How to Evaluate a Damaged Lawn
Updated: Sep. 28, 2018
A damaged lawn can be treated with some good old tender, love and care. Here, we’ll look at how to evaluate a damaged lawn in order to determine what kind of repairs need to be made.
Should you Start Over?
Many landscaping pros evaluate a lawn based on this 50/50 rule of thumb: If more than half of your lawn is beset with weeds, invasive grasses, dead patches, or other problems, it’s usually less work to completely renovate the lawn than to do spot repairs.
Reasons not to Grow Grass
Reasons not to grow grass include the investment in maintenance-to look good and provide maximum benefits, grass needs regular mowing, food, and water. If a lawn would need daily watering, that’s a good indication that you might want to try something very different in that area, such as a terrace or a small water feature.
Lawn Alternatives
You may find it easier to substitute a groundcover for turfgrass, especially if your yard has steep slopes or areas of deep shade. Groundcovers don’t need mowing or frequent weeding once they’re established, and many require less sun than good-quality lawn grass.
A Brown Lawn
A brown lawn may be caused by overzealous mowing rather than lack of water. Make sure you’re removing only about a third of the blade when you cut.
Lawns Beneath Trees
Lawns beneath trees can suffer from fungal diseases encouraged by the shade and lack of air circulation. Before taking drastic measures, prune off the tree’s lower branches and watch your lawn improve.
