Not sure what happened

House is on a lake, watered 3 times weekly w lake water. It was pretty green but then started browning after the last mow and brown seems to be spreading.

Thanks

And now my pictures not uploading. Delete thread(s), ban user

Maybe its the rare triple-post??

What kind of grass? Assuming watering is sufficient, grubs or chinch bugs if it's st augustine, but could be brown patch starting up if the areas are circular. If it's bermuda it could be army worms or grubs. Zoysia, pretty much just grubs.

If it's armyworms it would be quick and you'd be able to see the worms. They'd be everywhere. Grubs you'd be able to pull up the grass like carpet. Chinch bugs you'd have to be able to find them.

St Augustine. Not circular pattern and haven't seen any worms. I guess grubs could be a possibility bc we do have armadillos that root around a bit. Edit to say chinch bug pictures online look familiar. Will look into that. Thanks


Sorry it still won't let me post a pic.

Soil well drained? Maybe watered too much.

Any chance someone has treated the water for hydrilla close to your water intake for your sprinkler system?

Take all fungus. Treat with fungicide.

I've battled my St Augustine for 3 years in Frisco - water/fertilizer/pest control etc... Thought I had take all root rot so hit it hard with fungicide. Had sod replaced in several places multiple times...and the same results kept occurring in the same spots. I think I finally I figured it out. Sod webworms are the most likely culprit - and I have never seen a worm even after doing all the Chat GPT type testing. The telltale is that they apparently only feed on new growth and that's why the bare spots that were re-sodded are becoming bare again. Tons of grayish/brown moths fluttering around etc... at least I hope I'm right.
Lawns are stupid.

FriscoAggieFan said:

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I've battled my St Augustine for 3 years in Frisco - water/fertilizer/pest control etc... Thought I had take all root rot so hit it hard with fungicide. Had sod replaced in several places multiple times...and the same results kept occurring in the same spots. I think I finally I figured it out. Sod webworms are the most likely culprit - and I have never seen a worm even after doing all the Chat GPT type testing. The telltale is that they apparently only feed on new growth and that's why the bare spots that were re-sodded are becoming bare again. Tons of white moths fluttering around etc... at least I hope I'm right.
Lawns are stupid.

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I saw a quote about St. Augustine grass being similar to keeping an 85 year old man with emphysema healthy….

Grubs and a dillo is my guess

no doubt about the dillo. We're working on those. Caught one today, actually. The are hard to catch.

Neighbor had some fungus a while back but he said it was much more circular than my issues. He's gonna hit it with triazicide and some fungicide tomorrow to see if that takes.

bigevent99 said:

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Looks almost identical to my issue
Got out at dusk and check for moths in the grass and surrounding bushes etc.. they were very evident in my yard

If you think you have grubs dig up some spots and see what you find. Try applying beneficial nematodes before applying chemicals. They need to have a well watered soil.

I'm 98% sure it's grubs. Not as much yellowing with the grass that I'd expect with a fungus. Plus dillos are a tell tale sign. Those suckers can really smell whats underground. THey love soft soil (that's been watered especially late summer when native areas are typically drier) and grubs.

The treatment for grubs also works for chinch (doubt that is what it is) and sod webworms (possibility). Except for sod webworms you have to do a few rounds to break the cycle.
Grubs you can usually dig up some soil and find them. Chinch you can do the coffee can deal. Sod webworms..walk the area right before/at dusk. If you see moths flying up out of the grass that's your tell.

I'd drop some granules for grubs and water in. If feeling overly ambitious spray a couple days later with hose end insecticide.

It's also almost time for fungus to pop up..notably brown patch once we get some cool nights.

Thanks, everyone. Any particular granules recommended for grubs?

With the weather starting to cool, I figure I'll cut back on watering to maybe once a week and then shut it down in December/January, especially since the neighbor had fungus issues

bigevent99 said:

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Thanks, everyone. Any particular granules recommended for grubs?

With the weather starting to cool, I figure I'll cut back on watering to maybe once a week and then shut it down in December/January, especially since the neighbor had fungus issues

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I just buy something like spectracide at the big box stores

trip98 said:

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bigevent99 said:

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Thanks, everyone. Any particular granules recommended for grubs?

With the weather starting to cool, I figure I'll cut back on watering to maybe once a week and then shut it down in December/January, especially since the neighbor had fungus issues

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I just buy something like spectracide at the big box stores

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Always done the trick for me.

FriscoAggieFan said:

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I've battled my St Augustine for 3 years in Frisco - water/fertilizer/pest control etc... Thought I had take all root rot so hit it hard with fungicide. Had sod replaced in several places multiple times...and the same results kept occurring in the same spots. I think I finally I figured it out. Sod webworms are the most likely culprit - and I have never seen a worm even after doing all the Chat GPT type testing. The telltale is that they apparently only feed on new growth and that's why the bare spots that were re-sodded are becoming bare again. Tons of grayish/brown moths fluttering around etc... at least I hope I'm right.
Lawns are stupid.

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Indeed. Trying to grow nice St. Augustine in DFW is pretty much impossible and expensive as hell with the water cost rates.

Mine has been grub issues. Yard guy thinks he has it resolved but it's not getting worse - just stagnant