Attack of the Green Waves

You wake up on a crisp fall morning and all of the sudden you realize, your once lush green lawn, looks like it has been taken over by something from out of this world.

Don't fret. Your lawn has not contacted a weird out of this world disease. Your grass is transitioning into a dormant state to protect itself during the winter months.

In winter, many grass species enter a dormant state as a response to the colder temperatures and reduced sunlight. This is especially true for cool-season grasses, such as Kentucky bluegrass, ryegrass, and fescue, which grow actively during cooler months but become dormant when temperatures consistently drop below a certain threshold. As temperatures fall, the grass slows down its metabolic processes, stops producing chlorophyll, and may turn brown. This dormancy helps the grass conserve energy and water, preventing the plant from expending resources it cannot replace due to the lack of warmth and sunlight. Essentially, dormancy allows the grass to survive until more favorable growing conditions return in the spring.

Warm-season grasses, like Bermuda, St. Augustine, and zoysia, are naturally adapted to warmer climates and also undergo dormancy during the winter months. When the weather cools, these grasses stop growing and turn brown, entering a state of inactivity until the temperatures warm up again in the spring. The mechanism behind this winter dormancy is a survival strategy, as the grass cannot sustain its usual metabolic activity in the cold. Although the grass appears dead or dormant, its roots typically remain alive, and once the environmental conditions improve, the grass can revive and begin growing again. Dormancy in winter is thus an essential adaptation that helps grasses endure the harsh conditions of the colder months.

As we are are out applying our Winter pre-emerge treatment, we are seeing many our lawns in this transition. Here are a couple of pictures from one of our clients in Brighton, Tennessee.

Service provided: Weed Control

Location: Brighton, TN