First disease report of the 2023 season from the Purdue Turfgrass Pathology program. Highlights include prevention of large patch and soilborne diseases on golf putting greens and mowing tips for spring lawncare. Hello everyone, and welcome to the first installment of the Purdue Turfgrass Pathology Disease Reports. I, and on occasion a guest author, will…Read more about Disease Report #1: Signs of Spring Abound[Read More]
Pink snow mold is a disease caused by the fungal pathogen Microdochium nivale (syn. Monographella nivalis) that is being observed in middle and northern Indiana this late winter. The pathogen is termed psychrophilic, or cold loving, due to its propensity to grow and infect in colder temperatures. The disease can be particularly severe on unfrozen…Read more about A Cold Mold that Craves the Shade[Read More]
Recently, home lawns have been maligned in several media outlets as a waste of time and resources. Mismanagement by using too much water or misplacing fertilizer may compound the issue by straining environmental resources or serving as pollutants. While not going into all the defenses for turfgrass use on home lawns, (remember “right plant, right…Read more about Look Below Before Blaming Above[Read More]
The summer of 2016 has been quite favorable for the development of an assortment of infectious diseases on residential turf. The primary driver of all of this disease activity is the weather. In the lower Midwest, the combination of elevated temperature and ample precipitation since the beginning August of has spawned outbreaks of brown patch,…Read more about Lawn Diseases 2016[Read More]
Over the past two weeks I received many calls regarding the mild conditions and concerns about effectiveness of fungicide applications for snow mold control. The major question is whether or not to make another application at this time. Consider he following: The snow mold of concern here in Indiana is pink snow mold, aka Micodochium…Read more about More fungicide applications for snow mold control?[Read More]
This winter has resulted in significant winterkill on bermudagrass throughout the nation and Indiana was not an exception. Brutally cold temperatures, coined as the polar vortex, swept through the country in early January with many other subsequent cold days and nights to follow. The below link summarizes the damage that I have observed this spring,…Read more about Winterkill Here on Bermudagrass! Now What?[Read More]
This winter has been cold and long. From December 2013 through February 2014, Indiana had it’s 9th coldest winter on record and its coldest since 1979, 1978 was coldest on record (Fig. 1). With such cold temperatures, many are worried about winterkill. Fig. 1. In the past 120 years, this was the 9th coldest…Read more about Cool-Season Turf Winterkill: Potential Losses and a Pathway to Recovery[Read More]
With colder than normal temperatures in Indiana this winter, we are anticipating some minor winter damage. To help prepare for this we are publishing a three part series on this topic to help turfgrass managers prepare for what may await them in the spring. Look forward to the following topics over the next week. Part…Read more about Warm-season Turf Winterkill 2014: What Can you Expect and NOW WHAT?[Read More]
From a turf disease perspective, evidence of the severity of this winter is apparent in the extent of snow mold development. Symptoms of Typhula snow molds (gray snow mold and speckled snow mold), and/or pink snow mold are obvious throughout Indiana and the Midwest. Typhula snow mold pathogens are adapted to grow and infect at…Read more about Snow Molds in the Winter of 2013-14[Read More]
The 2013 rust disease outbreak seems to have arrived a little earlier than usual. My thoughts about the current rust epidemic are intended for lawn care professionals, who must address reasonable questions from their clients. Most professionals are very familiar with the basics of rust disease. To briefly review from the 2013 perspective–the ample precipitation…Read more about Rust Disease – 2013[Read More]
Spring has finally arrived and it is accompanied by the usual compliment of infectious turf diseases. There should be no confusion between two “rhizoctonia” diseases. Yellow patch (aka cool season brown patch) prevails during early spring, when rainy weather is combined with cool nights. It also affects al turf species and the circular patches are…Read more about Spring Diseases in the Midwest[Read More]
From a temperature perspective, weather patterns in the Midwest have returned to normal this spring. I recall the 80 F days in March 2012, and all of the concerns about scheduling fungicide sprays. Hopefully most turf managers have resisted the temptation (regardless of who or what is doing the tempting) to apply fungicides for early…Read more about Weather and Turf Diseases[Read More]
Nobody needs to be reminded that March 2013 has been colder than the last several years. The good thing is that wintry conditions prevent wasted fungicide applications. Keep watching the summer patch soil temperature monitor. Remember that there are several elements to the decision rule. The cardinal temperature seems to be around 65F—in soil at…Read more about Weather and Turf Disease –Early Spring 2013[Read More]
Early Season Dollar Spot Sprays The pathogen must be active in order for the mycelium to absorb a fungicide. We know that Sclerotinia homoeocarpa grows when temperatures remain above 55F in the presence of ample moisture. If such conditions prevail in March (as they did in 2012), then early season sprays may help reduce dollar…Read more about Turf Notes: Disease and Fungicide Update[Read More]
Recent weather (remnants of hurricane Isaac) raised concerns about gray leaf spot in the Ohio Valley and the lower Midwest in general. You may recall that the pathogen does not overwinter efficiently in the Midwest, and inoculum (airborne spores) from storms that originate in the South is significant. Gray leaf spot is a foliar disease…Read more about Gray Leaf Spot[Read More]
Melting snows revealed some significant snow mold damage. As you know there are two types of snow mold diseases, gray snow mold (aka Typhula blight) and pink snow mold (Microdochium patch). Although they create similar symptoms (circular patches of tan turf—sometimes with orange/brown margins, Fig. A, C, D) the pathogens are not closely related and…Read more about Snow mold damage – 2011[Read More]
Part II: Summer diseases in Residential Turf Part III: Summer weeds: Common summer weeds and their control Part I: Too hot: Why some turfgrass species look poor in summer Color Variation in Residential and Commercial Lawns Crabgrass Control Now is the time to seed lawns and other turf areas Choosing a Preemergence Herbicide Late Fall…Read more about Top Ten Turf Tips of 2010[Read More]
Rust is a disease of taller mown turf. Outbreaks are most common on residential lawns, low budget athletic fields, and, occasionally, on golf course roughs. A variety of related fungi cause rust. Ccommon names include leaf rust, crown rust, and stem rust, and the disease occurs almost exclusively on Kentucky bluegrass and perennial ryegrass. Rust…Read more about Rust Diseases[Read More]
Summer Stress With a warm and wet summer, we are experiencing decline in some of our turf around the state due to temperatures, disease, insects, and weeds. In response, we are publishing a four part series on this topic to help turfgrass managers respond. Look forward to the following topics over the next two weeks….Read more about Summer Stress[Read More]
Gray leaf spot has been identified on perennial ryegrass fairways in northern Kentucky. It is likely that outbreaks will occur in southern Indiana with the next rainstorm (or it may already be established). If the turf that you manage has a history of the disease, this would be a good time to consider apply a…Read more about Gray Leaf Spot 2010[Read More]
