melting out lawn disease

Unless the turfgrass is properly treated by fungicides, the grass will be replaced by broadleaf weeds and invasive grasses. Newly seeded lawns are sensitive to leaf spot and melting-out, but severe damage is most common on established lawns planted with Kentucky bluegrass cultivars that are susceptible to the disease. There is evidence that keeping thatch moist can reduce sporulation, but keeping leaf wetness down is also important If there is a history of melting out in certain areas. There are two stages of the disease: the leaf blade infection and the crown and root infection Melting out occurs during the cool … Leaf spot typically occurs in the spring or the fall season. This disease commonly appears in lawns with major thatch presence. Leaf Spot / Melting-Out Disease. Chemical Controls include using fungicides if they are applied when the disease first begins to appear. There are several ways to manage turf melting out. Leaf spot and melting-out are the common names given to a large number of lawn diseases caused by the same family of fungi. Asexual spores, called conidia, are produced on the infected tissue within a few days to repeat the cycle. [13] Turf melting out is an important disease economically for golf course superintendents. Ryegrass not as much, though. Survival in winter is by conidia and dormant mycelia in infected live plant tissue and saprophytically in dead tissue, such as thatch and mat. [7] Once spring arrives with cool, wet weather, the fungus begins to thrive. These fungi attack living tissue under specific environmental conditions, typically in the spring. The leaf spots may be widespread throughout the lawn, indicating spread by windborne spores. Golf courses affect the United States economy with about 18 billion dollars annually. They are incited by a family of fungi including Drechslera, Bipolaris, and Exserohilum. Simple cultural controls help reduce the risk of this disease, but when the methods are not used, it can be costly. Melting Out disease is sometimes called leaf spot. The colors that appear on the turf directly reflect the nitrogen levels in the plant. The disease is caused by the fungi drechslera and bipolaris. There have been many reports of leaf spot disease on home lawns in Michigan in the last couple weeks. That’s why it’s a good idea to protect your lawn, or fight back if disease has already taken hold, with Scotts® DiseaseEX™ Lawn Fungicide. Melting out starts as a leaf spot, then works its way to the plant base and attacks the roots and crown. ), bentgrasses (Agrostis spp. There are two stages of the disease: the leaf blade infection and the crown and root infection[3] Melting out occurs during the cool weather of April and May and is encouraged by high nitrogen fertility. These spots eventually appear on the leaf sheaths. This problem occurs in lawns that are stressed from excessive applications of chemical nitrogen fertilizer, improper lawn watering, and very short lawn mowing height. A curative application can be used but should be applied at the early stages of disease development. The leaf-spotting or leaf-blighting phase is less damaging to the turfgrass than is the melting–out (crown and root-rot) phase of the diseases. Turf melting out is caused by the fungal pathogen Dreschlera poae, in the family Pleosporaceae. Melting out causes circular to elongated purplish or brown spots with straw-colored centers on leaf blades, leaf sheaths, and stems.