When a homeowner puts a lot of time and effort into watering and caring for their lawn, it can be very discouraging to find patches of dying or discolored grass in the yard. While it may appear that the problem is due to drought or excessive heat, your lawn’s deteriorating health may be due to the spread of fungus. At Arbor-Nomics, we provide premium lawn care services for property owners in Atlanta, Georgia and surrounding communities. We understand how frustrating it can be to struggle with Brown Spot, Dollar Spot and other common grass diseases. Here are some tips on how to identify which funguses might be affecting your lawn, and how you can get your vibrant grass back fast.
Brown Patch Disease
Brown Patch is caused by a specific species of fungus called Rhizoctonia. When it invades your lawn, you will notice large, inconsistent patches of straw-colored, dead grass. In some cases, you may also find a layer of white, web-like mycelium early in the morning before the dew has fully evaporated. It might look as if spiders have taken over your yard, but this network of long fibers are the vegetative structure of hyphae, masses of fungal spores in their reproduction phase. It most frequently affects grass in late summer, when the climate is very humid and hot. Unfortunately, Rhizoctonia can also overwinter beneath the ground, reviving itself in the spring when new grass blades emerge.
Dollar Spot
Dollar Spot often looks like a series of small, silver dollar sized patches of yellow grass. The fungus can cause problems in a great variety of both cool-season and warm-season grasses but zoysia and fescues can be particularly vulnerable. Property owners can unintentionally invite the spread of Dollar Spot by neglecting to provide enough nutrients to grass roots, leaving their lawn perpetually wet, or mowing too closely to the ground. Make sure that you are feeding your lawn with quality nutrients, raise your mower blade to 3 or 4 inches and avoid overwatering your grass.
What to Do Next
Prevention techniques like proper watering and professional fertilizing treatments can help reduce the chances of Dollar Spot, Brown Patch and other fungi from overtaking your lawn. However, it can be very difficult to notice their presence until after the symptoms are showing. The persistence of these common lawn diseases makes it very challenging to deal with long term. In most cases, significant reduction of these funguses requires proper application of fungicide by a trained and experienced technician. Our Certified Lawn Care Specialists will work one on one to create a customized treatment plan that works best for your unique needs, lifestyle and budget.
Do You Need a Professional Lawn Care Treatment? Call Arbor-Nomics Today
Is your grass in need of some tender love and care? Get professional help with your deteriorating lawn by calling the experts at Arbor-Nomics. Our Certified Lawn Care Specialists are ready to help improve the beauty and vitality of your grass. Contact our office to learn more about our wide variety of services or to schedule an appointment with a lawn care expert in Atlanta, Suwanee, Sandy Springs, Marietta, Alpharetta, Decatur, Georgia or a nearby city.