# Why is my lawn NEON green?



## JL-KA (Sep 2, 2012)

My grass has turned NEON green and I'm wondering why...and if it will be ok!

Some backstory:
I put down fertilizer 7-10 days ago. Specifically this http://www.scotts.com/smg/goprod/turf-builder-with-halts-crabgrass-preventer/prod100056/7800017

It rained lightly over the next 5-7 and the grass really took off. I mowed for the first time this year on the first dry day after that(2 days ago). Yesterday we got 2.5 inches of rain. Today another 1 inch so far. Well I just returned home and saw that my lawn is literally NEON green. Some spots are approaching neon yellow and I fear they will die with the rest of the lawn following suit. Everyone else has nice medium to medium-dark green lawns. What the heck did I do to mine?!

I used Scotts products last year although not this one because it's a spring fertilizer and we moved in in early summer. Nothing like this happened and I didn't use any more fertilizer than I normally do. I'll try to get a picture of my lawn and a neighbor's for comparison. It's bad:icon_redface:

Here are pictures. It looks a bit brighter in person.
Back yard









Front yard









Typical neighbor's yard









Quite a noticeable difference.


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## cibula11 (Jan 6, 2007)

probably too much or too little of a mineral. Try buying a soil test for a few bucks and testing it.


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## Seattle2k (Mar 26, 2012)

cibula11 said:


> probably too much or too little of a mineral. Try buying a soil test for a few bucks and testing it.


A store bought test will not test for the trace minerals. They typically only do NPK and Ph...and do a poor job of it. 


Several Universities will do soil tests for a small cost. Here are two to start with:
http://soiltest.umass.edu/
http://soiltest.cfans.umn.edu/


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## Seattle2k (Mar 26, 2012)

Looking at your pictures closer, I must ask... did you use a rotary spreader, or a drop spreader? I'm guessing Scott's rotary push spreader.


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## JL-KA (Sep 2, 2012)

Used this handheld rotary


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## cibula11 (Jan 6, 2007)

It's not THAT bad. Give it a week or so. Make sure you use the correct amount when you apply it. In fact, I always error on the side of "not enough" and have still had the expected results.


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## user1007 (Sep 23, 2009)

My guess is the spreader clogged on chunks of fertilizer so you did not get it distributed evenly. I used to use half the amount in two directions to be safe and broke up clumps with my hand (probably not such a great idea without gloves). Those handheld spreaders otherwise work great for a yard your size IMO. Wearing a dust mask when using them is not a bad idea though. 

It could be that the nutrients are just leaching into the soil at a different rate. It looks to me like you are due for aerating so latch on to one of the companies that will probably be knocking on your door soon.

A soil test will not be expensive and has the potential to save you lots of money you might waste on plant material and nutrients. If the resources suggested do not work check with your nearest University, county or state ag extension office for a list of soil labs. Your libarary may have a list as well. A soil lab will provide you with sampling instructions and some may lend you a core sampler (although one is not absolutely necessary). Their reports will come with an analysis of what is going on and what to add to fix it. If the soil is wacked it will have a hard time metabolizing nutrients. 

If it doesn't even out in 2-3 weeks you might think about a dose of nitrogen-only fertilizer in a quick acting form---something like ammonium sulfate---to even out the green shades. Apply at the rate of 1lb of nitrogen (first number in the NPK ratio on the sack, 20-0-0, for example will tell you how much nitrogen is in the sack. A 100 pound sack with that NPK will have 20 pounds of nitrogen) per 1,000 sf. Be sure and rinse it off the grass blades down to the soil.


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## Seattle2k (Mar 26, 2012)

Oh, and don't soil test right after applying fert. You have to wait a few months for the fertilizer to be incorporated into the soil layer.

Sdsester - I was thinking those brighter spots looked like Nitrogen burn, so applying more N might not be the best idea. It's possible the lawn is low on a trace mineral or iron, but without a soil test, the best any of us can do is speculate.


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## Seattle2k (Mar 26, 2012)

JL-KA - if you haven't done so yet, you should overseed your lawn in 6 weeks. (not sooner, since you applied an herbicide)


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## Seattle2k (Mar 26, 2012)

JL-KA said:


> Used this handheld rotary


 
Yeah, those are horribly inconsistent, because the application rate changes, based on how fast or slow you're walking.


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## JL-KA (Sep 2, 2012)

Seattle2k said:


> JL-KA - if you haven't done so yet, you should overseed your lawn in 6 weeks. (not sooner, since you applied an herbicide)


I plan on it.


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## JL-KA (Sep 2, 2012)

cibula11 said:


> It's not THAT bad. Give it a week or so.


I'm hoping that's all I need to do


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