I should mention that I have done a few things that might have not been healthy. After about two weeks I started to walk on it often to finish working/planting on the rest of the yard. I also had to walk on it to dig and install mesh around the perimeter because I had skunks digging under the neighbors' fence and tearing up the sod. I have also been using an older reel mover which is kind of dull to mow the lawn, reason being I borrowed it for the time being.

The pictures where it is browning, is the shortest I have mowed to date. I have been lowering the setting on the reel mower gradually, I didn't cut the grass at all for the first two to two and a half weeks. I also have a problem with squirrels, they have been digging into the ground non stop, I have holes every single morning.

Any suggestions? It has been raining a lot here in NJ so I wasn't watering the lawn as much the first few weeks. I have never felt the dirt completely dry when touching it so I don't think its under watered.

This was taken right after installation:

This was about a week ago:

About a week ago:

Now:

Could I use some seed at this point to get some new growth?

Does it happen to be on the north end of your house?

Could I use some seed at this point to get some new growth?

Could the grass just be under stress from all of these changes? Its weird that now that the rain has stopped and that I cut the tree providing more sunlight I'm having more problems. What should I do?! Treat for fungus/grubs/both? Water less/more?

After reading numerous books and magazines on lawn care, caring for lawns at seven houses in my life, and reading numerous forums where real people write in to discuss their successes and failures, I have decided to side with the real people and dispense with the book and magazine authors. I don't know what star their planet rotates around but it's not mine. With that in mind, here is the collected wisdom of the Internet savvy homeowners and lawn care professionals summarized in a few words. If you follow the advice here you will have conquered at least 50% of all lawn problems. Once you have these three elements mastered, then you can worry about weeds (if you have any), dog spots, and striping your lawn. But if you are not doing these three things, they will be the first three things suggested for you to correct.

Watering
Water deeply and infrequently. Deeply means at least an hour in every zone, all at once. Infrequently means monthly during the cool months and no more than weekly during the hottest part of summer. Do not spread this out and water for 10 minutes every day. If your grass looks dry before the month/week is up, water longer next time. If that does not work, then you might have to water more than once per week during the summer's hottest period. Deep watering grows deep, drought resistant roots. Infrequent watering allows the top layer of soil to dry completely which kills off many shallow rooted weeds.

You will have to learn to judge when to water your own lawn. If you live in Las Vegas your watering will be different than if you live in Vermont. Adjust your watering to your type of grass, humidity, wind, and soil type. It is worth noting that this technique is used successfully by professionals in Phoenix, so...just sayin.' The other factors make a difference. If you normally water 1 inch per week and you get 1/2 inch of rain, then adjust and water only 1/2 inch that week.

Mowing
Every week mulch mow at the highest setting on your mower. Most grasses are the most dense when mowed tall. However, bermuda, centipede, and bent grasses will become the most dense when they are mowed at the lowest setting on your mower. In fact there are special mowers that can mow these grasses down to 1/16 inch. Dense grass shades out weeds, keeps the soil cooler, and uses less water than thin grass. Tall grass can feed the deep roots you developed in #1 above. Tall grass does not grow faster than short grass nor does it look shaggy sooner. Once all your grass is at the same height, tall grass just looks plush.

Fertilizing
Fertilize regularly. I fertilize 5 times per year using organic fertilizer. Which fertilizer you use is much less important than numbers 1 and 2 above. Follow the directions on the bag and do not overdo it. Too little is better than too much. At this point you do not have to worry about weed and feed products - remember at this point you are just trying to grow grass, not perfect it. Besides once you are doing these three things correctly, your weed problems should go away without herbicide.

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Okay it's me now. Looks like too watering too frequently. At this time of year once a week might be too often. I'd be looking at every 14 days or more. Don't feel the soil to determine the watering. Watch for the grass to dry out. If it is not drying out, then wait. Your soil should be dry and hard for many days before you water again.

Your lawn is either fescue, Kentucky bluegrass, or both. With that location and the proximity of the shade, any Kentucky bluegrass will die out. That is a fescue area because of the wall blocking half the day's sunlight. With that in mind you should be raising your mowing height all the way to the top. The reel mower is not great for mowing high. Good for mowing low but that's not your grass.

Do not seed this time of year. If you need seed, wait until late August.

You cannot have grubs yet. The grubs show up several weeks after the June bugs swarm your porch light. If you don't have any June bugs, then you can't have any grubs. That's not a universal truth but it is fairly useful for most people.

And on that line of thought, please don't try to prevent problems you think you might have. Wait until you have the problem. The fungus problem is pretty apparent. I have a suggestion if you are interested in an organic solution. tiemco will disagree based wisely on his experience. My experience is 180 degrees opposite to his. This time I'll wait for him to suggest something.

By the way I took more pictures today if anyone is interested:

http://s23.photobucket.com/albums/b372/crortega9/grass/

So, the problem is to plant seed rather than sod, OR, use a sod that has a short root system and can quickly repair itself and root into the new ground.