# Growing dark green around edges



## Darb81 (Mar 29, 2020)

At least 10 weeks ago I scalped my lawn (Kikuyu) down to dirt and now all around the edges of the 3 patches I have are all growing really well and dark green but the centre has hardly grown. It was a spur of the moment thing, I wasn't planning on doing it but was halfway through a mow and a got peed off at the thickness and how hard it was to push the mower. If I planned it I would have scarified it too.

When I mow I only do a couple passes around the edges and don't need to mow in the middle cause I never grows and is yellowish. The first 4 weeks after scalping I was applying Seasol and Powerfeed weekly and haven't applied any since.
It's definitely not a watering issue as it's getting plenty of water and if anything the edges get less water than the middle and would dry out quicker.

Any ideas as to why it's growing so well around edges and has a dark green colour but is yellowish and barely growing in the middle?


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## greg_n_sd (Jul 17, 2019)

Couple ideas;
-water run off to the edges
-edges are lower (possibly also retaining the water) and grass is longer giving darker look


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## thesouthernreelmower (Aug 28, 2018)

Heat


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## mre_man_76 (Aug 4, 2018)

Habe you noticed this issue In previous seasons? Looked up your location and see that you are heading into the cool season and you have warm season grass. If this is something you're noticing for the first time my guess would be that your turf is transitioning and the soil by the concrete edges is warmer therefore delaying the grass in that area from transitioning hence the greener color. Just my 2 cents.


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## Darb81 (Mar 29, 2020)

thesouthernreelmower said:


> Heat


Heat from the brick edging and pavement? That's a good point and a possibility.



greg_n_sd said:


> Couple ideas;
> -water run off to the edges
> -edges are lower (possibly also retaining the water) and grass is longer giving darker look


Do you mean run off from the lawn, so water runs off the middle of the lawn and collects around the edges? Or run off off the brick and pavement edging from when the irrigation is on? The 2 patches out the front are sloped and the high and low side has the same issues. 
Grass being longer could play a part in it being greener but the middle won't even grow to that length.



mre_man_76 said:


> Habe you noticed this issue In previous seasons? Looked up your location and see that you are heading into the cool season and you have warm season grass. If this is something you're noticing for the first time my guess would be that your turf is transitioning and the soil by the concrete edges is warmer therefore delaying the grass in that area from transitioning hence the greener color. Just my 2 cents.


Interesting point and could be right on the money, I didn't think of that. I laid this turf last September so was first season and have nothing to compare it too yet.


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## HarryZoysia (Aug 27, 2019)

thesouthernreelmower said:


> Heat


Yep. The bricks and pavement are warming the grass


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## lvlikeyv (Jan 26, 2019)

HarryZoysia said:


> Yep. The bricks and pavement are warming the grass


My guess is heat too. My yard has a slope but I still get greener edges at the top, so I doubt it's runoff. The areas around the edges also don't go fully dormant during the winter, but the center of the lawn is full dormant. I've always assumed heat.


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## Darb81 (Mar 29, 2020)

I'm now starting to think it's not to do with the heat around the edges that is causing it to grow more and have a healthier darker green colour.

What's making me think that is there are some thicker green patches away from the edges and between the healthy patches away from the edges and the healthy lawn along the edges there is unhealthy yellow lawn that hasn't grown at all.

To me it doesn't add up, if it was the heat then there would be no separation from the healthy green grass. All the lawn that isn't isn't healthy and green hasn't grown a mm for weeks. I know it's in dormancy at the moment but surely it still grows a small amount like the healthier patches are.

Any ideas?


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## ionicatoms (Mar 8, 2020)

Alright, I'll take a (wild) guess. You have strongly acidic soil that is being counteracted with alkaline materials near the edges.

Have you measured the pH in both areas (separately)?


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## Darb81 (Mar 29, 2020)

No I haven't but I can do, I only laid this on fresh sandy loam back in September so wouldn't have thought that would be the issue.


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## Chocolate Lab (Jun 8, 2019)

Is it possible too many chemicals were used and the edges didn't get as much as you tried to keep the herbicide/pesticide/whatever out of the flower beds?


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## Keepin It Reel (Feb 20, 2019)

All edges next to concrete/pavers will green up before anything else. That may not be everything you're experiencing but it does play a role.


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## RDZed (Jul 13, 2018)

More than likely the crown of your lawn is the lighter area and after your fert dissolved from watering, the water carried the nutrients to the edges where it pooled and soaked into the soil. The heat absorbed and retained by the surrounding concrete work has given it a jump start.

The random smaller green patches are probably micro low areas where again, the fert leiden water pooled and dissolved into the soil.


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## Darb81 (Mar 29, 2020)

I haven't used herbicide/pesticide I've only ever used Seasol, Powerfeed and molasses since I laid it and haven't used it for some time.

Something has changed since I scalped it. 
The 4 weeks after I scalped it I was applying seasol, Powerfeed and molasses each week and stopped after 4 weeks and it was growing back really good, then it just stopped growing except where it is really green now.

1 week after scalping



2 weeks after scalping



3 weeks after scalping



4 weeks after scalping





Front lawn

1 week after scalping





2 weeks after scalping





3 weeks after scalping





4 weeks after scalping


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## RDZed (Jul 13, 2018)

Doesnt matter what nutrients, supplements or concentrations you're using. When your lawn has a crown, the crown will almost never retain as many additives as the perimeter. It's even more pronounced when its 100% contained in brick or concrete. Whatever nutrients the crown retains will be used up faster because theres lesser of a concentration due to the busted grade. Hence, once you stopped with the supplements, the crown yellowed but the perimeter stayed green...more fuel.

The brick work is damming up the nutirient laden water and depositing the solids around the edge while letting water pass through. Its concentrated at the edge and micro low areas.


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## RDZed (Jul 13, 2018)

This pic tells the story...


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## ionicatoms (Mar 8, 2020)

At this point, I would do a soil test for both areas, and I would investigate the cost to get a leaf tissue analysis for both areas as well.


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## ionicatoms (Mar 8, 2020)

@Darb81

How's it going? Mystery solved?


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