Large brown area

Speedbyrd – posted 09 July 2005 01:04

I have a large area in the front that has always been thin. It is bermuda, and has strong healthy bermuda right next to it. I just put an extra round of time released fert to really green up my yard. Well, the rest of the yard is like a post card, but the thin area literally stopped growing. I waited a week and no growth in that area. I just put down a fungicide to kill the brown patch, if that is what it is, and it got darker. The patch is odd shaped like a pond or something with smooth, wavy borders. In the center of this, some yellow nutsedge is cropping up.Is it bugs or is it a fungus? If I have not put something in here to help id the pest, let me know, and I can go into further detail.

Speedbyrd

JC – posted 09 July 2005 08:29

It sounds like a bug problem to me. Possibly army worms. Any one else?John-

Speedbyrd – posted 09 July 2005 21:22

Thanks for the comments John. The thing that threw me was the fertilizer. The rest of the yard is great. I read that Bermuda mites and fert have a love/hate relationship. Ever hear about that?

RHD – posted 10 July 2005 19:25

You probably need to provide more data, i.e., – sun or shade?, what part of the country?, what has rain/irrigation situation been like?, has this ever happened before? what height is your bermuda?

Speedbyrd – posted 10 July 2005 22:57

Full sun, first time it has happened. Type of grass is bermuda. We have had very little rain, but I do water. I am on the scotts plan and follow it close. The grass looked different their last year, but always grew. WHat seemed to stop it was the application of southern lawn turf builder. I mean those patches just stopped growing. There is some nutshedge in it, but not bad. the grass was just thinner there, not think and full like the rest of the lawn. I mow at about 2 inches with a new honda hrx mower and sharpen the blades often.

Buck – posted 11 July 2005 10:20

If you’re in the south, and I expect you are, you might want to consider mole crickets as the problem. An excellent reference is at http://molecrickets.ifas.ufl.edu/mcri0002.htm

Although this is from the University of Florida the material can be generalized to other states. I’d recommend the soapy water flush they describe to see if you have any — easy to do. May be that the fertilizer application was just coincendtial.