Why’s My Lawn Dying

Bio Rich Grows Grass…

There’s two ways to diagnose a dying lawn: Physiological or Pathological.

The Physiology of your Lawn includes the physical characteristics in which the grass is growing—or not growing as the case may be. Healthy grass needs healthy growing conditions, primarily what’s going on in the roots that support the grass plant. Healthy Roots = Thriving Grass. Plant roots need the right combination of soil particles and nutrients in order to thrive. Soil is typically made up of Clay, Silt, and Sandy materials. Too much of one soil part is rarely a good thing. Bio Rich Green Care helps our customers improve the balance of soil particles, which are often made up of too much clay. The addition of sand and organic compounds helps to modify the soil composition. By the physical manipulation of existing clay soil via core aeration, the existing soil is opened up, and sand/compost mix can be applied. This process of opening the soil and adding the sand-compost mix allows the soil to breathe, giving the grass roots oxygen, nutrients and microorganisms* to promote new growth and help move water through the soil profile. Improving the soil structure for an existing lawn must be accomplished in increments so as not to cause excessive damage to the grass. However, if a client is interested in a totally new lawn—Bio Rich Green Care can provide a complete renovation of the soil by applying a large quantity of our sand and compost mix which is blended into the existing soil with the tilling process. Then, the lawn can either be seeded or sod installed.

*Stay tuned for future article about soil organisms for healthy turf.

Other improvements are directly related to mowing practices:

1. Higher Growth = Deeper Roots. Bio Rich Green Care sets our mowing height at 3.75”. We recommend the higher mowing height because its better for the lawn. More grass blade surface protects the soil, giving the grass plant more vigor and suppresses weeds.
2. Frequency and Timing of Mowing:
   • Don’t mow when the lawn is wet…there can be physical damage to the grass, and soil may smear or be damaged by equipment.
   • Mowing less frequently means less compaction of the soil and increases the viability of the grass plants.
   • However, the grass shouldn’t be allowed to grow excessively such that there are excessive clippings. Nor should the grass be allowed to go to seed—as this results in a thinning of the grass’ density.

*Bio Rich Green Care offers mowing services of weekly or bi-weekly visits.

Pathology relates to the study of turf grass diseases.

Diseases that affect lawn grass are classified by those that damage the foliage and others that affect the root systems or both. As one might suspect, there is usually a direct correlation between the physiological factors and the onset of plant diseases. Mostly diseases that damage and kill the grass are fungal pathogens—think fungi, like mushrooms. Some eventually may develop mushrooms but most have less conspicuous characteristics to the untrained eye. Unless you have a golf course or otherwise are maintaining athletic turf grass, the various synthetic treatments for fungal diseases of grass are not an option for home lawns—prevention and cultural practices are more important to prevent or minimize damage.

1. Minimize poorly drained soils—fungi thrive in moist environments. When water gathers and remains—there’s dead grass. Bio Rich Green Care can improve drainage problems with the addition of drainage pipes, French Drainage Systems and soil modification.
2. Maximize Air Movement and Sunlight by removing lower tree limbs and/or some tree removal. The ground dries faster and there’s less opportunity for fungal attacks on the turf.
   More Sunshine = Healthier Grass Growth
   Bio Rich Green Care can perform expert tree pruning to increase the sunlight for lawns and gardens.
3. Soil pH and Nutrients are critical for healthy grass growth and vigor to overcome/grow out of plant disease damage. Bio Rich Green Care is licensed and regulated by the Maryland Department of Agriculture for Fertilizer Applications. We apply the recommended amounts of Nitrogen and Potassium for the grass and can add Lime if the soil has become acidic. Phosphorus and Micronutrients are also a critical components for grass growth but require a Soil Test to determine if there are deficiencies. Bio Rich will collect a sample from your lawn to obtain the soil analysis from a licensed soil lab, and if the test determines a deficiency in one or more critical nutrients—we can apply whatever is needed.
4. Grow the correct grass species for the site. A shady lawn is sometimes unavoidable—we need to introduce the fine fescues and bluegrass to these areas. If there’s full sun and wet conditions—the best choice may be to plant Zoysia grass. Bio Rich Green Care can install Zoysia sod to provide a healthy dense lawn that is also resistant to weeds, drought and very nice for children at play.

Bio Rich Green Care is ready to help you make your Grass Grow Greener—and Healthier!