Will Using Oxygen Bleach on My Lawn Hurt the Grass?

Oxygen Bleach

• Oxygen bleach contains compounds called surfactants. Surfactants help bleach slip through the protective walls that surround the cells of organic matter, like bacteria or mold. This means that not only does bleach damage them from the inside, but it hurts them on the inside as well. The double action makes bleach an effective disinfectant and fungus killer. Unfortunately, bleach doesn't discriminate between organic matter; it will damage any that it comes in contact with, including the grass in your lawn.

Grass

• If you spray oxygen bleach on your lawn to solve a problem like mold or mildew growing on your grass, the bleach will hurt the grass as well as the fungus. Initial exposure will cause yellowing of the blades that come in direct contact with the bleach. Over time, the grass will turn yellow or brown and die. If you pour enough bleach onto the grass and it soaks into the soil, you could have trouble growing anything there until the bleach is diluted by time and water.

Alternatives

• If you want to get rid of fungus growing on your lawn, try an alternative that won't hurt your grass. Pour 1 tbsp. baking powder and 2 tbsp. hydrogen peroxide into 1 pint of water and shake to mix thoroughly. The resulting solution is strong enough to kill fungus but not strong enough to damage your grass. Pour the mixture into a spray bottle and apply it to the mold or mildew growing on your grass every week until the fungal infection disappears.

Considerations

• For grass that is badly infected by fungus, don't resort to using bleach out of frustration. If the hydrogen peroxide does not clear the infection in a month, replace the damaged grass with new sod. You can use oxygen bleach to clean gardening tools and disinfect them to avoid spreading mold from infested grass and plants to healthy ones. It isn't necessary to rinse the tools; the small about of bleach that lingers won't be strong enough to hurt the grass.