The Press-Dispatch
Issue link: https://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/1293358
The Press-Dispatch Fall Home Improvement Wednesday, September 30, 2020 C-3 Repair bare spots in the lawn Caring for a lawn to keep it lush and green can require equal measures of patience and hard work. Various invaders can attack grass or contribute to its demise. One prob- lem many homeowners face is bare spots. Bare spots can occur for various reasons. Heavy foot traffic, grubs or other pests, fun- gi, pet urine, or too much or too little water can contribute to bare spots. The how-to re- source The Spruce says that correcting the source of bare spots can prevent new issues, particularly if grubs or other pests are dam- aging the grass. Then homeowners can ad- dress existing bare areas. It is unlikely that bare spots will just fill back in on their own. Reseeding spots or us- ing sod to fill in bare areas can help lawns look lush. • Begin by raking and removing any dead grass and other debris from the lawn. Check to make sure that grubs or insects are not attacking the lawn. If they are, use targeted treatment options for those pests. • Break up and aerate any soil that is mpacted in the bare spot. • Amend the soil in the bare area with loamy soil or compost to improve on the nutritional makeup and texture so that it is amenable to grass-growing. If you notice that the entire lawn is looking a little sparse, top-dressing the rest of the lawn at this point also can help improve its vitality. • Sprinkle seeds in the bare spot (disperse seeds over the rest of the lawn if you want to over-seed and improve the thickness of the lawn). If you prefer sod, cut a portion of the sod to fit the bare area and place on the amended soil. • Lightly water newly seeded or sodded areas daily for at least two weeks to keep the top inch of soil consistently moist but not soggy. Gradually water more as the seed- lings develop and the grass begins to fill in. Deep water at least once or twice a week af- ter the new grass reaches mowing height. • The grass should grow slightly longer than the rest of the lawn, and wait until the color of the patched area begins to blend in with the rest of the lawn before mowing. This could take a few weeks, and the area should be avoided until then. Eventually, and with treatment, bare spots can be remedied and become indis- tinguishable from other areas of the lawn. Each weekend in spring, summer and fall, millions of homeowners fire up their mowers and cut the grass in their yards. A few hours spent mowing the lawn can be a great time to get some sun and some exercise in the great out- doors. As fall gradually transitions to win- ter, homeowners may wonder when to stop mowing their lawns. Each lawn is different, and when to stop mowing may depend on a host of factors, includ- ing local climate and the type of turf. In addition to climate and turf, homeown- ers can keep an eye on these conditions to determine when the time is right to put their mowers away for the winter. • Frost: Warm-season grasses typi- cally go dormant after a couple of signif- icant frosts. Homeowners can jot down each frost during fall. Frosts are most noticeable in the early morning hours, so be sure to check lawn conditions each morning as the weather begins to grow cold. Frost may be noticeable without even going outside, but home- owners may need to go outside to check on chilly mornings or on days when the previous night was especially cold. If you must go outside, stay off the grass to protect it. Two or three frosts might be enough to make warm-season grass- es go dormant for the winter. Cool-sea- son grasses may keep growing and re- quire moving even after a few frosts, so it's imperative that homeowners de- termine which type of grass is in their yards. • Soil temperature: If it's hard to determine if frosts have occurred, homeowners can try checking the tem- perature of their soil to decide if they need to keep mowing. The lawn care ex- perts at Pennington recommend home- owners continue mowing warm-season grasses so long as they keep growing. Lawns may not grow as quickly in fall as they do in spring or summer, and growth may not be as visible to the na- ked eye during this time of year as it is in other times. Homeowners can rou- tinely check soil temperature to de- termine if their grasses have stopped growing. Warm-season grasses tend to stop growing once the soil temperature is consistently at 55 F or below, while cool-season grasses tend to stop when temperatures are 45 F or lower. Falling leaves have long been a ba- rometer used by homeowners to de- termine if they need to keep mowing their lawns. That's not necessarily a reliable metric, as grass can still keep growing even if leaves have been falling for weeks. In addition, using a mulch- ing mower when leaves begin falling is a great way to provide the lawn with nu- trients it can use throughout the win- ter. Some trees shed their leaves more quickly than others, but it's a good rule of thumb that lawns will need to keep being mowed if trees are still retaining more than half their leaves. A host of factors can help homeown- ers determine when it's safe to put their mowers away for the winter. M OW I N G How to recognize when you can stop 4502 N SR 61, Petersburg – 812.354.8350 Monday-Friday 8am-6pm • Saturday 8am-5pm. www.PetersburgHardware.com Willowstone 7 pc. Dining Set SKU 801861 Harrison 5 pc. Dining Set SKU 875989 Magnolia 5 pc. 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