8 Common Lawn Problems and How to Fix Them

If you are the one in your family with the green thumb, you take great pride in your lawn and want it to look great year round. But there are always those certain unexpected issues that not even the best gardener could foresee.

Well, don’t worry because Cook Portable Warehouses is ready to provide symptoms and solutions to these common gardening problems. Now, there is nothing standing between you and the lawn of your dreams!

Problem: Brown Areas/Dry Spots

What it is: If certain parts of your lawn dry out before other areas this could be caused by more compacted soil. Reasons for this include clogged or broken sprinklers or more foot traffic in certain regions.

Solution: Annual aerating improves the amount of water penetration in compacted soil areas. Make a schedule and set a seasonal reminder to check this. And keep an eye on sprinklers to make sure they are working property and repair or replace if necessary.

Problem: Striped Lawn

What it is: A mixture of healthy, green turf and unhealthy patches of yellow that look like stripes. This is caused by the uneven application of fertilizer.

Solution: When fertilizing your lawn, make sure you are completely covering the area. If you are using a drop-type spreader, overlap the wheel track when applying it. If the color is brown or tan rather than yellow, your lawn mower might need to be adjusted to cut more evenly.

Problem: Thin Grass

What it is: Grass that grows poorly in shady areas and makes your lawn look uneven.

Solution: The first step is to check the pH levels in the soil. To get more sunlight to the area, prune trees above thin grass, reduce the frequency of watering and increase aeration. If these solutions don’t work, switch to a more shade-tolerant type of grass like Fine Fescue or replace with ground cover.

Problem: Pet Damage

What it is: This one is easy, it’s the dead parts of your lush, beautiful lawn caused when Fido makes a bathroom stop.

Solution: If possible, try to get your furry friend away from that area. These spots will recover most of the time, but give them some extra attention with the hose.

Problem: Fungal Disease

What it is: You will see the sudden appearing and expanding of dead spots around your lawn that are difficult to diagnose.

Solution: Most of these tricky lawn diseases can be fixed by adjusting your practices, such as watering or fertilizing more/less or at different times. More frequent aerating can also help.

Before using any fungicide get help with identifying the specific cause of disease from a professional.

Problem: White Grubs

What it is: Uneven dead spots caused by beetle larvae that are feeding on grass roots. Some animals pull up the dead turf to eat the grubs, which can cause even more damage to your lawn. This problem is the worst during early fall.

Solution: The insecticide Imidacloprid if applied in late spring to summer is an effective chemical control. For an organic control, try predatory nematodes.

Problem: Chinch Bugs

What it is: Irregular dry spots on your lawn that are yellow or brown. There areas are caused by Chinch Bugs, tiny insects that suck the juice from blades of grass. These insects are seen most often in St. Augustine lawns.

Solution: Simply, taking better care and aerating your lawn more often will helps. If the problem persists, try Floratam, which is a resistant variety of St. Augustine grass.

Problem: Sod Webworm

What it is: These asymmetrical dead spots are caused by small gray or tan caterpillars eating grass blades. You can easily confirm webworms by soaking the area in soapy water (two tablespoons of dish soap for one gallon of water) and they will come to the surface in about 10 minutes.

Solution: Aerate your lawn more often, treat with appropriate insecticide or use Bacillus thuringiensis for an organic solution.

For all the gardeners out there, you need a safe and secure place to keep your lawn tools, equipment, planting supplies and more! How about a Cook Garden Shed! Learn more about the different sizes and features in the Cook Portable Warehouses Free Fitting Guide below!