Overwatering Causes Brown Patches in Fescue Lawn

Watering fescue daily—even with a well—drowns roots and causes brown patches. Fescue needs deep, infrequent watering: 1 inch once per week. Daily watering keeps soil saturated, depriving roots of oxygen and promoting disease. The brown areas are likely dead from suffocation, not insects.

Reseed in September. Keep seed moist until established, then stop watering until spring. With a well, irrigation is easy, but restraint is essential. Overwatering is the most common cause of fescue decline in summer.