Anyone who has a space in the garden with grass or is in charge of the care of some area of grass has more than once encountered the dreaded yellow spots. This problem, which can have many causes, is one of the most headaches for gardeners and gardening enthusiasts around the world, but luckily there is always a solution.
If you want to know why the lawn turns yellow and what are the most important lawn care for it to improve, join us in this article in which we clarify the causes of yellow grass and how to recover it.
Yellow grass due to excess temperatures
There are a large number of species and varieties of grass, each one suitable for certain climates and conditions. If you live in a warm area and your lawn is exposed to direct sun, it is very possible that you will find large yellow areas where the light is most incident, especially at midday.
The lawn is very stressed under intense sun and species or varieties that are not prepared for very hot environments do it even more. Pay close attention to the characteristics of your climate before planting the grass and make sure that the needs of this are adapted to what you can provide.
Yellow grass due to drought
In the same way that too much sun can weaken the lawn and make it yellow, a lack of water will have a very similar effect: dry, yellow, and brittle grass. Again, each type of lawn has very different irrigation needs, and these are largely affected by soil drainage and the climate in the area. Pay attention to how you water, trying not to leave areas without water or other flooded areas, and to the possible unevenness of the terrain, which can cause the water to concentrate in certain points.
Sick lawn due to waterlogging
If it is possible for the lawn to yellow due to lack of watering, it is also possible that the opposite occurs. People without much experience with gardening tend to think that the more water a plant receives, the better for it, but those of us who have been in this for a while know that excess water tends to be more dangerous than lack of it.
When the soil becomes waterlogged or flooded, the roots lose the ability to breathe, and they tend to rot quickly. Without a root system to feed it, the aerial part of the plant is left without a source of food, and it does not take long to die. In addition, excess humidity tends to promote the appearance of all kinds of fungi, especially in warm or warm temperatures, which will soon attack the lawn and leave yellow areas.
Yellow grass due to lack of sun
If there are trees in the area where you have your lawn planted, it is possible that some of the cast too much shade on a certain area of the grass that, if it is deprived of light for many hours a day, can end up yellowing and dry out. It is even possible that the roots of the tree have spread superficially under the lawn and that they are depriving it of water or nutrients.
Yellow grass due to excess nitrogen
Nitrogen is one of the main nutrients in plants, and also one of the elements in which almost all fertilizers are richer. However, although nitrogen is essential for the development of vegetation, an excess of it changes the pH of the soil and burns the roots.
If your lawn is yellowing evenly, it is likely that you are fertilizing excessively, so you should reduce the dose of compost or look for one that is less rich in nitrogen. The excess of the other elements is usually much less important, and it takes really large amounts to be a problem.
Another substance very rich in nitrogen is urine. If one or more dogs frequently urinate on a certain area of the lawn, the characteristic yellow spots bordered with green will end up, in which the outer area is rich enough in nitrogen to compost the lawn, but in the center, the concentration is excessive and has burned the grass.
How to recover yellow grass
Once you have found the reason for your sick lawn, do your best to change that element that is damaging it.
- If your lawn is getting too much sun, watering it more often can help.
- It is also possible that the ground has become very compacted over time: treading and the accumulation of dead roots can make the soil impervious, and it is necessary to scarify the ground to aerate it , usually at the end of summer and winter.
- You must also make sure that your lawn is not under the attack of fungi and, if so, you can treat them with an antifungal , always preferably homemade and ecological, they are very easy to make.
