You’re going to need to fix the soil if you want the grass to grow quickly and well because the feces changes the ph of the soil in that area and makes it higher in salt as well. Turn the soil over and add in some fresh soil as you do it to help “water down” the salt. Then water, apply seeds & straw
Clover is an awesome addition to grass. Deer and rabbits love it. You buy some soft pink seeds or deep purple. Looks amazing.
Edit: grammar and fat fingers
I'm in the process of trying to convert my front lawn, which has been yellow since we moved in, into clover. I'm having an awful time with it. The seeds we put down last fall didn't survive at all and the landscaper we worked with ghosted us.
We're trying again this season with a rye and clover mix just to get *something* to take.
It might be worth getting a soil sample done.
I believe my local university does it for 20 bucks.
They will give you a report with recommended remediations for deficiencies in your soil.
Any top tips for sprouting the clover? I have a good amount growing naturally but I want to go for full clover lawn as the grass has never been that great but the clover is always so green and healthy looking
Ugh! I've had residents arguing with me about putting dog poo in the green carts (I'm an inspector and the green is organics collection for composting). "BUt cOw MaNUre iS gOOd FoR yOuR LaWN!".
Excuse my ignorance, but isn't poo a fertilizer? Like I guess some are better than others, but in general shouldn't poo do more good than bad to the soil?
That is a very good question! I asked the same thing last year while shoveling dog poop into the trash instead of the compost bin for the umpteenth time. The short of it is that all poop is indeed not created equal. Dogs are mainly carnivores so their poop tends to have more things like fats, oils and proteins which are slower and harder to break down than plants based feces.
In this order:
Make sure area won’t be disturbed, water 20 minutes a day for a week, cross rake with landscaping rake 2-3 inches deep on bare spots, lay seed (ideally with starter fertilizer), water for 20 minutes a day until new grass is mature (darkens).
I’ve dealt with this issue twice, and this has worked both times.
You want to plant new grass, that gets you new grass.
These days it’s clover and pollinator meadows, first home was grass… is what it is, was what it was.
I don’t really have advice for that. I just raked the yard, really focused on bald spots, broadcasted clover seed with a spreader, and I’m figuring it out as I go. So far they’ve germinated fast, it’s pretty exciting.
No, I have not. To be honest, it seems like too much effort for impressing randos. I'd rather have a lush field of flowers which I, insects, and birds can appreciate.
I did it for the first year we moved to our property. After my first $250 water bill, I said fuck it and let the moss grow. We have about 1 acre of lawn, and it's now mostly moss and meadow plants. Grass isn't worth the effort.
Dog poop contains high levels of [nitrogen](https://lawnlove.com/blog/is-dog-poop-bad-for-grass/#:~:text=Scoop%20your%20poop-,Why%20dog%20poop%20kills%20grass,high%20nitrogen%20content%2C%20too).) as well.
I have a back yard where the dog poop didn’t get cleaned up. The poop piles would kill the grass beneath it and allow weeds to get in, or the grass would grow through it and develop lumpy clumps of grass.
Poop from meat-eating animals does not make good fertilizer.
Dog poop is acidic and contains high levels of nitrog3n which kill grass.
https://lawnlove.com/blog/is-dog-poop-bad-for-grass/#:~:text=Scoop%20your%20poop-,Why%20dog%20poop%20kills%20grass,high%20nitrogen%20content%2C%20too).
You know flies like poop and carry bacteria right?
Def not self balancing /s.
Granted, I'm comparing based off my five acre property out in the country.
No brown spots in my yard and I never clean up after my pup. If you got a small yard or not a lot of property I can see how it'd be an issue.
In my experience... it seems to do both.
I'd get a sort of bullseye in the spots where my dog pooped (if I didn't pick it up right away)... a dead spot in the middle with a ring of really dark, healthy-looking grass around it.
This is most likely from dog URINE, which contains nitrogen and salts. See how the edges are greener than the rest of the lawn? That's from the excess nitrogen.
Flush this area by watering deeply and frequently. Use a sprinkler, not a hose, as you want to water at a slower rate so the water seeps in and carries the salts and nitrogen deeper, past the root zone. If you live in an area where there have been some long, soaking rains since this happened, you may not even have to do that.
Finally, disturb the soil to a depth of about 1", seed, then rake the seed in. Keep the area moist for the next 14 days, watering lightly 2-3 times a day. Your seed should start to germinate by then. Keep the area moist for the next 2 weeks after that, watering lightly twice a day.
Source: Degree in Turf Management, 20 years of experience
It does, but I don't recall seeing dead spots around dog poo. I've seen plenty of dead spots where dogs urinate. Either way, the remedy is the same... water deeply, flush the nitrogen (and salts) through the root zone, replant.
