People love spending time outdoors during the warm weather, enjoying their bright and lively landscape. However, summer heat and other factors can cause the lawn to die slowly. It is an awful feeling for homeowners to see their once well-maintained, lush and green lawn turn into a brown mess. It is unsightly, and ruins the property’s curb appeal.
Fortunately, it is possible to revitalize a lifeless lawn and bring it back to a healthy state. Reviving dead or worn-out grass requires a lot of hard work but is a rewarding experience. While some may need only specific portions to be restored, others may require replacing the whole turf.
Here are a few tips to remedy that issue:
Examine the lawn
Inspect the lawn to determine the extent of damage and identify the troubled spots. It is essential to ascertain whether the grass is just dormant or dead. Drought conditions in some parts of the country can turn a green lawn brown. A dried or discolored crown signifies that the lawn is beyond revival. If the crown still seems green and alive, it indicates a period of dormancy. Water the grass more often to bring it back to life. Homeowners can revive an otherwise healthy lawn with a few dead patches on their own. Hire a professional lawn care service for the revival of the complete turf.
Identify the problem
Before reviving, it is crucial to determine what causes the existing grass to turn dry and brown in the first place. Identifying the reasons and fixing them before laying the new grass is critical for the lawn to last longer. Some common factors responsible for dead lawns or patches include choosing the wrong grass type, poor installation, diseases and pests, uneven or improper watering, excessive shade, compacted soil, drought, thatch, and fungus.
After determining and resolving all the underlying issues, it is now time to begin the lawn revival process.
Prepare the site
It is vital to prepare the area before a new lawn installation. Proper site preparation is the first step in the lawn revival process and ensures the long-term success of the revived lawn. Get rid of the weeds and the leftover old, dead grass with the help of an herbicide. It gives the grass better coverage and a great chance of survival due to less competition. Avoid rainy, humid, or windy days for herbicide application. Wait for about a week to let the herbicide kill all the unwanted vegetation and then move to the next step.
Eliminate excessive thatch
Thatch is the decomposing plant material layer that builds up between the soil surface and grass blades. A little thatch is beneficial for a lawn, but it suffocates the grass when it gets thicker than half an inch. Detatching the grass promotes efficient circulation of water, air, and other essential nutrients in the soil. Use vertical mowers to remove excess thatch from the whole lawn or a detatching rake for smaller areas.
Till the soil
A critical step in the dead lawn revival process is tilling the soil five to six inches deep to promote aeration. Incorporate organic materials to enhance sandy soil’s water retention capacity, increase nutrition, and loosen up the compacted or clay-like soil.
Soil testing and fertilizing
To create a perfect environment for the new grass to thrive, test the soil’s nutrients level to ensure they contain enough phosphorus, which supports the grass’s healthy root development. Adding fertilizer impacts a lawn’s well-being significantly and promotes strong and healthy grass growth.
Reseed or lay down sod
Planting new grass is the most crucial step in the process of dead lawn revival. Purchase high-quality grass seed and evenly spread it over the area and top with a thin soil layer. Use seed spreaders for large lawns. An alternate way to plant grass is to law down sod. Place the sod over the soil; make sure that they are set tightly against each other, and the roots are firmly in contact with the ground. Irrespective of the process used to plant the grass, follow it up with rolling the area.
Ways to keep the lawn alive and avoid dead grass in the future:
- Irrigate the revived lawn to keep the soil moist
- Mow the grass once a week
- Fertilize
- Aerate and dethatch
- Avoid heavy foot traffic
Get in touch with a professional lawn care service for more tips or assistance on reviving a dead lawn.
About the author: – This article is written by John Sailer, founder of Pest Patrol SW FL- top rated pest control company in Venice FL