Got bad news for you. You have watered it to death. What you have now is a fungal disease. It could be brown patch (if you want to look it up) or something else. The grass that is yellowish or brown now is dead and will not come back. You'll have to rely on the rest of the grass coming back to fill in. I'm not sure how fast Palisades will return. Is Palisades the shade tolerant one??? If so I have something similar. If that's what we're talking about, it is probably gone for the season and will return in 2011. If it is not the shade tolerant one, then you have too much shade and it might be gone forever. Most zoysias like full sun. I have taken an organic approach to this disease since 2002 and have had superb results. Prior to that I had a terrible problem every spring. Now I apply ordinary ground corn meal at a rate of 20 pounds per 1,000 square feet and wait 3 full weeks. My turf is St Augustine, though, and it responds much MUCH faster than zoysia. For anyone else reading this, zoysia is not all it is cracked up to be in the magazines. If you are in zone 8, the predominant turf grasses are bermuda and St Augustine. Most of the zoysia lawns I have seen in my neighborhood have converted to St Augustine within the first year due to disease issues. We have one zoysia lawn around the corner that is starting its 3rd year with no issues. I watch it very closely.

Should I even consider this change, because from what I am seeing a reel mower means lower cutting heights. Will this be to much stress on the grass? Manicuring turf (as opposed to "just" mowing it) describes the action of clipping a small part of the grass blades. You can use the rule of thumb to not remove any more than one-third of the grass height at any one mowing. An example of this would be if you are maintaining your lawn at 1.5 inches, mow the lawn when it gets to about 2.25 inches. To-date, the only method used to manicure turf is a reel mower where the reel, in conjunction with a bedknife, creates a shearing action, as compared to an impact with a rotary. The shearing action is one that duplicates a pair of scissors. Just like a pair of scissors, the reel blades should be acting with the bedknife with very little (preferably zero) clearance between the two. If you have been "just" mowing with a rotary mower and change to a reel mower to manicure your lawn, one thing you can do almost immediately is to bring down the height of cut. Mowing lower is possible because you are doing minimal damage to the grass blade and you are cutting the blade tip off cleanly, not leaving a ragged edge on the blade. This causes less yellowing and gives your lawn a better and healthier overall appearance. What are the best heights for the Zosysia Jamur grass Rotary and Reel mowing? JaMur Zoyziagrass is a medium to course textured zoysia primarily developed for use in high traffic, high visibility locations. JaMur is similar in appearance to a dwarf variety of St.Augustine and has many of the same uses. The recommended cutting height, with a rotary mower is 2 to 3 inches. Using a reel mower you can mow between 3/4" and 1-1/2". Using a gang reel setup, I'd recommend the higher end of the reel recommendations. Using something like this would make fairly quick work of your 1/3 acre while providing a manicured look: Good day, Dan

A properly sharpened and set up reel mower will always give a better cut than a rotary. Reel mowers cut like a pair of scissors, the grass is cut by a moving blade against a stationary bedknife. It also gives more even results as the bedknife holds the blades up while they are cut as opposed to being hit by a spinning blade with some lift provided by a suction effect from the blade. After I cut my lawn with a rotary I usually have some missed blades. Reel mowers are the only ones that can cut very short, so if you want to have a fairway for a yard, then you need a reel mower. A bumpy yard however, will give an uneven cut at low heights (the yard will look even, but the grass on mounds will be shorter and in the dips will be longer), and scalping can occur, but this is also true of rotaries too. Rotaries, if their blades aren't very sharp will tear grass blades, so you get ragged edges, which isn't great for grass, although a poorly sharpened reel can have its issues too.

"I am looking to buy a self-propelled mower to cut my zoysia lawn. I want to bag the clippings." RB> There are several mowers that will do an excellent job of bagging. Look at models from Toro, Lawnboy, Snapper, John Deere. My personal favorite is the Toro Super Recycler. "Most importantly, I need the mower to be able to walk through the lawn and cut the thick zoysia lawn." RB> You will have a much better chance of finding a mower that rolls through the lawn. Most any mower from one of the major manufacturers listed above will easily cut wiry heavy grass without bogging down if you keep up with a regular mowing schedule. "Suggestions on which mower, RB> See above. approximate cost, RB> Probably looking at $550 +- for a good Toro Super Recycler. Models from the other companies listed above will have similar features and be comparably priced. "and where to buy would be greatly apprecicated." RB> Your location is shown as USA, so it's kinda hard to pick a dealer for you. Just check manufacturers websites for dealers close to you. You will get a better grade of mower and service if you buy at a local dealer.