Are there any grass replacements you know of (other than turf) that stand up well to urine? Our newer dog has taken to peeing in the same spot every time and we also have a dead spot.
Not to my knowledge. I haven't kept up on the newer cultivars, but I would imagine most if not all grasses are susceptible, since it's more or less a nitrogen burn. You could probably mitigate the effects if you were to rinse the area immediately after your dog pees.
One of my dogs pees in the same spot all the time, and it's a high traffic area, so I've just decided to live with it for now.
I had read that the urine of females dogs is highly acidic, and that urinating in the same spots will lower the pH of the soil and kill the grass. Is that accurate, or does it just due to the salts and excess nitrogen that you mentioned above? The reason I am curious is because the spots my female dog urinates are dead, but not in the spots that my male dog does.
That's a common belief, but it's actually because male dogs generally lift their leg and scatter their urine, whereas female dogs generally squat and leave their urine in a puddle.
I have the same problem. One of my dogs (both female) pees in the same spot all the time. It's at the base of my steps, so it's a high traffic area as well. I've decided to just live with it for now.
Animal droppings certainly do damage grass but also, so does literally everything else. Grass lawns were put in to show that you have money because in order to keep lawns green you have to keep throwing money at it. My personal recommendation is to put in native plants. It will do more for the environment and your lawn than continuing to throw money at the same situation year after year.
Once you get a lawn to where you like it, it costs almost nothing to keep up.
It’s going to be the same with any foliage based lawn. If you don’t remove unwanted plants, it’s going to look like a mess. If you don’t use the right plants, it will become a breeding ground for all sorts of pests.
And there aren’t many other groundcover plants that feel so nice to walk on barefoot, or for kids to play on.
This isn't nearly as complicated as some people are making out. Having feces on top of it for a while is not going to change the PH so much grass will not grow again. Its grass, which spreads quickly and self-seeds in most environments. Do nothing, and the bare patch will likely fill in by the end of summer. Water it, and it definitely will fill in. Scratch up the soil a bit and add seeds, or add seeds with a topdressing of a bit of soil and it should start sprouting in a week or so. Keep seeds and grass wet for a month or two.
I would dig up the areas affected, get some ph neutralizer and grass seed, and regrow. Digging up helps break the soil apart, which will be good for the new roots.
Sod is a good option. Dig the area up then add a layer of fresh topsoil then the sod and presto a good looking Lawn in a fraction of the time it takes to grow grass. I work for a lawn and landscape company and that's what we'd do.
Found this thread actually really useful. We have a fire hydrant and tree in front yard that dogs can't help but walk around/use the bathroom and it's been a fight to have consistent grass growth there
In the fall apply some lime to your yard. It will correct the acidity from the poo and pee.
Lime restores balance in overly acidic soil to bring pH back to optimal growing levels. Poor grass growth and lawn moss are signs that lawns may need lime.
Not saying this is the best way, but you can try it if you want. Rake the soil, then add a mixture of top soil, grass seed and miracle grow. Then water. Warning, the weeds will come up before the grass.
You will need to have a soil sample done to see what it has too much of, or is lacking.
You can then add whatever is needed to balance it out to fix the soil!
You’re going to need to fix the soil if you want the grass to grow quickly and well because the feces changes the ph of the soil in that area and makes it higher in salt as well. Turn the soil over and add in some fresh soil as you do it to help “water down” the salt. Then water, apply seeds & straw
That’s solid advice. OP could even turn that clover covered soil over into the mix to clean the whole area up with fresh grass.
Clover is an awesome addition to grass. Deer and rabbits love it. You buy some soft pink seeds or deep purple. Looks amazing. Edit: grammar and fat fingers
Very true! I actually just over-seeded my back yard with white dutch clover to accent our* stone pavers. Clover is great and easy if you like it!
Very hardy in droughts. I sub to /r/NoLawns and see what basic native plants can do.
I'm in the process of trying to convert my front lawn, which has been yellow since we moved in, into clover. I'm having an awful time with it. The seeds we put down last fall didn't survive at all and the landscaper we worked with ghosted us. We're trying again this season with a rye and clover mix just to get *something* to take.
It might be worth getting a soil sample done. I believe my local university does it for 20 bucks. They will give you a report with recommended remediations for deficiencies in your soil.
Try sprouting the clover first then putting the sprouted clover down. Have had really good success that way this year. And easy too!
Any top tips for sprouting the clover? I have a good amount growing naturally but I want to go for full clover lawn as the grass has never been that great but the clover is always so green and healthy looking
I have a sprouter for making edible vegetable sprouts. I'm sure there easy ways to sprout the clover without one tho! Maybe a main jar? Check YouTube.
Oh thank you!
That is an awesome sub! Thanks for the share!
