EC69-1833 Lawn Diseases in the Midwest J
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University of Nebraska - Lincoln DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln Historical Materials from University of Nebraska- Extension Lincoln Extension 1969 EC69-1833 Lawn Diseases in the Midwest J. L. Weihing M. C. Shurtleff R. E. Partyka Follow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/extensionhist Weihing, J. L.; Shurtleff, M. C.; and Partyka, R. E., "EC69-1833 Lawn Diseases in the Midwest" (1969). Historical Materials from University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension. 3952. http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/extensionhist/3952 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Extension at DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. It has been accepted for inclusion in Historical Materials from University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. AC?R I I I J ~ e:7 North Central Regional Extension Publication No. 12 f09'-/8.33 c I I Lawn Di in the MIDWEST Agricultural Extension Services of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Ne· braska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, Wisconsin and the United States Department of Agriculture co· I operating. EC 69-1833 Extension Service University of Nebraska College of Agriculture And U.S. Department of Agriculture Cooperating E. F. Frolik, Dean; J. L. Adams, Director KEY TO DISEASES Symptoms Diseases Page Irregular pattern of dead grass ... .Melting-out, Dying-out, Fading-out .......... 4 Round pattern of dead grass Patches from I inch to 3 feet in diameter ..... Brown patch ......... .. .... ... .. ... .... 7 Patches 1-4 inches in diameter .. .. Dollar spot ................. .. ........... 8 Dog injury .. .. .. ... ,.... ..... .. .. .... 17 Scattered light green patches .. ..... Fursarium blight . .. ..... .. 9 Dead patches often following melting snow .... .... ...... .... .... .. ..Snow mold ............... .... .... ...... 10 Surface of grass blades become powdery Reddish-brown to orange...... .. Rust ............................. 11 Milky-white.. ...... Powdery mildew ...... ... .. ........... 11 Bluish-gray to black ...... .. .. ..... .. Slime molds ... ..... ........ .13 Black powder in stripes .............. .. .. Stripe and flag smut.. ....... 12 Seedlings wilt and die (thin stand) ....... Damping-off, seed rot.. ... ... .. ... 15 Toadstools, mushrooms, or puffballs in the lawn...... .. .. ...... .. Toadstools, mushrooms, puffballs ............... ................... 13 Rings or arcs in· lawn; toadstools occasionally appear in the ring.... .. Fairy ring .. ... ...... 14 Other causes of poor turf. ..... Nematodes ........ ... .. .... 16 Insect injury .......... 16 Chemical burn ....... 16 Chlorosis or yellowing .. ..... .. 16 Buried debris . 17 Compacted areas ..... 17 Algae, green scum .... 17 Moss ... .. ....... .. .. 17 Pictures· on pages 4, 8,, II, 12, 13 and 15 used by permission of the Government Printing Office, United States Department of Agriculture. Picture on page 7, courtesy of The Morton Chemical Co. Pictures on pages 10 and 14, courtesy of Mallinckrodt Chemical Co. Picture on page 12 , courtesy of The Upjohn Chemical Co. Cover photo courtesy Better Lawn Institute. Issued June 1961, 67 ,000 Reprinted April 1962, 36,500 Revised June 1963, 51,000 Reprinted June 1964, 23,000 Revised May 1966, 83,000 Reprinted April 1968, 20,000 Revised September 1969, 36,000 2 LAWN DISEASES IN THE MIDWEST by J. L. Weihing, M. C. Shurtleff and R. E. Partykal INTRODUCTION ture is virtually impossible to con The amount of time and money trol, diseases may be started easily spent on lawns each year is stagger by too frequent watering during dry ing. In the Midwest alone there is summers. probably more than a billion dollar 3. The more often grass is wet and investment in lawns and a likely the longer it remains wet the greater 300-500 million dollars spent annu will be the chance of a disease prob ally for maintenance. Lawns are big lem. During dry periods, enough business and compare in economic water should be applied at one time importance with our major Midwest to provide adequate moisture for a field crops. week. This means the soil should be wet at least six inches clown after PREVENTIVE DISEASE CONTROL watering. The home owner is as proud of a 4. Practically all parasitic fungi of beautiful lawn as he is of a new car grasses can become established in the pet. After his friends and neighbors clamp mulch from clippings. Here have heaped upon him praise and they flourish and attack healthy grass admiration for his skill in growing growing through the mulch. To such a lawn, disease may suddenly guard against this, do not allow clip devastate large areas. This can be pings to accumulate more than yt most discouraging. inch deep. There is no secret formula for 5. Do not clip upright grasses such growing a good lawn. Lawn grasses as