LAWN DISEASE

All lawns are prone to lawn disease/Fungus from time to time. Just like we get sick, once in a while Lawn Disease is caused by:

1. The weather conditions
2. The type of grass you have
3. Amount of fertilizer and type applied
4. A heavy thatch layer. (See Thatch).
5. An unproductive sterile soil.

During the growing season, there are “Periods of time” when a Disease may strike a lawn.  In the spring, your lawn may suffer from “Leaf Spot”. During the early summer your lawn may get “Brown Patch” or “Dollar Spot” etc.. If your lawn is being treated with chemicals the disease damage may be severe and kill sections of your lawn, making for more expensive reseeding!

Why? Because chemical lawn services all use excessive amounts of high nitrogen fertilizers that greens up the lawn rapidly, but also weakens the grass so disease damage is severe.  This is why all “chemical” lawn care services offer a disease control as an option (charging you more money)  (See Fertilizers).

The type of grass growing in your lawn, also determines the severity of the disease.  If you have a “Sod” lawn, then the disease will be severe and happen more frequently. If you have the typical or common lawn of Bluegrass, Fescue & perennial rye then the disease may only attack the bluegrass and not the others.  So the disease will be less severe. (See seeding)

If your lawn has a heavy thatch layer (see thatch) and a soil that is sterile & unproductive, then diseases will flourish and be severe. Look at the pictures on the left. It shows a  severely diseased damaged lawn on the top and on the bottom, it was treated with chemicals for years. It had a heavy thatch layer and the soil was sterile & unproductive. The bottom picture is all healed, green, beautiful & healthy.  No fungus treatment were needed nor any seeding done as this is  now an organically treated lawn. Having your lawn treated organically is less expensive. Diseases rarely attack an organic lawn, plus no expensive & dangerous Fungus controls are needed!

SEEDING YOUR LAWN

Let me start off with this: “The biggest mistake” is seeding your lawn in the spring. Spring seedings usually fail, will increase weeds & crabgrass and will actually set your lawn’s process backwards.  Almost all spring seedings are not needed at all! (See Dormant lawns)  Obviously, if you have damage to your lawn like snow plow damage, Septic repairs or construction damage, this is an “Eye sore” then you have little choice.

With a spring seeding performed, no crabgrass prevention (chemical or organic) can be put down as this will prevent the grass seed from growing. No weed controls (Chemical or organic) can be put down as this will also kill any new grass.  The end result is more weeds & crabgrass! When the hot weather arrives, a lot of the newly planted grass diseases out & dies off. A fall seeding (8/15-10/31) is much more successful:
1. Weeds and crabgrass do not compete with the grass, as weeds and crabgrass arena annual  and die off.
2. The cool moist weather arrives. New grass germinates faster & better with the fall weather
3. The soil stays warm, new grass roots grow deep making for a better established seeding.
4. Success is high 98% or better.

There are several ways to seed a lawn:
1. “Core aeration”: but the seeds grow only in the “holes” seed establishment is sporadic.
2. Topsoil:  One of the best methods, but expensive. Can be messy, and susceptible to “wash-out”.
3. Sod: The best method! but very, very expensive!
4. Slice seeding: Is fast and the least expensive method of them all. Seed establishment is high, little disturbance to the lawn, can incorporate the newer hybrid grass blends that are drought, disease and insect resistant.

Look at the top picture below on the left.  This is a grub damaged lawn. This homeowner had estimates from $1,000.00-$1,500.00 dollars to seed this lawn and it would take them all day! Healthy & Happy Lawns seeded this lawn with an aeroseeder (Slice seeder) for  $800.00 dollars and it took only 2 hours to do.  Photo at lower right also shows a “slice seeded” lawn after renovation (See Lawn renovation) See the grass growing in rows.

Do you know?
That there is a grass blend (Tall Fescue) that will cut your watering by 50% That these grass blends contain “enyphote’s” that is toxic to all surface insects like chinch bugs  and kills them!