Lawns are enjoyable and beautiful until they develop a problem. And then, whether they suddenly develop brown patches, or become plagued with gophers or moss, they can become a bit perplexing. While you can learn about lawn care from books in the library or garden store, you've already paid for excellent advice, tailored to your state's particular problems.

Your Extension Agent: Lawn Care Advice At Your Service

States and counties have Cooperative Extension Services, often simply called "extension services," with horticulturalists paid by you, the taxpayer. They often work with an association of state universities that do research relating not just to farmland issues, but also to home garden problems. They are a treasure trove of pamphlets, publications, and websites that just may solve your problem. Examples:

• Alaska: Publication: "Horticulture and Home Gardens"
• California: Down-loadable: "Crabgrass: Pest Notes for Home and Landscape"
• Kansas: Publication: "We Know Fall Lawn Care and Gardening"
• Missouri: Publication: "Thatch: Enemy of Lawns"
• New Hampshire: Publication: "Home Lawns"
• Tennessee: Down-loadable: "Lawn Management: Insects, Weeds and Diseases"
• Wyoming: Down-loadable: "Landscaping: Turf in Wyoming"

The above are single examples of the many titles available from each state or county Extension Office. And often it is better to search online under the word "turfgrass" rather than "lawn" or "grass."

If reading or downloading Extension Service publications doesn't answer your problem, ask your Cooperative or Extension Agent to visit your home and analyze what your lawn is suffering from. They may even take a sample for analysis. Then you can find the right products for treatment at a nearby garden or home improvement store, confident that there is genuine knowledge behind the lawn care treatments you purchase.