Every homeowner’s dream is to have a beautiful lawn. Unfortunately, not every lawn is free of issues. Lawn depressions are common in soils all over the world. While they can be unsightly at times, the majority of them are easily repairable with the right knowledge.
Failure to heal a depressed lawn is a costly mistake that can cause further lawn damage and reduce soil productivity. Furthermore, it can cause you to trip while walking on the lawn, or it can cause your children to fall while playing on the lawn.
Contents
- Why do lawn depressions occur?
- How do you know if your lawn is depressed?
- Popular causes of lawn depression
- 1. Poor drainage
- 2. Cracks on the soil
- 3. Construction
- 4. Soil compaction
- 5. Buried items like rocks
- 6. Using heavy equipment on the lawn
- 7. Climate change
- 8. Pets and animals
- Children playing
- 9. Heavy gardening equipment
- 10. Leaky pipe or oil tank
- 6 outstanding ways to repair a depressed lawn
- 1. Proper nutrition
- 2. Soil aeration
- 3. Overseeding
- 4. Leveling
- 5. Insect and weed control
- 6. Replanting
- What causes lawn depressions (FAQ)
- How do you fix big dips in a lawn?
- How do I fix depression in my lawn?
- Author
Why do lawn depressions occur?
Lawn depressions are common when there is a disruption in the soil that allows air to escape, such as when plates of soil are moved around (often during construction) or when there is too much water in an area.
The soil settles over time, and the depression becomes permanent.
Using heavy equipment on the lawn, such as a car, can also cause lawn depression. Mowing becomes more difficult with a depressed lawn.
How do you know if your lawn is depressed?
A depressed lawn has areas that are lower than the surrounding ground.
Other characteristics are: bumps, holes, and dips
Popular causes of lawn depression
1. Poor drainage
Poor drainage is one of the most common causes of lawn depression. When water cannot drain properly, it can build up and cause a depression in your lawn.
2. Cracks on the soil
Cracks on the surface of your soil can also cause lawn depression because they cannot hold water or air. As a result, more water accumulates beneath them, causing the ground to sink.
3. Construction
Heavy machinery can also cause grass lawn depressions. When heavy equipment is used in the construction of roads or houses, it can have an impact on grass lawns.
4. Soil compaction
Over time, the soil may become compacted, reducing air and water penetration and making an area susceptible to depression.
5. Buried items like rocks
If there are buried items under your lawn, such as rocks, they can depress the entire area. This is because most of them are heavier than soil and, when dug out, can leave a hole or an oval in the soil.
Learn more on removing rocks from lawn
6. Using heavy equipment on the lawn
Another cause is the use of heavy equipment on the lawn. If you use mowers, trimmers, or other power tools, you risk damaging your lawn by removing topsoil, which contains nutrients essential for plant growth.
Read more on : How to protect lawn from heavy equipment
7. Climate change
Changes in the weather, particularly in the spring, can also cause depressions in your lawn. Temperature changes cause the soil to expand and contract, causing the ground to sink. Furthermore, groundwater tends to evaporate in the summer, causing it to sink.
8. Pets and animals
Pets and wild animals trampling off grass may also result in lawn depression.
Children playing
Children playing on the lawn are another common cause of lawn depression. Too much pressure from children and the different toys they use can depress a section of your lawn.
9. Heavy gardening equipment
Using sharp-edged gardening equipment on the lawn without any protection may cause damage to the grass and leave an indentation.
10. Leaky pipe or oil tank
If there are any leaking pipes or oil tanks nearby, depressions in the ground may form. Moving them without proper protection can be hazardous.
How do you plow a gravel driveway
6 outstanding ways to repair a depressed lawn
In this universe, nothing is impossible. Neither is mending a saggy lawn. The method you use to repair the lawn is determined by the depth of the depression and the underlying cause of the depression.
If the damage is severe, you may need to go above and beyond with the repairs. Let’s get started.
1. Proper nutrition
Proper nutrition is one of the most effective ways to treat depressed lawn depression. If you don’t have enough essential nutrients, your soil may be too weak to support grass growth, making it vulnerable to damage.
Therefore, you should fertilize your lawn frequently. Tips on how much fertilizer to use on lawn.
2. Soil aeration
If your lawn is severely depressed, it may require regular aeration to help with water drainage. This means that your soil is capable of absorbing moisture and draining excess water.
The most common type of aeration is step aeration. It entails the use of small forks to extract small cores from the soil in order to allow air and water penetration.
3. Overseeding
Overseeing is another excellent method. This entails seeding new seeds into your lawn to repair damaged areas. Overseeding promotes growth and establishes a healthy lawn for future growth.
It also leads to a densely forested lawn. A thick lawn is a persistent lawn, and overseeding is the best way to achieve it.
4. Leveling
Leveling is an excellent way to repair a depressed lawn with water ponding due to poor drainage. It also promotes growth and gives the leaves a polished appearance.
The procedure entails the application of leveling sand or shavings to the lawn. They assist by filling the depression and then flattening the surface.
Avoid using too much sand or shavings, as this can suffocate your lawn and make root growth difficult. Leveling is excellent for repairing uneven lawns.
5. Insect and weed control
Weeds and insects are other causes of lawn depression. They impede the growth of your grass, which may cause it to die and expose the soil. Insects, such as grubs, feed on grassroots, killing entire lawn patches.
Insect and weed control is essential for preventing lawn damage and depression.
6. Replanting
If insects have damaged your lawn and some grass has died, you may need to replant it.
Growing healthy grass is the key to preventing future depressions on your lawn, which is a critical step in lawn repair.
It is best to replace dead grass with the same type, giving your lawn a more uniform appearance.
What causes lawn depressions (FAQ)
How do you fix big dips in a lawn?
It all comes down to leveling. If you have significant dips on your lawn, you can quickly fix them by leveling them out with leveling sand until you have a flat surface.
How do I fix depression in my lawn?
You can repair lawn depression by leveling, replanting, aerating, overseeding, and applying fertilizer.
You now understand what causes lawn depression. Even better, you now know the dangers of lawn depression as well as how to repair a depressed lawn.
As you can see, repairing a saggy lawn isn’t rocket science. The right way to cure your lawn is determined by the root cause of your depression. Leveling, replanting, aeration, overseeding, insect and weed control, and fertilizer application can all help to heal your lawn.
Read: Rocks in my backyard
