Why is My Grass Still Turning Brown Despite Watering?

I want a green and healthy lawn – and I know you do, too. And I know you have exerted all your efforts to keep your grass at a perfect dark green shade.

One of the common things you can do is to make sure it is adequately supplemented to avoid nutrient deficiency. You can do so by applying fertilizer evenly in your entire yard.

Another familiar step people take to keep the grass green is watering them or creating adequate irrigation to make sure the grass won’t be dehydrated. However, some might wonder why even after all these efforts, their grass is still turning brown despite watering.

If your grass is still turning brown despite watering and fertilizing the issue could be a fungal disease or issues relating to your soil’s pH levels.

It is very important that you check your grass and soil. Brown grass can be caused by other issues too that we will discuss below, but first, we look and lawn fungus and soil pH levels.

Fungal Disease

One thing you should carefully look into when your grass still turns brown despite regular watering is the existence of fungi in your turf.

According to a study, Rhizoctonia Solani Isolates, also known as brown patch, is a type of fungus that is associated with the browning of turfgrass. It exists most notably in a warm grass environment paired with intense humidity.

Based on the study, Rhizoctonia Solani starts to grow and, instead of your soil’s nutrients nourishing your grass, it feeds the fungi. Your lawn is now deprived of both water and nutrients; thus, creating brown patches in the affected area.

The best fix for this brown fungi patch is an ingredient called fludioxonil. This can be found in Syngenta Palladium Fungicide, which has 25% fludioxonil and 37.5% cyprodinil.

Other Types of Lawn Disease

• Red Thread
• Rust Diseases
• Snow Mold
• Summer Patch

Soil pH Level

Another thing to look into is the pH level of your soil. A study at the University of Florida explained soil acidity as “the concentration of active hydrogen ions in the soil and is measured by the pH index.” The presence of a higher active hydrogen ions means lower pH level for your soil but also higher acidity. The best soil pH levels are found around 6.5.

Your soil’s pH level matters because its acidity can be toxic to your grass. It also reacts to the fertilizer you apply. Always use nitrogen-rich fertilizers that can increase acidity in your soil if needed.

What happens when soil pH is too high?

When your lawns soil pH level is too high your grass will have difficulties absorbing proper nutrients resulting in yellowing or brown patches. Apply a sulfur fertilizer to help bring grass back to green in color.

High pH lawn symptoms include the grass-root being weaker, yellowing in the grass, and brown patches in the lawn.

What happens when soil pH is too low?

When soil pH is too low it will cause issues for your grass-roots growth and its ability to absorb proper nutrients. This happens because the soil can release aluminum which hinders the overall growth.

Low pH lawn symptoms include grass beginning to yellow and eventually it can turn brown.

Why is My Grass Not Turning Green?

If you are taking action to your grass and you’re wondering why your grass is not turning green it could be something besides fungus and low pH levels in the soil.

Also, if your grass is turning yellow and dying this article could have the right answer for you: WHY IS MY GRASS TURNING YELLOW AND DYING?

Your grass is not turning green but turning brown instead, it could be any of these reasons:

Weeds

Weeds are common when you grow grass. It’s also one of the main competitions of your lawn on water and nutrient supply. The existence of weeds can hog these supplies; hence, causing your grass turning brown despite watering.

Grubs

Although a small population of grubs doesn’t turn your grass brown, if there are more than ten of these beetle larvae, they make your grass appear as if it has undergone drought even if you continuously water them.

Grubs feast on your grass’s roots, which stops your grass from absorbing the nutrients they need. This can cause a lack of nutrients in your lawn and could die in the long run.

Pet Waste

If none of these is the culprit, then maybe it’s your pet or someone else’s doing their business on your lawn. If your grass is turning brown despite watering pet waste could be a reason behind it.

A pet’s urine contains high acid levels, which tips the balance of your soil’s pH level. Thus, causing it to turn brown. If an animal does make waste on your lawn it doesn’t automatically turn it brown, it’s just another potential cause. My dog has done his waste on my lawn many times and the areas still remain green.

How to Restore Grass that is Turning Brown?

The key to restoring your grass that is turning brown is to detect what caused it. Here are some ways you can fix your browning grass based on the reasons we discussed earlier:

Using Fungicide on a Fungus Lawn

Once you observe brown patches in your yard, have it tested to detect if it’s really fungi. Then, you can use a fungicide like Scotts DiseaseEx Lawn Fungicide or Syngenta Palladium Fungicide, to get rid of Rhizoctonia Solani (brown patch). Because if you don’t address this problem right away, that small brown patch in your yard will grow into bigger islands of dead grass.

Using Liming Material

Experts advise the use of liming material such as Jolly Gardener Lawn Lime to balance the soil’s pH level after regularly applying high nitrogen fertilizer.

We suggest testing your soil’s pH level before liming it. Then, check the label on the product to know how much lime to apply and how often you should use it.

Using Weed Preventer

You can apply herbicides on your lawn during the spring to avoid weeds growing during the summer. There are several homemade herbicide recipes you can do. The easiest homemade herbicide is mixing salt and vinegar. Mix about 1 cup of salt in every gallon of white distilled vinegar.

You can always opt-out and use a weed killer for your lawn. The Ortho Weed B Gon Weed Killer is a well known and super popular choice when looking to add weed killer to your lawn. It can kill over 250 different types of weeds so you can always give it a try.

Using Insecticide

Grubs can quickly die out with the use of insecticides. Just make sure that the one you buy are safe for your lawn and does not damage it. You can purchase something like BioAdvance Grub Control. It also kills other plant insects such as chinch bugs, ants, sod webworms, and mole crickets, to name a few.

Training Your Pet

And when it’s your pet causing all this trouble, then you should probably train it to do its business somewhere else.

For brown spots caused by pet waste, just make sure to water the area right away to get rid of the acid it contains. It will eventually turn green again – as long as your pet doesn’t keep coming back in that same spot.

Grass Care for Greener Lawn

Watering and fertilizing are not enough to ensure a greener and a more healthy lawn. Sometimes, the enemy lies within the grass or soil itself, and your only choice is to address the concern and fix the damage before it ruins your entire lawn.

Always remember that to keep a healthy lawn, it entails constant attention and care. You need to observe and be keen on how your grass is growing. The color or shade of the garden itself can tell you a lot about its conditioned – whether it lacks nutrients or water, or if fungi disease or pets are infesting it.

You also need to be watchful with what you do in your yard since foot traffic and other heavy and solid objects can stress the grass that would eventually turn them brown.

Keep an eye on your pets, too, since their waste is not healthy for your grass.

All these lawn care tips should be taken seriously and administered regularly. Taking care of your lawn is a long-term commitment. Without time and attention, it would only be a matter of time before your turf turns brown, ugly, and dead.

Don’t wait for that to happen. Fertilize, water, mow, and care for your lawn to keep it green and healthy.