Problem: Fungus Disease Photo by Courtesy Missouri Botanical Garden PlantFinder. It enhances green, leafy growth and is a necessary nutrient for a healthy lawn. Grub control products are available at your garden center. If the soil is wet and mushy, you're watering too much. This is most frequently from dog urine but can also come from over fertilizing. Diagnosing Lawn Problems. Remedy: Pull back a section of sod and inspect for fat, white curved worms. But, if you’re dead set on doing it yourself, your sod’s problem could be a number of things, so let’s take a look. The next two weeks - or until the sod has rooted - water to keep it moist. Now you have to cut it. Once they are, start the lawn on a treatment of a new-lawn starter fertilizer. Some of the pieces are turning yellow now. The root system needs a chance to establish deeper into the ground before it can access that water. No turf looks as good in the shade as it does in the sun. The most common is dryness but excess nitrogen is another. Seeds, sod and plugs all require at least 4 to 6 inches of good topsoil. The granular fungicide by Scotts should be applied with a Drop Spreader for best results. New sod is usually cut into rectangles to make transportation and installation easier. There are two problems with grass in shade: reduced sunlight and reduced air movement. And when you have invested in top quality turf and lawn maintenance products, it can be very frustrating to wake up one morning to a patchwork of small soil hills. New Sod Care. Water heavy the first irrigation cycle to wet the new sod and the soil profile to a depth of four to six inches. If you've got uneven growth in the shade, take these three three steps: Make sure your trees are properly and regularly pruned. Let the sod dry out until the top 2 inches of soil are dry and crumbly. Unfortunately for you, it is too late for this procedure now. If you see the leaf blades turning a grayish-green, pull up a corner of the sod. Pesticide and herbicide applications kill not only the bad bugs but the good bugs too. After the first week, reduce watering to every other day. Rent a sod cutter to remove the grass and its roots. Washington State University recommends early morning watering, which allows soil and grass blades to dry out thoroughly during the day. Uneven growth in the shade. Too much water on your sod could make it soggy, which prevents it from establishing a strong root system. ABC Can Help Treat And Prevent Lawn Problems. I am scared of overwatering, but wonder if lack of water can be it? For any depression an inch or more deep, repair should involve removing the sod, correcting the cause of the sinking, and then back filling with new soil with enough extra to allow for settling. A brown lawn, caused by drought. However, it requires more water than established grass and turns brown if it doesn’t get enough. Watch the new sod for color changes. Hi – I am new to this board and really hope someone can help. Moles do create big problems in some gardens, with much more visible results than the smaller pests, making them one of the more annoying common lawn problems. However, it is usually easy to trace and remedy the cause, restoring green and healthy grass. Nitrogen is the first number in a fertilizer ratio. Often the installers leave gaps in the sod, sometimes intentionally in order to maintain a neater pattern, and other times simply due to negligence. A deeply-rooted lawn is one of the secrets to growing a lush, healthy, thick stand of grass. A lot of times the ground below new sod will be wet but the sod itself is drying out. Wind or hot air can cause the plant to dry out. New sod doesn’t need fertilizer for the first one or two months and can get burnt by it. If you have problems with new grass dying, it could be from a lack of nutrients in the soil. Water shouldn’t puddle on your new sod. Laying sod is such a fast way to start new grass that it is almost no exaggeration to say it gives you an "instant lawn." Any brand new plant needs extra water because it has to establish a root system in your soil. New sod is perishable and must be installed immediately to ensure a successful, healthy lawn. Make sure you only mow the top third of the grass blades. Water new sod to keep it moist but not wet or mucky. Once the lawn and soil are thoroughly wet, water 3 to 5 times a day, so the sod never dries out. Try to keep off the newly installed sod until it becomes well established, usually within a couple weeks to a month. Warm-season grasses. Pick a starting point and press the sod cutter into the grass with your foot until the guard on the back meets the ground. Dead patches of grass on lawns are very common. After about 2 to 6 weeks, your new sod will be bonded with the native soil. Care for New Sod Lawns. Here are 10 common problems, along with the best solutions: 1. However, too much nitrogen can cause a lawn to yellow. Quick facts. This year was a very bad year for white grubs. New sod can turn brown due to early fertilizer application, inadequate watering, soil compaction and lack of contact with the soil. new sod pieces yellowing. Words: Nadene Hall DIY SOIL TESTING There are two simple tests to see if your lawn needs assistance. A light watering of the ground before installation is recommended, since dry soil acts like a wick and removes the moisture from the sod. Once your new lawn is in place, remember this: For the first 4 weeks, the less walking, the better. Thus leaving your soil ecology … A carpet of soft green grass does put the finishing touch to any landscape. Compaction reduces the amount of air, water and nutrients