Posted on 07/04/2005 11:22:40 AM PDT by Dysart
After watering my yard day and night for a couple of weeks, I finally brought it back to life( in the midst of drought). So I set about mowing this morning and quickly found my feet sinking into the earth into what I thought were ant mounds. But no ants to be found when I extricated my foot. I found this vexing but pressed on. And it happened again. And again, until I stepped into one especially deep soft soft spot and turned my ankle rather nastily.
These mounds/soft spots just popped up seemingly overnight and I'm at a loss to account for what's causing this, and more critically, what to do about them.
Anybody care to weigh in? FYI, I'm certain no beebers, moose, or cheese are implicated...
Thanks and a very happy 4th of July to all.
Moles?
Gophers?
I'd also guess moles or other burrowing animals.
Find any cattle mutilations in the area?
Moles, armidillos, prairie dogs...
Sinkholes caused by excessive watering
Collapsed sewer pipe (are the soft spots in a line, or randomly spaced?)
Or, if you are particularly unlucky, one of these:
Massive Crack Opens In Earth In Texas
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1432848/posts
Is there any pattern ? Is there any moisture at all ? Could it be your sewer tiles from the house to the main sewer are broken ?
Moles and gophers build little mounds at the entrances to their burrows.
Call a pest exterminator...they can tell you inside of 5 minutes.
Several years ago my lawn went to hell when my sprinkler system broke down. After I fixed it I watered and watered to bring it back to no avail. What finally worked was a mixture of fertilizer and insect killer. The insect killer is as important as the fertilizer. Check with your local supplier to find out what type of fertilizer/insect killer works in your area. I use a fertilizer that both fertilizes and kills weeds--works wonders.
As to the watering: I was told to water from about 4AM to 10AM. This allows for the water to soak in and let the sun evaporate anything left on the surface. This prevents mold from taking hold and growing. I was told that mold will hit if you water a hot lawn, so let it cool down overnight and then hit it with water in the cool morning hours.
So far all those tips keep my lawn nice and green through the summer.
Was the ground dry? Overwatering could have washed away the soil, perhaps?
They are unevenly distributed in the front and backyards. It's really strange how quickly these appeared as I've been out hand watering for a couple of weeks and was oblivious to them, if they were there, and I don't think they were.
Could be the critters have been there forever but your watering softened the drought dried ground to where it no longer supports your weight.
Or, if yours is the only "brought back to life" lawn in the neighborhood, the nibblers came to your house because your roots are tastier and more numerous.
I certainly hope not. They are widely scattered so that would seem to suggest against it would it not? Come to think of it, a neighbor down the street(maybe 10 houses down)has been digging up his front yard, seeking the root of some problem I've surmised, for months now. Maybe I should have a talk with him.
"Moles and gophers build little mounds at the entrances to their burrows.
Call a pest exterminator...they can tell you inside of 5 minutes"
I think that's an excellent idea. Thanks!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.