burnt out lawn

 Hi,
I live in the New England area.  My lawn is almost 90 percent brown.
I don't see any other lawns on my street burnt to this degree.  My
landscaper tells me this is normal - that there is a drought going on
and most of their customers are experiencing the same thing.  Granted
I did not start regular watering via my sprinkler system until
recently but it still does not make sense to me as I believe we have
been receiving a lot of rain.  I also cannot figure out why my lawn
would be different than others on the street.

I am wondering if I am getting the run-around.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Mike G

 On 23 Jul 2008, mikegross99@gmail.com wrote in alt.home.lawn.garden:


I don't know where you are, but here, just south of Boston, we've had a
ton of rain this spring and summer (it's raining again today) and
everybody's lawns are thriving. Also, our town reservoir is more full
than it's been in a few years. No drought here this year.

 
Whether there's a drought in your area or not, I can't tell you, as I
don't live there.   But it should be obvious to you.   It has been
very hot in the northeast for the last couple weeks.  Here in NJ we've
had several 90+ days in a row.   In that kind of weather, it takes a
lot of water to keep a lawn green.  Exactly how much and how often you
have to water depends on the soil, sun exposure, wind, etc.   A soil
that drains quickly, a lawn with shallower roots will need to be
watered more often.  Without sufficient water, the lawn will go
dormant and can survive that way for quite a while and then come back
when water returns.

How much water are you putting down each time and how often?   Have
you put out some tuna cans to measure how much water is being
delivered and that all the heads are working?   In normal conditions a
lawn needs a min of 1" of water a week.   You want to water enough to
get the water down to the roots.   In very hot weather, it can need to
be watered twice a week.   After a watering, use a spade to take out a
section of turf and see how deep the water is going.   In many cases,
people are watering insufficiently and the water is winding up in the
top 1/2 inch of thatch, never making it to the roots.  In a typical
sprinkler system, to get an inch of water may require an hour and a
half a zone.

Of course, it's possible your lawn is actually burned by over
application of fertilizer and/or weed killer, etc.   Some buffoons
love to put this stuff down, even when it's not a good idea.  If it's
water related, you can tell by looking at the areas in the one foot
radius around the heads.  If it's nice and green there, then you know
it's water.

 



Do you mow shorter than your neighbors? Have you let the lawn grow really tall,
then mowed short, leaving nothing but stem?