Two of the Most Common Grass Problems

As a person who has run a landscaping business in southern California, I've crossed paths with a lot of the different grass problems that can drive homeowners crazy. I've also learned many of the tricks of the trade in overcoming them and keeping that lawn looking perfect and beautiful. In order for grass to grow perfectly, it needs to have a pretty specific set of circumstances, and if one or more of those conditions aren't met, you can very easily end up with recurring grass problems. The two most common grass problems are grass that's thin and dead grass. We'll cover both of those problems in this article, and ways to overcome them.

Grass naturally wants to grow up thick and vibrantly green. But it often encounters problems and obstacles that keep it thin, patchy, and weak. Overcoming these problems is the key to having a beautiful lawn. The only downfall is that some of these problems are systemic, meaning that you might have to make some major changes in order to get your grass to grow back properly. We'll go through the common problems step by step and how to overcome them.

1. Thin Grass. Sometimes grass comes in weak, thin, and patchy. This can be caused by a few different reasons. One of the many common grass problems is too much shade. Often when grass is overshadowed by trees and bushes, it just plain won't grow well. Grass loves sunshine and water. If you deprive it of either, it's not going to do very well and will be thin and patchy. Another thing that causes grass to grow thin and patchy is poor soil conditions. This can sometimes be overcome by fertilization, and sometimes not.

Grass soil has to have proper drainage, must be a bit acidic, and it should have a pinch of sand in it. If your soil has large clay deposits or rocks, it will cause the grass to grow very poorly. If this is the case, you can try adding gypsum periodically over the course of about three years. This will break up the clay slowly over time. But in the case of clay and rocks, sometimes it's just best to start over by digging them out and using proper top soil.

A third thing that can cause grass to thin out and lose its lush appeal over time is a lack of aeration. Grass needs to be aerated periodically every few years in order to reestablish proper roots. Aeration will give the grass roots the chance to decompress from being stomped on during sports or get togethers, and will introduce a nice new flow of oxygen.

A fourth thing that can cause your grass to be thin and patchy is if you have the wrong kind of grass for your region. Certain grasses prefer some climates more than others. Other grasses have been bread for specific regions and conditions in order to more adequately tolerate things like heat and drought. Though most kinds of grasses will grow fairly well in any of the regions in the Unites States, not all of them will thrive and will grow in thin and patchy unless they're particularly suited for the climate and region that they're planted in.

2. Dead or Dying Spots. Dead spots are among the most common of grass problems and can be caused by quite a large range of factors. I'll mention them all briefly. Pests of one form or another are among the most common grass killers. Rabbits will eat grass down to its bare nubs and kill whole areas before moving on. If a rabbit is the culprit, you should see rabbit droppings in and around the area of the dead spot. Another culprit for some cases of dead spots is dogs. Dog's urine can kill grass in circular patterns. A third pest that can kill grass is grubs. Grubs are a subset of worm that lives beneath the surface of your lawn and eats the roots of it, killing it. If this is the case, there shouldn't really be any definite pattern to the dead spots, and the dead grass should pull up easily with no roots. Grub poisoning chemicals that are safe for the lawn can be bought at your local garden centers.

Another thing that can easily cause dead spots in your grass is a broken, clogged, or inadequate sprinkler system. Often, without the homeowner knowing it, one of the sprinklers in the system will become clogged or broken, or just plain won't have the pressure to reach to all areas of the grass. As this occurs, all of the grass in the area not receiving enough water will slowly begin to die. Either repair the sprinkler, or if it's just inadequate to cover all the areas, then you might have to spend 5 minutes a few times a week watering that specific area by hand.

Thanks for reading about a few of the different grass problems that plague most lawns. For more about lawn care, check out another of my articles on perfect grass.

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