What is wrong with my lawn? (with pictures!)


  #1  
Old 04-26-18, 08:43 AM
O
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Dec 2014
Location: USA
Posts: 288
Received 3 Upvotes on 3 Posts
What is wrong with my lawn? (with pictures!)

Hi All,

I'm in northern New Jersey, and I'm trying to figure out what's wrong with my lawn. I'm attaching three pictures below so you can see what I mean. Basically, there are lots of whitish/brownish patches, and I don't know why.

I used the new Scotts triple product (fertilizer, crabgrass preventer, weed killer) about 2 weeks ago. I haven't yet started using the sprinklers but its been relatively wet here.

Last fall, I had my lawn professionally aerated and slit seeded (have had it done professionally for the last few falls). I've kept up with all regular fertilizings.

So, anyone have any thoughts? Mold? Insect pests? Disease? Something I'm doing wrong / some nutrient deficiency? Its been sort of like this for the past few years (maybe not this bad, though? Having trouble remembering what it looked like other years.)

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks!
 
Attached Images    
  #2  
Old 04-26-18, 08:57 AM
Marq1's Avatar
Member
Join Date: Sep 2016
Location: USA MI
Posts: 9,745
Received 1,210 Upvotes on 1,098 Posts
Kind of looks like my lawn at the beginning of a much anticipated spring.
 
  #3  
Old 04-26-18, 09:14 AM
V
Member
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: North East Kingdom of Vermont
Posts: 2,195
Upvotes: 0
Received 3 Upvotes on 3 Posts
Originally Posted by Oopey
". . . Last fall, I had my lawn professionally aerated and slit seeded (have had it done professionally for the last few falls) . . ."
What do those Professionals think about it . . . . I'd have them drive by and give you their opinion.

I don't know your climate; but I'd reckon something is wrong because my lawn here in Vermont just emerged from under the snow, and only TWO DAYS later, it's already greener than yours !
 
  #4  
Old 04-26-18, 09:33 AM
O
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Dec 2014
Location: USA
Posts: 288
Received 3 Upvotes on 3 Posts
I actually stopped using the professionals. I can't seem to find a good service that is responsive and that will give me a call a day or two ahead of time before applying fertilizer.

I was sort of hoping that the professional DIYers here might now the answer!

Thanks!
 
  #5  
Old 04-26-18, 10:20 AM
S
Group Moderator
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: WI/MN
Posts: 19,119
Received 1,262 Upvotes on 1,203 Posts
My first start would be a soil test.

Beyond that, we don't know much about your lawn like sun/shade, other vegetation in the area nor what kind of weather you've been having to be able to offer much feedback.
 
  #6  
Old 04-26-18, 11:20 AM
O
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Dec 2014
Location: USA
Posts: 288
Received 3 Upvotes on 3 Posts
Hi Stickshift - we had a soil test done by the professional company (although via the local university extension unit) about 2 years ago, and it all came back as normal.

Other than that, the portion of the lawn I'm concerned about (i.e., in the 3 photos) gets a lot of sun, as it faces east/southeast with very few trees in the way. My house is to the west of the lawn and really only blocks the sun once it starts getting late in the day.

Weather has been odd, to say the least. We had snow maybe 3 weeks ago. Then its been on-and-off cold since then (although this past week has been better, with it warming up to at least low 50s by noon).

Not sure what you mean by other vegetation. There are some bushes closer to my house, some big trees at the very edge of my lawn, just a couple feet from the road. There are definitely weeds in my lawn. Is there a specific type of vegetation you think I should be worried about?

Thanks again!
 
  #7  
Old 04-26-18, 11:35 AM
P
Group Moderator
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: NC, USA
Posts: 27,592
Received 2,144 Upvotes on 1,920 Posts
It's possible that the dead patches are crabgrass which naturally dies off in cold weather while the Fescue remains green through winter.

What have your night time temperatures been or do you know your soil temperature? You really should put down pre-emergent crabgrass herbicide before the soil warms above about 55-60f. Then the herbicide needs to be watered in or rained in to become effective. If you apply it after the crabgrass seeds have already germinated then it's not as effective.
 
  #8  
Old 04-26-18, 11:45 AM
O
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Dec 2014
Location: USA
Posts: 288
Received 3 Upvotes on 3 Posts
Hi Dane,

I'm not sure what night temperatures have been, or the soil temperatures. I'll keep an eye out to see, though.

I put the pre-emergent down as soon as it warmed up past about 50 degrees, so I should be ok. It rained less than 24 hours after I put it down, so I should be ok on that end, too.

I don't usually have too much crabgrass in my lawn, as I've always put down pre-emergent in the spring. Even if I did have some, its nowhere near enough to account for the amount of white/brown patches I currently have.

Any chance this could be some sort of mold/fungus/disease?

Thanks again!
 
  #9  
Old 04-26-18, 04:00 PM
P
Group Moderator
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: NC, USA
Posts: 27,592
Received 2,144 Upvotes on 1,920 Posts
Yes, it could be a disease of some sort. It's hard to say without looking at the grass and especially at the transition or border area between living and dead grass. There are numerous websites that list common diseases and have photos and descriptions.

Do you know what type grass you have? Identifying what you have will be the first step in helping find what's wrong.
 
 

Thread Tools
Search this Thread
 
Ask a Question
Question Title:
Description:
Your question will be posted in: