How To Revive A Dying Lawn

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Are you looking for tips on how to revive a dying lawn? This post is for you. When lawn is exposed to extreme weather conditions like high temperatures, lots of cold or less water over a long period of time, it starts to dry and eventually dies if proper growing conditions are not observed.

The grass tries to sustain itself by taking care of the rooting system leaving the surface part to dry in a period of dormancy. Dying lawn is identified by the change of color from green to yellow then to brown.

How to revive a dying lawn

One common question that most gardeners ask is when and how to revive a dying lawn. The glory of this grass can be restored during the dormancy period before total death happens if proper treatment is applied. The best time to rejuvenate your fading lawn is usually the late summer and early fall.
In this lawn care guide, we are going to share with you practical tips on how to revive a dying lawn.

  1. Inspect The Lawn First

    How to revive a dying lawn

    You should start by inspecting the condition of your lawn so as to assess the extent of the damage caused. If you find some brown patches and others have green grass, it’s important to ask yourself what could be the problem since your grass is dying in patches while others are healthy.

    In many instances, you will just realize that your lawn grass is just dormant and not actually dead. There are several factors that can contribute to dying of your lawn grass. Some of these causes include;
    Poor lawn preparation and seeding procedures
    Laxity in regular lawn maintenance practices such as mowing, watering, weeding and fertilizer application
    Presence of pests and diseases in your lawn
    The type of lawn grass that you have planted and care given

    When you are certain about the root cause of this lawn problem, the next step is to figure out the best solution on how to bring back dead grass patches. If you are an experienced gardener who is well-versed with DIY projects you can easily handle how to revive a dying lawn work as maybe it could be something that you have done before.

    On the other hand, if you are just a beginner or you want to revive your entire lawn so as to remove the dead grass, you can hire a reliable lawn care professional in your area to do the work for you.

  2. Weed the lawn and remove excess thatch

    removing weeds to revive a dead lawn

    Weeding your lawn and removing excess thatch is very critical when it comes to yard preparation. When you remove all the weeds and thatch that has accumulated, your next turf will grow faster and healthy. You can decide to use herbicide to remove common lawn weeds or hand-pulling if it’s in a small area.

    Thatch removal can be done in areas where you can spot grass dying in patches. A moderate amount of thatch in your lawn is beneficial but excessive one inhibit proper lawn aeration and movement of water and nutrients to lower grassroots levels.

    You can use a rake if it’s minimal or if you want to remove thatch in your entire lawn, a lawn dethather tool is the best tool to use for this kind of job.

  3. Water the grass

    Providing sufficient water for the grass will restore its lush beauty as it will start growing again. Even in hot weather conditions, the grass can still grow well as long as proper hydration is done. However, watering should be done in moderation, soaking the grass will affect the lawn just like dehydrating it.

  4. Mow the lawn

    Elecric Lawn Mower

    Use your lawn mower to cut the grass and leave the clippings behind. This will naturally fertilize the lawn and eventually enhance fresh grown in the dying lawn.

    Nitrogen is a major component of fertilizers, the cut grass which is rich in nitrogen will decompose and be absorbed in the soil, which in turn becomes enriched and this will help the existing grass to grow fuller and greener. This will give you a very beautifully restored lawn.

  5. Aerate the grass

    lawn aerator shoe

    Besides water and nutrients your lawn needs air to continue thriving. Lawn aeration provide practical solutions on how to revive a dying lawn. Proper lawn aeration contributes to better nutrients absorption by the grass. Shortage of air is usually caused by soil compaction due to dirt density, thatch and grass thickness, which make it hard for air to penetrate.

    To aerate your lawn, create holes in the ground for air, water and topical fertilizers. The holes will make it possible for the lawn to get everything needed to make it grow. This can be done using an aerator or manually depending with the size of your lawn farm. Eventually your grass will return to its former glory.

  6. Top Dress the Lawn

    This involves the spreading of sand or other soil mixtures which are nutrient-dense on top of your lawn. This will provide a nutrient boost and change the soil composition. The lawn will naturally absorb the nutrients after the top dress decomposes, absorb water and aerate properly to stimulate its growth.
    Using sand as top dress will improve the flow of water into the lawn, increase grass density and promote better aeration for the lawn. Topdressing can be done manually over the yard or by use of a professional landscaper.
    Watering the lawn after topdressing will be good enough to promote its absorption.

  7. Fertilize the Lawn

    Fimco ATV Spreader

    The final step on how to revive a dying lawn is fertilizer application. This involves a consistent supply of nutrients to your lawn which will help it to grow correctly and healthy. Lawn requires nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium nutrients from fertilizers to encourage its growth.

    Deficiency of all or some of these nutrients in your yard can cause the lawn to become dormant. To save the situation, you will need to supplement the soil with these nutrients.

    Natural fertilizing can be done using lawn clipping or by use of chemical fertilizers which have high concentration of these nutrients. However, use of chemical fertilizers on your lawn can be dangerous if consumed by children or pets in large quantities.

    Depending on the composition of your lawn’s soil, it can be deficient in one or all of these nutrients which causes dormancy. To remedy this, you need to supplement the soil with fertilizer that contains the missing elements.

    Apply chemical fertilizer over the entire lawn yard then water the lawn to stop any possible blowing of the fertilizer by wind and to promote its absorption in the soil. A lawn fertilizer spreader can help you do this job perfectly.

Using a lawn tractor to revive a dying lawn
Source;
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 Related; Common gardening tools that every gardener must have


What to Do If Your Lawn is Actually Dead

Is your lawn grass already dead? Am sure you are looking for ideas on how to revive a dead lawn.

If your grass is dead, you will need to start over again. Filling the patches of dead grass can be easier compared to replacing full lawns.

The following steps will help you in going about the process of reviving dead lawn;

  • Rake up the dead grass so that you are left with soil only
  • Loosen the soil to allow better aeration and nutrient penetration
  • Spread the lawn seeds and compost on the tilled soil
  • Apply either natural or chemical fertilizer
  • Water and mulch the soil with healthy grass clippings or leaves for more nutrients
  • Maintain the new lawn with proper sunlight & water so that it can grow.
  • Allow the lawn some few weeks to grow then fill the patches if there will be any.
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Lush green and healthy lawn is always attractive and it adds aesthetic value to our living areas. It’s always refreshing when you are relaxing in a neat and well maintained lawn. Therefore, do not let your dying lawn make your home look dull and deserted.

Apply the above tips that I have shared on how to revive a dying lawn and how to revive a dead lawn to give your fading lawn a new and attractive look.

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