If you’re a homeowner, you probably dream of having a lush, well-manicured lawn that turns your backyard into a green oasis. Unfortunately, achieving this isn’t a walk in the park as lawns present many problems, one of the most frustrating being brown patches.
Brown patches can be caused by numerous problems, from insect infestations to your pets doing their business on your grass. The good news is that your grass can recover from brown patches. But first, you’ll need to identify what’s causing them to formulate the best treatment options.
So, what causes brown patches, and how can you treat them?
1. Grubs
These are plump, white beetle larvae that eat the roots of plants and grass in your yard, causing uniform, sponge-like brown spots in your yard. You can treat grubs using natural home remedies such as introducing nematodes or milky spores, which kill pests without harming your plants.
Alternatively, you can hire a lawn care company for grub control services, giving you peace of mind knowing you can combat these pests.
2. Brown patch disease
This condition is caused by Rhizoctonia, a single species of fungus that can be present in your yard for some time before it manifests as brown patches. Normally, Rhizoctonia causes patches of dead brown grass during periods of high humidity and high temperature.
Preventing your yard from developing brown patch disease is quite hard as you can’t control weather conditions. However, there are some steps you can take to minimize the chances of Rhizoctonia. These include:
• Don’t over-fertilize
Generally, too much nitrogen can lead to brown patch disease. Therefore, don’t over-fertilize your soil and avoid fertilizing when the weather is too hot and humid.
• Improve air circulation
Dethatching and aerating your lawn reduces its humidity, making your grass less susceptible to brown patch disease. You can aerate using a spike or core aerator and dethatch using a dethatching rake to remove layers of organic material that smother the grass.
• Use proper watering practices
Remember, excessive moisture can cause brown patch disease. Therefore, always water your yard in the early day so that it can dry out fully before nightfall.
• Apply fungicide where appropriate
Most brown patch lawns recover without chemical intervention, but if the problem persists, you’ll have to apply fungicides. It’s wise to hire a lawn care company for fungicide applications as they have trained professionals who can diagnose and treat lawn diseases properly.
3. Pet urine burns
Since urine from pets such as dogs is high in nitrogen, it tends to cause brown patches in your yard. Such spots have dark rings and brown centers. To treat urine burns, rake up as much of the patch areas as possible, cover them with topsoil, and spread some grass seeds for new growth.
Also, train your dog to urinate in designated places away from the grass to prevent future brown patch problems.