Homeowners Battling Unpredictable Lawns

“In Ohio with new build and I focused on landscaping this spring. I figured it would be wise to wait until fall now after running out of spring time. The front I hit with glyphosate over a month ago when I thought I might get this part planted. The rest of the areas are weeds. What should my plan be until fall. Should I just mow down the weeds or I could till it every few weeks. I still have some big topsoil piles to spread out. I have a tractor with 3pt tiller and a soil pulverizer. submit”

“Have you checked for grubs? Pulling up easily without roots is a symptom of grubs.”

“when spraying chelated liquid iron on grass in Eastern US with super hot weather these days, are they supposed to be absorbed by the leaves or the roots? submitted by /u/Firm-Nerve4437 [link] [comments]”

“I have this crazy relentless weed that I can’t kill. I make it mad sometimes but it survives everything. I thought it was some version of crabgrass but now I am unsure. I hit it with quinclorac and seed oil as directed and it laughed it off. In other spots of the yard the quinces worked and killed crabgrass dead. Please help. submitted by /u/IssaCivic-SI [link] [comments]”

“Bought my first house back in March and the previous owners put a lot of love into the grass and garden. I had to go away for a few weeks and now my lawn is looking very sad. I did the pull test and the roots didn't come up so I think its just dormant. Some questions: - What kind of grass do you think this is? - Its been about a month without rain, how much longer can it last? - I am trying to water it once a week with a hose, is that sufficient? (I dont want to waste water) - There is rain”

“A landscaper recently came to mow down my severely overgrown lawn. I’ve started tilling and weeding to start regrowing from scratch and I’m seeing these bulbs literally everywhere I dig. From a quick google, I’m thinking it’s star of Bethlehem or a similar aggressive plant that’s non native to me here in New York. It’s hard to tell from the pictures but they look and feel like tiny pearl onions and most of the yard has this tight a concentration of them. I wanted to weed by hand but with this ma”

“Getting patches of this stuff in sections. What is it and how do I get rid of it? Pulled a bunch up yesterday but I'm too old to be doing this for as much as there is. Pulls up really easily if I grab at the base, so roots are shallow. submitted by /u/evan938 [link] [comments]”

“I just purchased a home in central Maine. Previous owners had lots of kiddos and the back yard is trampled. I know nothing, but would love to have some decent ground cover back there next year. What can I do? Reasonable to DIY something like renting an aerator and an overseeder? Or is this professional territory? submitted by /u/Oso_Bailarin [link] [comments]”

“We had above average rain last month. Used ferilizer in spring and fungicide regularly. Looked great in may. It lookes greener and heathier in the shade. submitted by /u/zabigtalent [link] [comments]”

“I could use some advice. What’s the best way to get rid of weeds in my Tiff Bermuda grass without damaging the lawn? If you’ve used a product that worked really well, I’d love to hear your recommendations. Thanks! submitted by /u/Unlikely_Donut2071 [link] [comments]”

“Hey guys, first time home buyer in southeast Michigan. Have no idea what I’m even doing but my lawn is starting to look dead/ just not in great shape. Any tips on what I need to do to keep a healthy and beautiful lawn? submitted by /u/Various-Security9847 [link] [comments]”

“I take great pride in my lawn. Ripped up and replaced my entire lawn shortly after moving in a couple years ago because the yard was eating itself. Lawn was healthy for a couple years. All of a sudden it’s starting to eat itself again. Dirt is clumping. Grass is slowly disappearing. Any advice? submitted by /u/SotaMN [link] [comments]”

“Jersey shore zone 7B. My Lawn was looking absolutely beautiful until mid June, then the heat waves started. This is what I am left with. 😭 I have been watering at least 1 inch per week and fertilizing with the Scotts four step system. Everything was looking great until I applied the summer guard the end of June. A week later we had temps in the high 90s and this is the result. Watering for whatever reason seems to make it even worse! This has to be more than just dormancy. The soil is impacted”

“I would still go ahead and contact the sod company and see what they advise. I would still be iffy on treating even if they give you a green light though.”

“Yeap and that’s why they’re so annoying. The window to spray and knock them down is limited, until after the temps again.”

“You actually can pull it. It may just come back. If you pull it multiple times and early enough, you can kill it.”

“No. The crabgrass is doing you a service by filling in the bare spots and protecting your soil from the summer sun. As the soil improves, the perennial grass will thicken and outcompete the crabgrass.”

“I dont mind people asking questions like this as opposed to googling because if it is answered on thus thread there is likely many other people wondering the same question. I have learned so much from reddit over the years just by reading people's questions and answers, some of which I might not have taken the extra step to research myself. The point of reddit is discussion, so I never mind questions in good faith.”

