. Personally I would have been on TLF in April asking these questions. :nod: It looks like it developed slowly over time.
> 
> I hope you are able to fix your FIL's yard. Good luck :thumbup:


Yep, you are absolutely correct.


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## 440mag (Jan 29, 2018)

b0nk3rs said:


> ...I apologize for the crazy number of pictures.


LOL, well, that shouldnt be a concern in a forum where so many of us "get off" looking at photos of yards and turf! :lol:


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## b0nk3rs (Aug 21, 2017)

440mag said:


> b0nk3rs said:
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> ...


Wanna see me edging?


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## TN Hawkeye (May 7, 2018)

b0nk3rs said:


> 440mag said:
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If that's your yard I wouldn't invite the in laws over for dinner anytime soon...


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## someguybri (Sep 12, 2018)

TN Hawkeye said:


> b0nk3rs said:
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hahahaha


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## b0nk3rs (Aug 21, 2017)

TN Hawkeye said:


> b0nk3rs said:
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It's lookin a bit rough these days......overseed taking place in my journal in my signature.


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## b0nk3rs (Aug 21, 2017)

For whatever reason I haven't been able to find a seed blend locally that has TTTF.

Forecast for next week has quite a few days of rain so hopefully I can get something down before then and let nature do it's thing.

Should I be hopeful that any of the smoked spots can come back or should it all be dethatched?


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