lawn brown ead and dying patches...

hi everyone.. my lawn which was lush and green in may is now covered in dead and dying brown patches. i do not know what is causing it.. dad sai ants which i ahve  alot off and neighbour says dragonfle larve.. but it is everywhere.. will try and add picture tomorrow.

Is it the grass that is dying, or is it heaps of soil from ants' nests?

By the way, it won't be dragonfly larvae as they lay their eggs in ponds.  I expect your neighbour means cranefly larvae (known as leatherjackets) - they eat the roots of plants - 

http://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crane_fly

When you see starlings and crows probing into the turf on meadows and playing fields etc it's the cranefly larvae that they are looking for.  It may be that this is a bad year for leatherjacket infestations as they like the ground to remain damp throughout the summer. 

If it is leatherjackets it will be the grass itself that is yellowing and dying (not heaps of soil).  If you have a bad infestation you can treat with nematodes vhttp://www.harrodhorticultural.com/nemasys-leatherjacket-killer-pid7625.html and it's cominng up to the right time of year to do it.

If it is ants making ant hills, then there are also nematodes to deal with them http://www.unwins.co.uk/nemasys-no-ants-pid2590.html

We've got red ants in our lawn, but as we've got green woodpeckers in the area I'm hoping that the ants will attract them to our garden and they will deal with them for us.

@dovefromabove... there is not really any humps of soil.. only a few.. but it it the grass.. just dying and dried out and dead..can just scrap it off.. so youmay be right.. so it is cranefly larvae..  the magpies do go around sticking their beaks on..

so i will check out links you gave me.. thank you.. i cant bear to look at it at mo.. was looking so gorgeous at beginning of year.. now it is dreadful.

hubby happy as now he can breath sigh of relief.,.he thought he might of done it when cutting the grass.

Before your Hub gets too relaxed about things there are a few things he can do to help 

Ask him to get a  lawn rake  and give the lawn a good raking to remove any dead grass and thatch, and then spike the lawn all over with a fork to improve the drainage, and when he mows the lawn ask him not to mow it too short as 'scalping' the grass won't help.  Then a dose of summer lawn feed or even some 'seed & feed' should improve things.

@dovefrom above.. hubby dont do that.. green thumb do.. they gave it feed and what not last month.. said nothing about brown patches.. they scraified and airated it etc in march so wont do again till october.. i have rung  them and got them coming to have a look at it..

Now I'm worrying - there's just a possibility that it mght be fusarium which can be spread from one lawn to another on equipment - does it look anything like this? 

http://apps.rhs.org.uk/advicesearch/Profile.aspx?pid=563

or the patches on the bottom page of this link http://www.yorkshirelawncare.com/pdf/redthread&fusariumfinal.pdf

Just one suggestion-is there a dog that visits the garden?-or perhaps a fox?

@dovefromabove. no nothing like those.. it had red thread last year andhtey treated after we had snow.. or was that year before no white stuff or redness to it.. just yellow then dying..

@geoff.. not dogs no.. but we get foxes round here and badgers too..

I think a picture is going to help answer this-it is just stabbing in the dark at the moment

So can you post a picture please?

of geoff.. will take one tomorrow.. as too dark now.. that is if not raining to much.. thanks for replies.. much appreciated.

               ok here are some piccies taken this morning...

 i cant see an y red thread or white mouldon it anywhere.. just looks like it is dying..  here it was on the 9th aug just starting to show signs...

 and now..

 i am at a loss really.. gutted was so lush adn green before..

mmm-at first glance if had been patches I would have said dog trouble-has any weedkiller or any spray been used by you or a neighbouring property-it does look like scorching-I don't know of any disease that can do that damage that quickly-I wonder what Dovefromabove thinks?

That strip around the flowerbed looks like a mowing strip-is this a petrol mower or electric mower you use?

You say that it had fertiliser applied last month.  How was it applied?  Was it well watered in?  Looks like scorch to me and it could be from the fertiliser being applied at too high a rate and/or not being watered in properly. Maybe they relied on forthcoming rain to water it in properly, and if there wasn't as much rain as they hoped .............

If it was applied via a wheeled 'spreader' that would account for the strip around the flower bed too!

I'd get that Lawn Care company back there quick march if I were you.

It does look like chemical damage- the reason why I ask about the mower is- is there petrol leaking out?

it was applied via a sprayer gun system and a wheeled spreader for the fertilizer on the 23rd july.. we have not had much rain until other night since. so maybe.. they have not got back to me yet.. so wondering..

we have a petrol mower and as far as we know does not leak.. will get hubby to check again.. when he gets home...he mows up to the edges not round them..  god.. canit be saved at all..

right just rung green thumb.. they have me on service call.. told them my lawn is dying a bit more everyday.. and it needs looking at.. she is going to try and get man round today if possible.. as they have one on holiday so short staffed...

I would wait till Green Thumb turn up-they will have a solution and if is is down to them I am sure they will accept responsibility-I think it unlikely they were relying on rain as they would have said about watering it in?-there may have been as fault with the formulation perhaps?

All guess work at the moment.

anotehr thought.. if it was my mower wouldnt hteback lawn look the same.. it is only the front lawn and that is the only one that gets treatment form green thumb..dont bother with the back as kids play on it all the time..

Yes-then that rules out the mower then-this is better than Sherlock Holmes-I think we have a prime suspect

@geoff.. yes i think we do.. they will have to repair the damage they caused.. even if that means re-turfing it all.. the grass in shade has not suffered so much as side in full sun.. so i do think now you may be right it is their fertilizer that may have done it..

thanks guys for all your help.. it has helped me to work through it and find a possible reason for it.. never thought of the mower.. but now thinking it cuts the back also and its fine.. i was thinking it was the long legs larvae doing it..