The Serious Reason Why Your Lawn Smells Bad (& What To Do About It)

Imagine this — you're stepping out on a bright morning, ready to water your garden, or perhaps you're just heading out for another workday. Suddenly, an unpleasant odor hits you. No, it's not your trash can or an unexpected gift from your pet. It's your yard. That sour or fishy smell isn't just annoying; it's a red flag that your lawn needs serious help. One of the most common culprits of these offensive odors is poor drainage, but how exactly does it make your yard smell like something crawled in there and died?

Poor drainage can turn your once-lush lawn into a soggy, stinky mess. When water doesn't drain properly, it creates an ideal environment for bacteria to thrive. These bacteria produce gases that have a distinctly sour smell, making your yard more like a bog than a backyard oasis. Additionally, decaying plant material tends to accumulate in areas with poor drainage, adding to the stench. You might also notice other signs, such as standing water on your lawn, bare patches of soil, or even insect infestations, since creatures like mosquitos love all that standing water as it is the perfect nursery for laying their eggs.

Now, you might be thinking, "Great, my lawn smells like a swamp. What can I do about it?" The good news is you have options. The bad news is it involves a bit of work. But hey, nothing worth having comes easy, right? The most common cause of bad lawn odors is waterlogged soil, so creating adequate drainage is key. Waterlogging can come from various sources, including compacted soil, heavy clay soil, or poor soil preparation before the lawn was even laid down.

Step one in your stink eradication plan is to aerate the soil. To improve drainage, you'll need to spike or aerate your lawn so that rainwater can flow down into the ground instead of puddling up on the surface. You can use a garden fork to spike the lawn or, for those who like fancy tools, a hollow tine aeration tool to remove plugs of soil. Aim for holes that are 2 to 6 inches deep. For larger lawns, consider renting a powered aerator. 

Once you've aerated, sweep up the soil plugs and brush a free-draining top dressing, like horticultural sand, into the holes. If your lawn is prone to waterlogging, make aeration a regular part of your fall yard care routine so you don't find all your hard work wasted come a nasty wet winter.

Next up, heavy soils like clay drain poorly, affecting your entire garden. Installing a drainage system might be necessary, provided you have somewhere for the water to go, like a ditch or drain. If there's no easy way to shed excess water, you might have an issue with poor grading, which might require regrading your entire lawn to prevent pooling in low spots or near your foundation.

If conventional solutions don't cut it, you can install a French drain, dry wells, catch basins, or even turn your problem into a feature by creating a dry creek bed or rain garden. French drains involve a trench filled with gravel and a perforated pipe that redirects water away from your yard. Dry wells collect runoff water and slowly release it into the ground, while catch basins are grated boxes that trap water and direct it to a drainage system.

On the more creative side, a dry creek bed is a shallow trench lined with stones that directs water flow, while a rain garden is a planted depression that allows rainwater runoff from impervious surfaces to soak in, reducing standing water and improving soil drainage. Whatever you decide, it is more than likely going to be better than having a super smelly yard!