[midwesty]

ok guys...new to the forum and dont have a business doing this type of thing...

anyways...i have like 3 -5 yellow/burnt spots in my lawn...which is only like 20x40...all the rest is landscaped with red rocks and such...by the way i live in Vegas

anyways...i am wondering are they burn spots from fertilizer or are they some sort of bug that is eating the lawn in the hot temps? i just moved here about 1.5 years ago and bought this house 3 months ago...fertilized 2 times now...once with Scotts and the other time with Scotts w/summerguard and a spreader...any ideas?

apperently Scotts doesnt have a reputalble name with you fellas...can you recommend something that does and is available to the everyday consumer?

thanks...i can get you guys pics if you need....also..my lawn is awesome everywhere else except these spots...and with such a small area...it is just a real eye sore.

 

[Allen's LS]

I would say get the pics downloaded so we all can look to be sure. It also sounds like you could have brown patch (burned spots) do to your friendly animal marking his/her territory.

 

[lawn king]

Take a small coffee can, remove both ends, pound one end 2 inches into the earth in the brown area, half fill it with water, see what is floating on top of the water. Please send $25. to lawn king for on line consult.

 

[MrBarefoot]

I am a fan of the coffee can method also. Try it in the edge of the damaged areas too.

Take some pictures of the bugs if you don't recognize them and we can ID them for you in a jiffy.

You can forward half of Lawn Kings consult fee to MrBarefoot for that extra bit of good advice. payup

 

[midwesty]

roger that...someone on a diesel forum also told me to do the coffee can thing as welll..pics are coming up

 

[midwesty]

ok these pics are from 6/26 ...any ideas? i really dont think it is the neighbors animals...unless they hang out on my sidewalk and look in my windows or something

 

[MrBarefoot]

Do you know what kind of grass you have?

It looks like bluegrass in the picture.

 

[SodKing]

Looks more like a fungus to me. Get a fine close up of the blade and we could tell.

 

[turfsurfer]

This could also just be the result of something underlying in the particular areas. I noticed some are on the edges or next to a control valve or in the strip beside the street. These spots are notorious for having lots of rocks , gravel or leftover concrete which impedes root depth and heat up in the high temps causing brown spots during dry periods. Besides the coffe can method you should be able to see chinch bugs by parting the grass on a sunny day. The chinch bugs will be scurrying about down around the crown and thatch areas trying to get out of the sun. Do a search and see if you can find a picture, be aware that these bugs are quite small but you can easily see them if their numbers are high. Also if you have billbugs in your area, do a tug test on the brown spots of grass. Billbug damaged grass will break off easily with a gentle tug. The stems will be hollow and packed with sawdust like material. Not sure what other pests you have in your area but hope this helps.

 

[midwesty]

i will get a closer picture...now that you mention it...all the areas are on the edges...every spot has a sprinkler head about the center of it...but there are other areas that have sprinkler heads as well that are not brown...

also...after looking at it today...one spot is now gone and green again??

 

[Shadygrove]

Let's see.... Las Vegas.......... late June.....tight corner with valve box and side walk, Any chance this was a short time after a 95-100+ degree day. Could it just be a case of burn? Even well irrigated turf will burn sometimes on a hot day on the edges and hot spots and show up as tan burn spots for weeks after the day they actually burned. I think that there is alot of insecticides and fungicides thrown down on lawns that are suffering from nothing more than sunburn or heat stress because of tight soil or just really
hot days.

 

[midwesty]

pics from today and some closeups...

 

[PLM-1]

I've got one that looks just like this. The owner swears up and down it's me dragging in a fungus and that it's brown patch. I think it's her fertilizer guy. None of this happened until he came to fertilize then magically this showed up. Also, none of my other yards have this, but i fertilize all of them.

 

[midwesty]

what kinda grass do i have by the way..anyone know? :blob3:

 

[lawnguy26]

Looks like a chemical burn. Did these areas gradually get bigger or just yellow and die all at once?

 

[dishboy]

Looks like a chemical burn. Did these areas gradually get bigger or just yellow and die all at once?

That straight edge of green/brown makes me think someone hit the broadleafs twice.......opps.

 

[midwesty]

so basically maybe the previous homeowner had fertilized before me and then i put some down and this caused the burn?

i think that the areas pretty much burned all at the same time...but i do recall one area getting bigger ...and a few spots are coming back.

how long can i expect until a full recovery?

 

[MrBarefoot]

what kinda grass do i have by the way..anyone know? :blob3:

Some of the close ups make me think its not bluegrass.

I am starting to think fertilizer burn or chem burn also.

If that is an accurate guess (and a guess it really is) then recovery time will vary. If some areas are recovering that is a good sign, keep up your cultural practices, and let the recovery run its course.

If some spots are getting worse or larger, look to your coffee can test. Also check to see if there is excess fertilizer in the grass, dig around with your hands in the grass and see what is there.

Do you recall spraying anything in these spots only?

If your willing to put up with some marketing, you can also call a local LCO and have them come out and take a look. Most offer free estimates. While your pictures are good, nothing will equal actually being on the lawn one is trying to troubleshoot.

There are several companies on this forum that operate in Las Vegas, perhaps you can appeal to one.

Good Luck

 

[midwesty]

the only thing i have ever applied was Scotts and then Scotts with summerguard...

is there a product that you guys can suggest that might be better for these hot temps during the summer? we have been around 115-120* the last week..and also any other things i might need to take care of...

as you can see i dont have much grass and what it to blow the neighbors out of the water as far as looks and appeal....if i wasnt a construction contractor i would have for sure went to school for lawn maintenance or to be a pilot

i love taking care of the yard...i just need your guys' help doing....altho...i can also see where i am taking biz from you guys by doing it myself...anywho

thanks to all that have replied and reply in the future. :cool2:

 

[turfsurfer]

The close up pic "today2" shows some leaf blades in the upper left area with a white band going across the center with no border above and below. Also are the blades dying back from the tips with a distinct "pinched" look? If so I would say you have a fungus called ascochyta leaf blight. It is nasty looking but usually affects only the blades resulting in a full recovery once conditions change. Check out this site for more info ascochyta . Hope this helps solve at least part of the problem.