Fertilizer?

 

How short did you cut when you raked? Did you fertilize at all and how much?

 

How often did you mow, and at what height?

I've seen it before, I've even done it myself, got a little too excited about the new lawn and ended up cutting it too often...

It also seems to me, it would've given signs of stress before this 4th mow, like if you started to see the signs after the 2nd or 3rd, again another mistake I've made myself in the past is to ignore the early warning signs until one day it looks like what we're seeing now.

I think it will recover, but you'll need to water twice a week DEEP and LONG, and lay off the mower until it's o high you can't barely stand it... Which, that's how I cut all my grass, when it can't wait another day because of how tall it is (watch it with thick stuff thou). In your case I would say in the deep of summer, cut once every 2 weeks and only IF it needs it...

The trick is to recognize lawns that need mowing vs those that don't, even if it has growth, never cut a lawn before it really needs it.

 

Bermuda should be cut low and often....it's not "other' grass. I don't think that's the problem.

BTW, I wouldn't mow it too low until it's fully rooted.

Can you pull the sod up, ot has it rooted?
Looks like it needs water.

 

Bermuda should be cut low and often....it's not "other' grass. I don't think that's the problem.

BTW, I wouldn't mow it too low until it's fully rooted.

Can you pull the sod up, ot has it rooted?
Looks like it needs water.

This is true. Bermuda must be mowed often, without chopping it down to the crown if you want it to stay green and thick. Some folks around here let it get to 5" or higher, then mow it at 4" like fescue, and then they wonder why their turf is so thin. Bermuda's root system is comprised of rhizomes, folks. Mow it short and often, or lose it. Most yards will fare very well if mowed weekly at 1.5".

 

Sod on top of 2 inches of compost--I suspect this caused a problem.
Partially decomposed leaves as compost? Horse manure? Mushroom soil? Chicken manure?
Soil test?
Was the old grass removed?
Was compost tilled 6 inches deep into the soil?
Does the new sod look better in partial shade?
Have the roots tached down (tacked down) with strong roots? Deep, firm and strong?

Was it really Bermuda? Or miss-labeled bluegrass?
Was the old grass treated with crabgrass control?
Call a local owner-operated lawn company--have him take a look.

 

Omg it's a GRASS...
That means it's a PLANT.
So it needs WATER and if you cut it too short AND/OR too often it will SUFFER.
That's all there is to it.

 

Bermuda likes being cut short.

Google it.

 

Suit yourself, explain to the man why his grass is brown.

The compost was tilled Into the dirt. It was bagged black dirt from super sod. All the old grass was removed and fertilizer was added into the compost before sod was laid on top of it. From everything I was told, Bermuda is supposed to be mowed often and kept 1” or lower to promote lateral growth.
I’ll try watering more often but some areas are really saturated between my watering and the recent rains. Not sure what else to do.

That being the case, something else is likely the matter.
It is possible too much water?

 

The compost was tilled Into the dirt. It was bagged black dirt from super sod. All the old grass was removed and fertilizer was added into the compost before sod was laid on top of it. From everything I was told, Bermuda is supposed to be mowed often and kept 1” or lower to promote lateral growth.
I’ll try watering more often but some areas are really saturated between my watering and the recent rains. Not sure what else to do.

 

The compost was tilled Into the dirt. It was bagged black dirt from super sod. All the old grass was removed and fertilizer was added into the compost before sod was laid on top of it. From everything I was told, Bermuda is supposed to be mowed often and kept 1” or lower to promote lateral growth.
I’ll try watering more often but some areas are really saturated between my watering and the recent rains. Not sure what else to do.

It should be 1" with a reel mower, 2x a week, but a regular rotary 2" is better at once a week.

What was the height before you mowed it down?

Fertilize it.