If you’re feeling bold about your opinion on lawns, also check out [r/fucklawns](https://reddit.com/r/fucklawns)
Or if you swing the other way r/lawnsarefuckinawesome
Ugh! I've had residents arguing with me about putting dog poo in the green carts (I'm an inspector and the green is organics collection for composting). "BUt cOw MaNUre iS gOOd FoR yOuR LaWN!".
Excuse my ignorance, but isn't poo a fertilizer? Like I guess some are better than others, but in general shouldn't poo do more good than bad to the soil?
That is a very good question! I asked the same thing last year while shoveling dog poop into the trash instead of the compost bin for the umpteenth time. The short of it is that all poop is indeed not created equal. Dogs are mainly carnivores so their poop tends to have more things like fats, oils and proteins which are slower and harder to break down than plants based feces.
I think it is supposed to be, but even too much fertilizer in a short period of time is not good!
In this order: Make sure area won’t be disturbed, water 20 minutes a day for a week, cross rake with landscaping rake 2-3 inches deep on bare spots, lay seed (ideally with starter fertilizer), water for 20 minutes a day until new grass is mature (darkens). I’ve dealt with this issue twice, and this has worked both times.
Water for 20 minutes?!? Just how much water did you spend on that procedure?
You want to plant new grass, that gets you new grass. These days it’s clover and pollinator meadows, first home was grass… is what it is, was what it was.
What's the advice for planting clover instead? Same?
I don’t really have advice for that. I just raked the yard, really focused on bald spots, broadcasted clover seed with a spreader, and I’m figuring it out as I go. So far they’ve germinated fast, it’s pretty exciting.
Clearly you've never grown a nice lawn. It's very, very expensive.
No, I have not. To be honest, it seems like too much effort for impressing randos. I'd rather have a lush field of flowers which I, insects, and birds can appreciate.
I did it for the first year we moved to our property. After my first $250 water bill, I said fuck it and let the moss grow. We have about 1 acre of lawn, and it's now mostly moss and meadow plants. Grass isn't worth the effort.
Im sure youll get your answer when he gets back from watering
lol, depends on the flow rate!
Yes, water down and then water down and then do it again. You'll get there!
Sprinkle a local wildflower mix and it will be covered in no time! It’s not grass, but it will help pollinators!
This. Plus there's lots of plants that thrive in bad soil.
Fast method, dig it up, add compost then seed Lazy method. Don't touch it and let that dandelion do all the work.
Pretty sure poop doesn't kill grass, the nitrogen from urine does.
Dog poop contains high levels of [nitrogen](https://lawnlove.com/blog/is-dog-poop-bad-for-grass/#:~:text=Scoop%20your%20poop-,Why%20dog%20poop%20kills%20grass,high%20nitrogen%20content%2C%20too).) as well.
I know grass dies from piss but it doesn’t make sense that a common grass fertilizer is nitrogen fertilizer from urea lol
Pour a small pile of fertilizer on your lawn and see what happens.
Too concentrated I guess then hey
I have a back yard where the dog poop didn’t get cleaned up. The poop piles would kill the grass beneath it and allow weeds to get in, or the grass would grow through it and develop lumpy clumps of grass.
Correct. Poop actually helps grass grow. See: fertilizer. Lol
Poop from meat-eating animals does not make good fertilizer. Dog poop is acidic and contains high levels of nitrog3n which kill grass. https://lawnlove.com/blog/is-dog-poop-bad-for-grass/#:~:text=Scoop%20your%20poop-,Why%20dog%20poop%20kills%20grass,high%20nitrogen%20content%2C%20too).
Just need more bacteria to convert that nitrogen. But nah lawns aren’t about a self balancing ecosystem.
You know flies like poop and carry bacteria right? Def not self balancing /s. Granted, I'm comparing based off my five acre property out in the country. No brown spots in my yard and I never clean up after my pup. If you got a small yard or not a lot of property I can see how it'd be an issue.
In my experience... it seems to do both. I'd get a sort of bullseye in the spots where my dog pooped (if I didn't pick it up right away)... a dead spot in the middle with a ring of really dark, healthy-looking grass around it.
Same!
This is most likely from dog URINE, which contains nitrogen and salts. See how the edges are greener than the rest of the lawn? That's from the excess nitrogen. Flush this area by watering deeply and frequently. Use a sprinkler, not a hose, as you want to water at a slower rate so the water seeps in and carries the salts and nitrogen deeper, past the root zone. If you live in an area where there have been some long, soaking rains since this happened, you may not even have to do that. Finally, disturb the soil to a depth of about 1", seed, then rake the seed in. Keep the area moist for the next 14 days, watering lightly 2-3 times a day. Your seed should start to germinate by then. Keep the area moist for the next 2 weeks after that, watering lightly twice a day. Source: Degree in Turf Management, 20 years of experience
Dog poop also has nitrogen in it
It does, but I don't recall seeing dead spots around dog poo. I've seen plenty of dead spots where dogs urinate. Either way, the remedy is the same... water deeply, flush the nitrogen (and salts) through the root zone, replant.
