Do you have any dogs? I'm attributing my 2/3 brown spots in the back yard to my dog.

 

Pictures will help

 

I will take some pics but I should add, this is in my back yard which is technically in a floodplain. These brown places where definitely green last fall but not very strong due to the excess water they got.

 

My Bermuda lawn has mostly greened up. But I have many spots that are completely brown still. I live in the Atlanta area and we had 8 degrees F on Dec 24, 2022.

Worst places seem to be in some low spots in the yard that tend to collect water and stay more moist and therefore conduct the cold down to the roots.

Anyone else seeing this?

I seeded my Bermuda last summer and came into spring with the same issue. Definitely winter kill in my case (ruled out disease and insects). Low spots that collect water definitely hardest hit. I was about 60% green. I've pushed growth for the past 30 days with Urea & Potash and I've sprayed a good bit of RGS to push some roots. I'm about 85% filled in now and we really haven't gotten to prime growing temps yet. I suspect by the end of May I'll have 100% coverage. I would think your's will bounce back as well (without seeing pics or knowing how much coverage you have currently).

BTW I'm in Central MS.

 

I would think your's will bounce back as well (without seeing pics or knowing how much coverage you have currently).

It's a large back yard with large brown patches but yes, by the end of the summer it will probably grow back in.

I have been filling in the very lowest spots with dirt. Wife says I should just give up and dig a pond.

 

spring dead spot?? Low lying wet areas are especially prone to it.

 

That is my thought as well. Pics would confirm.

 

I would be filling the low areas with sand and not soil, it will help with the drainage.

 

Problem is that will just create a clay "bowl" filled with sand. Water will run through the sand but not be able to get out of the bowl. That area will continue to stay damp.

The lot has a slight slope to the rear. If I can eliminate the low sports where the water collects, the excess water will run off the back of the yard.

 

agreed, not SDS. Looks like nothing wants to grow there!
Saturated soils lack oxygen, killing off any plant growth. Your pics look like that may be the case. I’m just brainstorming at this point but I highly doubt it was winterkill of any kind. Looks more soil related.

 

agreed, not SDS. Looks like nothing wants to grow there!
Saturated soils lack oxygen, killing off any plant growth. Your pics look like that may be the case. I’m just brainstorming at this point but I highly doubt it was winterkill of any kind. Looks more soil related.

I know it is winter kill. Grass was growing well in the fall. Only reason for the question mark in the title was to see how many others are seeing it.

"primarily dependent on moisture, low temperature and the duration of low"

Winter damage on bermudagrass

As bermudagrass begins to green up in southern IN and Kentucky , it is apparent that moderate to severe winter damage has occurred. Though we may be a little premature because full green-up and growth is still a week or two away depending on temperatures, it's important to start formulating a strate

turf.purdue.edu

"When turfgrass plants are exposed directly to a rapid decrease in temperature below 23°F (5°C), the injury can be lethal"

"Crown Hydration. When turfgrass plants remain in or under constant moisture following a thaw, crowns of the plant can absorb (imbibe) high levels of water. If temperatures then decrease below freezing, ice crystals form within the plant cell walls (or intracellularly), rupturing them and, thereby, killing tissues."

Winter-Kill and Responding to it Now

Bert McCarty and Grady Miller, Clemson University and North Carolina State University Many questions concerning possible winter-kill to bermudagrass have come across our desks with the recent cold snap. The most common are: (1) can I spray a wetting agent to help remove surface moisture? (2) can...

www.turffiles.ncsu.edu

 

I have a hard time thinking of 'winter kill' as a condition, ie disease, as opposed to an effect. An effect of weak turf, low oxygen, etc etc etc.
But this latest picture sheds a whole new light on things! Not a good situation to deal with.

 

I have a hard time thinking of 'winter kill' as a condition, ie disease, as opposed to an effect. An effect of weak turf, low oxygen, etc etc etc.
But this latest picture sheds a whole new light on things! Not a good situation to deal with.

Yep, but despite all that water, it was green last summer. The bare spots in the back are not the same as the new one I posted above. The ones in the far back are a result of shade from the trees.

 

My Bermuda lawn has mostly greened up. But I have many spots that are completely brown still. I live in the Atlanta area and we had 8 degrees F on Dec 24, 2022. The previous 3 winters the coldest it got was 22.

Worst places seem to be in some low spots in the yard that tend to collect water and stay more moist and therefore conduct the cold down to the roots.

Anyone else seeing this?

I live in the Athens area and I’ve dealt with this for the last few years. I’ve determined that it is spring dead spot, which is probably the worst news you could get. I’ve treated multiple years in a row (can only treat in the fall) and I’ve put new sod into dead spots. It keeps coming back each spring worse and my yard is slowly being taken over. My worst area is a side hill, but it has spread into the main parts and backyard.

I’m going to contact UGA and see what else I can do, but it’s super frustrating and looks terrible.

 

@CH-Johnson
I have the same in my lawn. I am in Watkinsville. Could you please let me know what UGA says?

 

Good thing about Bermuda, it can recover. Stolons and shallow rhizomes may die but with deeper roots, it will come back. This was from the day of my first post April 18.

From today, first day of Summer. Just one low spot left to recover.

 

This was my first year to overseed with PRG for the winter. I did only the back, and the difference between front and back was noticeable in April with the back looking much much better. Today you wouldn't know which was which

 

With temperatures going to the low teens this week, ground temperature is projected to go below freezing.

I have some week spots that were still growing in during the fall. Grass is thin and as low as a putting green in these spots, so I'm going to try a tarp over it this cold spell.

 

I'm sure there are some annoyed with my obsession with winter kill. But I just ran across this excellent document on Bermuda (and other warm season grasses) winter kill. Even tells how to assess if it has happened to your grass.

https://extension.okstate.edu/programs/turfgrass-science/educational-materials/site-files/docs/assessing-and-recovering-from-winter-kill-of-bermudagrass-in-oklahoma.pdf

 

I feel like someone may have posted that or a similar link in the past, as the content seems familiar. The basics of winterkill seem to be that it has a higher impact on bermuda when the cold comes suddenly (no hardening-off period); when the cold goes below 23 degrees; when the cold is accompanied by wet conditions; and when it's stressed by something else (e.g. foot traffic).

 

I'm with the OP. I've definitely had some winter kill the last few years of extreme winters here in central north Texas. (This winter looks to be much more normal with only a couple of nights at 10* or below.) I actually didn't realize how much winter kill occurred each year until I read that OK State document a few years ago... I read their material quite a bit as my weather is more like theirs than that at Texas A&M.

I think we don't realize how much winter kill occurs some years because, with decent rains, bermuda recovers and re-spreads so quickly in the spring and summer. I also think people in the more moderate and rainy Southeast don't see this as often, especially those with hybrids.