 

Mysterious. Check for any signs of weeds. Is the grass dead and are the weeds green?
Weeds also killed?
Check the deeper layers of the soil to be sure it is moist--yet not too wet.
Maybe the imported compost/soil was contaminated somehow. Talk to soil source guys--Super-Sod.
And maybe, try to grow some grass seed in a sample of that imported compost/soil.
Does the imported compost smell like soil? Does it have any odd odors?
If the imported compost/soil has no weeds--maybe it was treated with something strong.

Soil³ Uses and Applications: Enhance Your Garden and Lawn

Explore the diverse uses of Soil³ compost, including vegetable gardening, shrub borders, flower beds, and potting soil. Enhance your soil's health and fertility naturally with our compost solutions for organic gardening.

www.soil3.com

"Fertilizer was added to the compost before laying it."
Also the website says something like "Mycorhizae, soil microbes and N-fixing bacteria are added to the soil/compost to improve fertility."
What kind of fertilizer was added? Was there any chemical or pre-emergent weed control in the added fertilizer?

 

What type of bermuda is it? You cut it too short too soon, it should recover, get some fertilizer on it, water it in.

 

Not enough water is my guess! You want that stuff practically soaking wet where you couldn't even pick it up. A half inch isn't going to do it in the south summer heat. Half inch is laughable.
If you insist on sodding in the summer not the fall then you must spend hours and hours watering. I'm talking fire hose soaking wet. I've installed dozens if semi loads of sod. We run sprinklers for hours in one spot.

 

Not enough water is my guess! You want that stuff practically soaking wet where you couldn't even pick it up. A half inch isn't going to do it in the south summer heat. Half inch is laughable.
If you insist on sodding in the summer not the fall then you must spend hours and hours watering. I'm talking fire hose soaking wet. I've installed dozens if semi loads of sod. We run sprinklers for hours in one spot.

I cranked up the water per your suggestion and added some fertilizer. Most areas are coming back but still have a few brown areas. The areas that are growing are now 3-4 inches high. When should it be cut and how much? Last time when I tried taking it down to typical Bermuda height it looked like pics in original post.

 

fertilize it. look for little caterpillars too. army worms etc.

 

I suspect your PH level is going to be too high

 

Cut it at 3 until the rest catches up, then take it down to 2 1/2 when it is growing aggressively.....

 

So, my plan is to continue to water everyday and keep it saturated and take it down to around 3". What would be next? Do I wait a couple days and take it down to 2" then eventually get it lower? It was installed in early May and has rooted in to the ground. I am concerned that if I mow it down too low again it will brown it out right now. Its 97 degrees every day and very humid right now here.

 

Are you the original poster? Why is your account name different now?

 

Yes. I think I mistakenly set up a second account. Logged back in as the OP. Thanks for the heads up.

 

What is it at now? 2"? Just maintain it at that height until September then grind it down to 1.5 and you'll be good. What kind of bermuda is it? May have missed it....

 

Right now its about 4" high. Have not cut for about 3 weeks, letting it recover. It has greened back up and could use a trim for sure. Its Tif Turf Bermuda from super sod.

 

Call supersod, and talk to them about it, they are great, also look on the website it will give you instructions on the care of the sod....

 

Mow the same height mow often. Keep watering it heavy until those roots grow several inches into the soil. Seed the spots that aren't coming back in right away.

 

Do not overseed TifTuff, its hybrid, no no.

Fertilizer to push with N and K.

 

I posted these pictures somewhere and this is the lawn we took care of in Atlanta (well one of them) In early spring we would scalp (#1 lowest setting) it to the ground, bagging it, In June we would do it again and then in August again. After each scalp we would let it be for a couple of weeks, go up one notch on the honda (#2) and maintain it, always looked great.

 

I posted these pictures somewhere and this is the lawn we took care of in Atlanta (well one of them) In early spring we would scalp (#1 lowest setting) it to the ground, bagging it, In June we would do it again and then in August again. After each scalp we would let it be for a couple of weeks, go up one notch on the honda (#2) and maintain it, always looked great.

Glad to see that you use a Honda!