Brown Blades of Grass?

Kentucky bluegrass, Fescue, Rye and Bent, etc
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Cole
Posts: 40
Joined: May 23rd, 2019, 2:53 pm
Location: Central Minnesota
Grass Type: KBG, Rye, Fescue blend
Lawn Size: 5000-10000
Level: Some Experience

Brown Blades of Grass?

Post by Cole » August 22nd, 2019, 12:03 pm

Hey everyone. I'm terrible at identifying any types of brown or dead grass in my lawn. I know it's not easy for you guys with just pictures, but I'm hoping for a little guidance.

I am not sure if this is the shedding that is referred to during fall or if I am dealing with some sort of fungus or possibly just a different grass that is dying off. I have never used a fungicide and this is one of the things i am trying to learn, but need some help identifying.

Its fairly uniform in the whole lawn. The pictures show the worst spots of the lawn, but it's pretty even everywhere else.


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andy10917
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Joined: February 23rd, 2009, 10:48 pm
Location: NY (Lower Hudson Valley)
Grass Type: Emblem KBG (Front); Blueberry KBG Monostand (Back)
Lawn Size: 1 acre-2 acre
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Re: Brown Blades of Grass?

Post by andy10917 » August 23rd, 2019, 11:02 am

Yeah, that looks like shedding to my eyes - I haven't seen it yet around my yard (50 miles up the Hudson from NYC), but I expect it soon. The primary way to diagnose it is the evenness of the brown blades across the lawn. This doesn't mean that you shouldn't stay vigilant for fungus during this period, but I see no real cause for alarm in your pictures.

Here's an excerpt from the "Fall Nitrogen Regimens" tome in which I discussed this phase. I'm not at all surprised that you'd be a bit of time earlier than my dates:
If you have managed to keep your lawn out of dormancy in late Summer, just before Labor Day (in my area, just north of NYC), grass goes through a shedding period -- this is the grass realizing that the high sunlight period is over and done with. It typically aligns with a week or two after the evening temperatures begin to decline. It looks like there is a browning of a percentage of all of the grass blades. It may be mistaken for a mild fungal disease, but it is very even in its distribution across the lawn. Typically, it is less-pronounced in shadier areas. This is the grass changing from its high light pattern to the pattern of Early Fall. I use this signal as my sign that it is time to begin lowering the mower deck toward Fall heights, which are lower. This may actually (very temporarily) make the shedding brown blades appear a little more pronounced, but it is needed to get the Fall regimens underway without sudden dramatic height changes.

Cole
Posts: 40
Joined: May 23rd, 2019, 2:53 pm
Location: Central Minnesota
Grass Type: KBG, Rye, Fescue blend
Lawn Size: 5000-10000
Level: Some Experience

Re: Brown Blades of Grass?

Post by Cole » August 24th, 2019, 6:14 pm

Ok cool. Thanks. I think for me it's probably time to hit it with some nitrogen then and help to push it out. It is less pronounced in the shady areas too. This is the sunniest area of my lawn.

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Smolenski7
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Joined: July 8th, 2010, 8:56 pm
Location: Central CT
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Re: Brown Blades of Grass?

Post by Smolenski7 » August 26th, 2019, 4:55 pm

Cool.

I've been on this forum for many years now and have learned a lot. I had no idea that grass "sheds." It explains a lot in my case. I wish I had known about this years ago!

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