A green lawn slowly turning brown and becoming unappealing can be discouraging, especially if you've put a lot of effort into ensuring it stays green and beautiful. To restore its lush and verdant appearance, proper diagnosis is crucial, and there are four potential culprits that could cause your grass to turn brown: overfertilization, dehydration, lawn diseases, and lawn insects. Applying too much fertilizer means the excess salt from the product draws too much moisture from the grass and dries it out. Meanwhile, insufficient water can cause your lawn in North Carolina to struggle to stay green and grow upright. Lawn diseases like brown patch and insects like grubs and armyworms are also possible culprits to the discoloration of your grass!

1. Overfertilization

Fertilizer burn on grass in Greensboro, NC, due to overfertilization.

One of the top causes of your brown lawn is overfertilization. When fertilizing your lawn, the right amount should be administered to ensure it receives enough nutrients to flourish. Applying too much leads to overfertilization and can cause fertilizer burn. This happens because the extra soluble salt content from the product draws out too much moisture from your lawn, causing the grass blades to dry. Affected grass takes on a scorched or burned appearance, hence the name fertilizer burn.

Applying too much fertilizer can be harmful to the environment when the excess product runs off into waterways.

2. Dehydration

Sprinkler irrigation system spraying water on grass in Greensboro, NC.

Another possible reason your lawn has turned brown from being lush and green is dehydration. Water is a crucial resource for your lawn and helps it stay green, dense, and growing upright. Without enough water, your grass can turn brown and become weak. Dehydration also causes the grass blades to wilt and remain flat even long after you've stepped on them. What's more, a dehydrated lawn grows slower than usual, as it does not have enough water to maintain its tip-top growth. It's essential to follow a good watering schedule, especially during the hot and dry summer days, to ensure your lawn receives the right amount of water it needs to stay thick and vibrant.

3. Lawn Diseases

A brown lawn is possibly caused by a lawn disease, which can target everything from the roots to the grass blades. Your grass can take a heavy beating from a wide range of diseases that can occur due to different reasons. Brown patch is one of the most common lawn diseases that can affect your lawn and cause it to turn brown. This disease is caused by a fungus that thrives during hot and humid conditions. It causes brown patches of grass between a few inches to several feet in diameter.

If you're seeing unusual patches of brown grass on your turf, you're likely looking at a lawn disease. It's best to hire lawn care professionals to diagnose your lawn and administer the correct treatment to target the specific issue.

4. Lawn Insects

Lawn insects are a common culprit to brown lawns. Unfortunately, there are various lawn insects that can infest your turf and cause severe damage to its health and appearance! One of them includes grubs, which are beetle larvae that spend their first weeks burrowed in the soil feeding on the roots of your grass. As they feed, these pests sever the connection of your lawn to the soil where it receives vital nutrients. This results in weak and brown grass that feels spongy when walked on.

Armyworms are also invasive lawn insects that can cause your lawn to turn brown. These pests, despite their size, cause extensive damage in a short period, as they feed on grass blades in large groups! Your grass will have a jagged appearance as the armyworms feed and eventually turn brown!

Call us today to sign up for our irrigation installation and lawn care package to keep your grass green!

No property owner wants to see their lawn turn brown and look unattractive. To ensure your grass is always green and beautiful, we will help with our irrigation installation and lawn care package! This package includes installing an irrigation system designed according to your lawn's needs, as well as lawn fertilization and other essential treatments. You can also add lawn disease and insect control on top of this program so we can inspect your lawn and treat it right away! Our team at Ideal Landscaping & Irrigation offers this package to commercial and residential properties, as well as HOAs, in Greensboro, Winston-Salem, Summerfield, NC, and nearby communities. Give us a call today at (336) 396-9191 to sign up!