that your grass can get and limits the lawns ability to put roots deep into the soil. Maintenance. Generally, it is some type of fungus that attacks new sod but bacterial diseases can occur as well. Check to make sure that soil does not stay saturated for long periods of time; otherwise, the plants may not root. Great, your new lawn is growing vigorously. Legacy post . Whether you start a lawn from seeds or use a vegetative planting method such as sod or plugs, the soil conditions largely determine how well the grass grows. After the area is prepped, the rectangles of sod are set down, each piece tightly butted up against the surrounding pieces. Once your new lawn has reached a mowing height, you can reduce the frequency and start watering thoroughly once or twice a week. No Comments. Plant problems; Back. Lawns: dead patches. Of course, there is usually a fair amount of prep work involved, depending on the situation, and the sod must be watered and monitored carefully until it is established. Frequent or heavy lawn use can disturb the new roots forming underneath the sod, leading to a less than stellar lawn down the road. Tug carefully on the grass to see if the roots are anchored in the soil. Pesticide and Herbicide Use: Do not use any pesticide or herbicide on your new sod. Week 1 - Keep Sod Wet. 2016-05-11 . Before laying new sod, you must completely remove the old grass so that the sod has fresh, clean soil to grow on. More than ten per square foot can cause lawn damage. Don't fertilize until the roots have had a chance to take hold in the ground. Symptoms: Quickly appearing and expanding dead spots caused by a number of difficult-to-diagnose lawn diseases. Other types of problems might be insects. Yellow lawn problems could stem from a host of conditions. Check it twice a day during the first two weeks. The removed sod can be put back in place if it is still in good shape, or replaced with new sod or seed. Adjust your mower to high setting to keep the lawn nice and thick. Here’s How You Can Fix These 9 Pesky, Common Lawn Problems Reader's Digest Editors Updated: Aug. 16, 2017 Improve your grass when it comes … I just laid 3 pallets of St. Augustine a week and a half ago. Many types of grass seed don't love very shady spots. If you are certain that you have watered enough then you might consider an application of fungicide. The most important part of proper care for new sod is irrigation, especially in warm weather. Scotts Lawn Fungicide is a granular while the Daconil is a concentrate which will need to be applied from a pump sprayer or a hose end sprayer. Some common problems are: Grass in the shade? Pay close attention to edges, corners and areas near buildings - these spots tend to dry out quickly and may need addition hand watering. Credit:Neil Hepworth/RHS The Garden. new sod pieces yellowing. Compaction is one of the most common, yet overlooked lawn problems. Tapering off on watering encourages grass roots to sink deeper into soil. Buy a pH kit; the more expensive ones tend to be more accurate, plus you can use it out on your paddocks ñ and test the pH. Lawn moss is a serious problem in spring and autumn, most often found where drainage is poor and the lawn is in the shade. Here, we look at 10 common problems standing in the way of the perfect turf. Apply a lawn treatment containing a moss killer and then try to remove the causes. Lawns: dead patches. Whether or not the topsoil should be amended depends on the soil conditions and can be determined by a soil test. Generally, new sod needs to be watered every two to three days. The sod is more susceptible to insect, fungus and disease damage if it gets too much water. To re-grow your grass, you have 2 good choices: You can rip out the old sod and put down new stuff or; Diagnosing lawn problems is not hard - you need to observe the turf and understand some basics about turf grass physiology and the impact of the environment. hasnfefr – posted 19 October 2004 07:26. If it does, reduce the time you’re watering. Water your new sod at least twice a day, including once midday. Grubs: Grubs are a common problem in mid to late summer, and most easily identified when your sod easily pulls back from the ground like a carpet. Sod Dying from Lack of Water. Sod, though appearing to be just a big, green, rolled-up carpet, is no different. Cooler ground temperatures will help prevent the roots from shock. Reduce watering frequency to every second or third day once the lawn has begun new root growth (about two weeks). New sod has a very shallow and underdeveloped root system that’s only about ¾ of an inch deep. Back. Stay Off New Sod: Please stay off your new sod for two weeks at least so as to not disturb the roots. Push forward to peel a strip of sod up from the lawn. Keep the soil moist to a depth of 1 to 2 inches. But once you have prepared the ground properly, the sod installation goes very quickly. Fortunately, many lawn problems are quick to identify and easy to remedy with the right products and tips. It is essential to keep newly installed sod wet the first week. New Sod Care. New sod does need to be watered more often than established grass to ensure that it will take root, but it is possible to put too much water on the sod. The professionals at ABC Home & Commercial Services have the experience and knowledge to troubleshoot common lawn problems on any type of lawn and … Compaction is caused by excess wear and tear on your lawn causing the soil underneath to go hard. No soccer games or family picnics on the new sod until the roots have taken hold well. 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