Do You Have Brown Spots In Your Lawn?
If you have noticed unsightly brown spots in your Zoysia lawn, you may have Zoysia Brown Patch. Zoysia Patch is a prevalent lawn disease that can quickly spread throughout your lawn if not prevented and controlled effectively.
Symptoms of Zoysia Patch
Zoysia Patch is caused by a fungus called Rhizoctonia solani. R.solani attacks the leaf sheaths.
Symptoms typically start out as circular, discolored patches on the turf. The outer borders of the patches are orange or yellow. Yellow indicates active disease; orange grass blades are newly infected and are starting to die.
Affected areas first appear water soaked with wilted turf, which soon dies completely and mats down, creating a sunken effect. The disease grows out from a central point, so these circular areas can enlarge rapidly. The areas can even grow together, creating large irregular dead areas.
Conditions For Zoysia Patch
Zoysia Patch begins to develop when soil temperatures decline to 70°F in the fall, but the symptoms do not necessarily appear at this time. The symptoms disease are most evident during periods of cool, wet weather in the fall and spring. In many cases, symptoms may not become evident until early spring when the warm season grasses are greening up.
In addition to heat and humidity, the main factors inviting Zoysia Patch are excessive nitrogen and irrigation, which means that even healthy, green lawns can be susceptible. Other factors such as poor air circulation, poor soil drainage, low mowing heights, excessive thatch and compacted soil can also cause an outbreak of Zoysia Patch.
Prevention
The best way to prevent Zoysia Patch is to prevent it by following good lawn care practices, including:
- Dethatching or reducing thatch to no more than 1/2 inch thick
- Yearly aeration treatments to decompact the soil
- Maintaining adequate nitrogen levels and avoiding excessive nitrogen in early spring and fall with the Turf Masters Lawn Care Program
- Watering grass deeply but infrequently in early mornings
- Only watering when necessary
- Maintaining proper mowing height
- Avoid establishing warm-season grasses in low lying areas that remain saturated for extended periods of time from surface runoff.
- Controlling traffic patterns to prevents severe compaction
Treatment
Professional applications of fungicides can also be useful in preventing and controlling Zoysia Patch fungus. Turf Masters’ Fungicide Treatments are tailored for your specific fungal disease, to ensure the appropriate amount of product is applied at the appropriate time. Although fungal spores of the fungus cannot be fully eliminated through treatments, establishing a disease-resistant lawn with our professional care is the most effective means of management.
If you notice signs of Zoysia Patch in your lawn, contact us today to get your lawn taken care of by our expert lawn care professionals!
