how to help zoysia recover from fertilizer burn

jwmnc · Jul 11, 2021

I'm on the OPE testing side and this spring installed zeon zoysia sod as part of a long term test project. I hired a well known service in my area to handle the chemical side as that's not my expertise. Sod installed in late April and by mid June it was looking near perfect. Then the service techs showed up one day and blasted it with 30-0-0 fertilizer and growth retardant as if it was a Bermuda grass baseball field or something. On top of that they had a clogged nozzle on one end of the spray wand.

So now I have crispy brown burned stripes and a lawn that's gone from lush green new sod to a dull grayish green color with lots of brown mixed in where there was only green before. The company wanted to solve the issue by painting it green, but I declined, as I'd rather see what's really going on with the turf without a cosmetic cover up job. So while I want to give them a chance to fix this, I have very little confidence in their opinions or competence at this point.
They're recommending doubling up on irrigation to flush out the fertilizer, plus fungicide to counter the extra moisture and an application of iron in a couple of weeks.

Is this a good plan? I'd welcome any second opinions on how best to bring the lawn back to health. I've read up on zoysia care since this happened and now realize that high nitrogen fert app was a terrible call on their part.
Before:

A one week after:

Two weeks after:

agrostis · Jul 11, 2021

Make one pass over that streak and any hot spots like the one in the last picture with a aerator. Collect the cores. Fill all the holes with sand. Heavily soak those area's with a hose. Maybe the streaks need more water in a few days? Don't mow those spot's for a few week's. Don't paint, that will just slow it down. Don't fertilize at all. It is irrigated zoysia, it will come back.

To improve the air movement (very important), sunlight penetration and overall health of the whole yard clear all small tree's and brush on the perimeter of the property like what is at the back of the first picture. Good luck.

jwmnc · Jul 11, 2021

Thanks for the reply and ideas. And yes, agreed on the far side greenery. I have already made one pass on that back row of shrubs and trees to thin them and reduce the shade there, but they need more work to push them back from the lawn.

takervader · Jul 12, 2021

Yeah, a core aerator, and plenty of water, it'll come back. You want to flush that nitrogen out with water and rain.

But a 30-0-0 wouldnt necessarily be a bad idea, I'm putting out 30-0-10, they just put out a higher rate on those spots than they should. Especially easy to do when you spray the fert down. Next time they fertilize, you just know you need to soak it and get it off the leaves and into the soil.

mtl40 · Oct 6, 2021

I don’t mean to hijack your thread, but I think I have a similar issue and wondered if there was any additional advice to gather. Also, I’m curious if any of the remedies worked for you?

I too had a well known, local, lawn care business apply liquid fertilizer(33-0-17)/broad leaf control(Speedzone) to my, once lush and very green Zeon zoysia in early September here in Alpharetta, GA. However, a couple days after, it turned to a rusty brown all over. It reminded me of zoysia patch fungus coloration, but not limited to circles. It was everywhere they sprayed the liquid (front and back).

The company said tip burn, but it wasn’t just the tips. The lawn recovered mostly on its own…maybe with help from all the rain. But just recently (late September) they applied another round (Specticle/Trimec) which I watered in extensively. But the rusty brown is back again!
Any ideas other than firing the lawn care company? Also, does anyone know if those are good weed control products? Hopefully they help with Poa annua next spring? Thanks!

takervader · Oct 6, 2021

Its probably the post emergents causing your issue. If the Trimec is applied when its still too hot out, it can burn it a bit, but it'll grow out. This is why I use Celsius instead. Trimec is only really safe here from March til about mid May.

Specticle is for the poa and a weed free winter, very good preemergent.

jwmnc · Oct 6, 2021

I'm probably going to hire a smaller company myself for maintenance and hire a guy separately who just manages the chemicals. With the bigger lawn company I use now, it seems like the right hand doesn't know what the left is doing and they just go with the same formula and schedule for everyone with warm season grass, whether bermuda or zoysia. Not saying your company is the same, but I've talked to a neighbor who had a similar experience with a large, well known company.

Also, with some research on my own, I've learned that the first year sod is installed, pre-emergents and growth inhibitor should be used very sparingly because they can slow the establishment of the sod and make it more sensitive to fertilizer and other chemical burns.

The good news is, my zoysia recovered pretty well after my original post, but it took a couple of months so it was burned and patchy all summer. And my lawn company's response to their error was "well, just need to let mother nature take it's course and let it grow back in." No offer to discount their services to offset all the extra water I had to throw on it to flush it out, or to dethatch all the dead grass they created (I asked and got no response) - so I'll keep them on board long enough to know they haven't killed anything permanently that needs to be replaced, then move on.

how to help zoysia recover from fertilizer burn

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