“Careful applying sedgehammer in hot weather on new sod! If it hurts your sod, you will ruin whatever warranty you received”

Sedgehammer worked great for me on the same stuff last summer

“Nope I wouldn’t fight it. Just put down the crabgrass preventer next March.”

“Nutsedge and sledgehammer with several apps is good. Looks like you also have irrigation uniformity issues. Weakened grass allows weeds in.”

“Was planted in a shady spot so have just moved to a sunnier position as the leaves were wilting. Is that likely to be the issue or might it be something else. It has been well watered throughout. Thanks! submitted by /u/WorldlinessProper807 [link] [comments]”

“Hi everyone! My dad has always taken a lot of pride in his lawn, but the past few years he’s been struggling with a few problem areas that just won’t recover. It’s been tough seeing him get discouraged over it!! I’m more of the flower and gardening person, so lawns aren’t really my area. My dad also isn’t very internet savvy, so I figured I’d ask here for him. We’re in Massachusetts. I’ll attach photos of the problem areas, and I’d really appreciate any advice or ideas on what might be causing t”

“I asked advice here because i think i have brown patch and maybe dollar spot...i went out and got some bio advanced watered it in and will reapply in 14 days per instructions then switch to scotts disease ex to avoid resistance...anything else i can do? I also only water in morning so laen can dry during day.This morning i walked with my dog and saw my neighbors lawns looking similar or worse then mines...is lawn fungus common or am i mistaken my 3 neighbors lawn conditions for heat stress? The”

“Just looking for some confirmation and another look. Appreciate it in advance. submitted by /u/DropTheMike13 [link] [comments]”

“Hey everyone! My girlfriend and I just moved into a house in Massachusetts, in the Boston suburbs, and tackling the lawn is one of my first projects. I’m a complete beginner when it comes to lawn care. I’ve only ever lived in apartments, so this is my first time actually having a yard to take care of. From the research I’ve done so far, my first instinct is to weed, dethatch, aerate, overseed, and keep everything properly watered heading into the fall and winter. I’d really appreciate any advice”

“Is ryegrass even good for anything? I've been trying for 3 years and it doesn't make a thick carpet. My yard is 50 sq m, shade, 1100m above sea level, southeastern Europe. submitted by /u/Me7hos-bg [link] [comments]”

“You can over water and you will cause a fungal outbreak that will tear through your new lawn.”

“Looks perfectly fine, just put some 25-0-5 slow release pure fert on that thang and water.”

Lime and reseed

“I planted fescue last year, I'm getting this weed popping up and I'm not sure what it is. It seems like it's spreading. Any advice would be appreciated. submitted by /u/Mysterious-Recipe946 [link] [comments]”

“Those wider bladed clumps look like crabgrass, which loves popping up in new Bermuda lawns especially this time of year in Florida. Hit it with something like quinclorac once the Bermuda is fully established and mowed a few times, pulling it now just stirs up more weed seeds. For the bald spots just throw down some more seed and water it in, Bermuda will fill in fast with the heat down there.”

Use a sterilizer. I’ll mix glosphate and imazypur. That usually does it.

“It looks like what is growing in my yard. I forgot what weed they're called, but I was told to try Sledge Hammer. You put 2 applications on over a few months. It kills the part that's underground. I'm in between sprayings and so far they are getting fewer, and the growth is slowed a lot and they're turning brown. https://thesedgehammer.com/”

“You need to make sure sprinklers are hitting in all areas, maybe different to soils”

“Hey folks! Need help identifying my grass thanks in advance submitted by /u/assketchum90 [link] [comments]”

“Appreciate the help on my earlier post regarding crabgrass. What is this fast growing grass, and should I attempt to kill it? If so, how? TIA! Location - NW Ohio. submitted by /u/us3rname_taken [link] [comments]”

“Let me start with, I'm a newbie on lawncare, so please forgive any ignorance. I'm in Palm Beach, Florida. I seeded my dirt with Bermuda. What are these taller looking areas? Could it really be so weeded already (3 weeks. The gardeners haven't cut it yet)? Any advice on how to get rid of them? Possibly some type of weed killer? When I pull them up, it takes so much of the surrounding area and good grass. I know there are some bald spots. Apparently the spreader didn't add enough.”

“There is open area behind my back fence with fill dirt in it. What can I put here that is relatively low growing, no maintenance that will crowd out weeds? Central Texas. I'm open to grasses, bushes, etc. would be nice to be at least mildly ornamental if not flowering. submitted by /u/highcuu [link] [comments]”

“Just been pulling weeds from around my fruit trees and spotted this nasty looking root around one of my Apple trees! It’s quite a large root, it seems to circle about half way around the tree. Do I need to take some action here? Or at some other time of the year (UK)? The root flare isn’t too deep I don’t believe. I can do some more careful excavation if required, this was above the surface already. submitted by /u/oddjobbodgod [link] [comments]”

“Creeping Charlie is a royal pain! I spent most of the summer 3 years ago hand diffing it out of my backyard...roots and all is the ONLY way... a hour here, 2 hours there... every couple of days. It worked! Best of luck with your crabgrass!”