Kentucky bluegrass (or fescues) are simply living organisms that too closely-clipping to 2" is recom need sunlight, moisture, and nutri mended. Creeping gras ~ ~s such as ents the same as do all plants. Dis bentgrass and zoysia may be clipped eases occur in all plants. Following Y2 inch or less. are some facts about diseases and 6. Mow grass frequently, so that general cultural practices which will no more than one-third of the leaf help prevent them. surface is removed at one time. I. Fungi cause most of the serious 7. Areas about the lawn where air diseases in lawns. These organisms movement is restricted can be prob usually produce seeds (technically lem spots. Thinning or removal of called spores) that are spread by surrounding shrubs and trees allows wind, water, mowers, infected grass sunlight to penetrate and increases clippings and numerous other ways. air flow. This speeds drying of the 2. These fungus "seeds" need grass and aids in disease control. moisture and proper air temperature 8. Any grass disease may spread before they can cause infection. Dis and build up rapidly in a pure stand eases of lawns are, therefore, most because every plant is susceptible. common and harmful during wet, The chance for a disease to spread humid seasons. Although tempera- and build up is restricted in lawns 1 John L. Weilting is Extension Plant Pathologist, Unive1·sity of Neb1·aska; Malcolm C. Shurtleff is Extension Plant Pathologist, Unive1·sity of Illinois; Robert E. Partyka is Extension Plant Pathologist, Ohio State University. 3 containing a mixture of grass varie ties or species. One should be aware of the destructive diseases if he wishes to have a pure single species and to adjust his lawn care opera tions to perform control measures regularly. MELTING-OUT {FADE-OUT, DYING-OUT) Symptoms A variety of symptoms are pro duced by this disease. Thinning out of grass in scattered areas of the lawn is one sign of melting-out. A general brownish undercast caused Figure 2. Typical lea£ spot symptom caused by dead grass leaves accompanies the by melting-out disease on bluegrass. general thinning out. As the disease from leaf sheath to leaf sheath until progresses, large irregular areas of a ~l above-ground plant parts are the l~wn are killed (Figure I). In k1llecl. The disease then may move some mstances the entire lawn is lost. clown into the crown and rhizomes Examination reveals a spotting of killing the entire plant. ' the leaves. The spots are usually In hot weather, and particularly brown or purple, or brown with a on Kentucky bluegrass, the disease purple border. They may be round may cause a sudden dying-out of or oblong and parallel to the leaf large, irregularly shaped areas. There blade (Figure 2). may be no visible symptoms on the The leaf spot stage of the disease commonly does not cause extreme foliage of dead plants and they ap pear to have died from drought. damage to the lawn. The more S?metimes this disease causes yel severe injury results when the leaf lowmg of the leaves, resembling ~h~ath area in the crown of the plant symptoms of low nitrogen or iron JS mfected. An infected leaf sheath deficiency. Later, much or all of the will turn brown and die-resulting in death of the leaf blade. Under moist affected areas may die out. The inter nal tissues of the crowns and roots conditions the disease progresses of the affected plants in these areas are brown and rotten. Procedure for diagnosing melting out disease: I. Check the leaf blades for leaf spots. This symptom may not be apparent during midsummer but is common in the spring and fall. 2. Check the leaf sheath for brown discoloration. 3. Where the lawn is yellowing Figure I. The lawn on the left is dying and dying, check the crowns and from melting-out disease. At right is healthy roots for a brown rotting of these lawn. parts. 4 INI=ECTION B Y AIRBOI?N E SPORES RESULT IN LEAF SPOT !N .t:ECTION. 4/P~ t S PORES ARt: PllOOUCEO IN TI-lE DEBRI S W/-110 1 LAWN M OWED '-I INFECTED ARE CA RR/EO BY AIR CUR LEAVE S FAll. ONTO M ULOt. REN TS ro OTJ..IER AREAS OR PRODUCE ~URTI-IER t I N~lCTION IN THIS DISEASE ORGANISM VIC INITY. REM AINS ALlY£ IN THE MULCH WIICRE !AI THE PRESEN CE OF M 0 /5- TURE I T GROWS WELL €;- SUB SEQUENTLY A T TACKS TI-lE LEA l= SHEATH / ~ CROWN OF PLANTS. INFE C. TED \..E AF S ~E ATI-~ TI-lE. FUNGUS l.IVE S O VER WINT€R IN THE INFECTED DEBRIS f:( INFECTED TI SSU ES OF liVING Pl A NTS. Figure 3. This drawing shows the life cycle of the fungi that cause melting-{)ut (Fade-out, Dying-{)ut) diseases. 4. Where sudden dying-out of on feet, etc. Here they may cause areas of various sizes occurs in mid infection if there is free moisture on summer, first check for sod webworm the surface of the plants. Excessive or grub damage. Grubs are usually moisture and favorable temperatures found about one inch below the sur during the next several clays will face of the sod where they have cut allow the organisms to develop rap off the grass roots.