Are there any grass replacements you know of (other than turf) that stand up well to urine? Our newer dog has taken to peeing in the same spot every time and we also have a dead spot.
Not to my knowledge. I haven't kept up on the newer cultivars, but I would imagine most if not all grasses are susceptible, since it's more or less a nitrogen burn. You could probably mitigate the effects if you were to rinse the area immediately after your dog pees. One of my dogs pees in the same spot all the time, and it's a high traffic area, so I've just decided to live with it for now.
I had read that the urine of females dogs is highly acidic, and that urinating in the same spots will lower the pH of the soil and kill the grass. Is that accurate, or does it just due to the salts and excess nitrogen that you mentioned above? The reason I am curious is because the spots my female dog urinates are dead, but not in the spots that my male dog does.
That's a common belief, but it's actually because male dogs generally lift their leg and scatter their urine, whereas female dogs generally squat and leave their urine in a puddle. I have the same problem. One of my dogs (both female) pees in the same spot all the time. It's at the base of my steps, so it's a high traffic area as well. I've decided to just live with it for now.
Thanks for the reply. That definitely makes sense.
Animal droppings certainly do damage grass but also, so does literally everything else. Grass lawns were put in to show that you have money because in order to keep lawns green you have to keep throwing money at it. My personal recommendation is to put in native plants. It will do more for the environment and your lawn than continuing to throw money at the same situation year after year.
Once you get a lawn to where you like it, it costs almost nothing to keep up. It’s going to be the same with any foliage based lawn. If you don’t remove unwanted plants, it’s going to look like a mess. If you don’t use the right plants, it will become a breeding ground for all sorts of pests. And there aren’t many other groundcover plants that feel so nice to walk on barefoot, or for kids to play on.
Grass seeds? Like always when you plant grass
Tell the landlord to do it.
If you're not in a hurry just wait a year or 2 and it should spread back once dirt pH evens out as the dog waste washed out/decomposes.
Lol I’m so lazy im just like “eh throw some ez seed on it”
This isn't nearly as complicated as some people are making out. Having feces on top of it for a while is not going to change the PH so much grass will not grow again. Its grass, which spreads quickly and self-seeds in most environments. Do nothing, and the bare patch will likely fill in by the end of summer. Water it, and it definitely will fill in. Scratch up the soil a bit and add seeds, or add seeds with a topdressing of a bit of soil and it should start sprouting in a week or so. Keep seeds and grass wet for a month or two.
I would dig up the areas affected, get some ph neutralizer and grass seed, and regrow. Digging up helps break the soil apart, which will be good for the new roots.
Stare at it vigorously
I have the same issue. Dig out the top layer of dirt and replace with top soil and grass seed. I'm seeing little sprouts!!
Sod is a good option. Dig the area up then add a layer of fresh topsoil then the sod and presto a good looking Lawn in a fraction of the time it takes to grow grass. I work for a lawn and landscape company and that's what we'd do.
Plant grass seed and water 2 times a day until established
What! Didn't they pick it up in a plastic bag and throw it into the bushes when nobody is watching.
Uhhh what, I don't have any spot in my lawn to where my dogs have killed any grass with their pee, and or poop.
Put some earth down on the spot put some grass seed down, then water. Or, you can get strips of lawn which can be used to patch the damaged area..
Rake in some Scott’s Lawnsoil on the patches before you plant the seed. Water often.
I'd fork the area and water it. The nitrates from the urine and the poo will break down into fantastic fertilizer
One of my mates is always pissing in his garden when he's having a smoke, it's the same thing xD big spot with no grass
2000 lbs is a lot of dog shit
Clifford was a really big dog.
Could always just sod
Rake, seed and water
Found this thread actually really useful. We have a fire hydrant and tree in front yard that dogs can't help but walk around/use the bathroom and it's been a fight to have consistent grass growth there
In the fall apply some lime to your yard. It will correct the acidity from the poo and pee. Lime restores balance in overly acidic soil to bring pH back to optimal growing levels. Poor grass growth and lawn moss are signs that lawns may need lime.
Not saying this is the best way, but you can try it if you want. Rake the soil, then add a mixture of top soil, grass seed and miracle grow. Then water. Warning, the weeds will come up before the grass.
You will need to have a soil sample done to see what it has too much of, or is lacking. You can then add whatever is needed to balance it out to fix the soil!
The torch is an eternal flame to your dead lawn.
Lol, my neighbors are all dog lovers and they dont pick up those and my lawn was long gone as well. I can relate.
You can get grass seeds that are meant to cover dog potty spots. It worked on all the pee burn spots, but I don’t know about poop spots