Awesome, I appreciate the help!

Awesome, I appreciate the help!

“How do I let (what I assume is) the clover growing in the back and sides of my yard to take over (what I assume is) the crab grass in the center? submitted by /u/Fresh-Cucumber7891 [link] [comments]”

“These were green and great until the roofers put tarps over them for the day and kind of smushed them and they turned to this. How do I care for them and make them smaller and cleaned up? Cut them with a shovel and severe them? How I clean the dead parts up? Picture of them now and before. It’s the only pic I have of the before and it’s clearly not the best Thank you! (Horry county sc) submitted by /u/set1205 [link] [comments]”

“My yard was filled with weeds and extremely patchy. I sprayed the weeds and killed them all. Mowed consistently and got a little bit of growth. Decided to do a heavy sand level and fertilize every 3-4 weeks. The rain helped a ton as well submitted by /u/WordsRDangerous [link] [comments]”

“Hey everyone, Total newbie here, currently staring at a very crispy, brown reminder of why you shouldn't apply fertilizer in the middle of a July heatwave. I put down Scott’s SummerGuard during a super hot week here in Zone 6b, and completely scorched sections of my grass. Lesson learned the hard way. Since I need to repair the damage and overseed these areas when it cools down a bit, I went to Lowe's to check out options. I started reading the actual seed analysis labels on the back of”

“Hello all! Truely are a loss here. Bought my first house last August and no matter what I do this year my lawn is very dead. I live in Massachusetts and we had a ton of snow last winter so my lawn had a lot of dead spots to start the season. Last fall I used Scott's thicker lawn and this spring I used scotts turf builder all in one lawn food. I water the lawn almost every other day and for a good 30 minutes or so because I read due to the large hill it's harder for the water to soak in.”

Thanks for any guidance. submitted by /u/Hypnotoad8616 [link] [comments]

“I live in Northwest Illinois, since I bought my home Ive had a bit of trouble with weed control. Im looking for a bit of advice on when and what to put down. Crabgrass seems to be my main one thats hard to get around. I did have a bit of dandelion and clover earlier this season that went away for the most part. Springtime I believe late april I put down some Scotts fertilizer for weed control, worked well on some but the crabgrass is popping up late season here. If i spray crabgrass killer on it”

“I bought this house about 10 months ago. My yard was pretty much only weeds last fall. I core aerated, put down Pennington shady mix TTTF, laid straw, Scott’s starter fertilizer, and watered consistently. Grass came in pretty well in the fall. About 6-8 weeks after that, I put down Scott’s winterguard. At the end of Winter, my yard really started to take shape. I then put down Scott’s pre-emergent weed and feed. In the spring, I had extremely lush, full, thick, and green grass. Little to know we”

“I didn’t this year. Never had this probably. I think it was a bad bag of over seed”

This is upstate NY if that changes anything.

“Lawn noob here, everything I touch turns to weed. This shrub keeps growing under my weird looking tree. How would you keep the shrub down? Also, should I be trimming my tree? submitted by /u/Sir_Ugly_Yard [link] [comments]”

“We were late to the party this year after doing a lot of yard excavating work, and ultimately got hydroseed down mid-June. Completely understand why that’s gonna be a tough time but we figured it was worth doing that than keeping it dirt all summer Fast forward to today and we have some grass growth but also weeds, including nutsedge. We’ve gotten a fair amount of rain so grass growth has been patchy in areas and we wanted to put down more seed. My question is how best to handle the weeds with t”

Hi guys, How can I fix these areas? For context: - New sod was installed on the 05JUN2026. - Temperature was between 38 to 42 for almost 2 weeks, which I think…

“Spent the last two summers just letting it grow and mowing whenever I felt like it, usually when it was already way too tall. This year I actually committed to a consistent height, around 2.5 inches, and mowing before it gets out of hand. The difference is kind of hard to explain but the turf just looks tighter and holds up way better when it gets hot. What got me was how much the consistency matters more than any single mow. I kept expecting some dramatic change after one perfect cut but it was”

“Hi, first time home owner here. I'm in Southern California and I have sprinklers go off everyday this summer for about 10min around 5am. I think the lawn is primarily fescue but some st Augustine from my neighbor is mixed in here and there. I cant tell if it's heat stress or disease or something else. There is also a bit of rabbit poop I think in these dry spots. Appreciate anyone's guidance on what to do here. Apart from the dead looking spots, I understand it's better to do lon”