Ask the expert: Lawn Disease Epidemic

In my thirty-plus years in the Green Industry, I cannot remember a summer with so many weather events so conducive to turf disease in our area. Simple lesions (spots) on the grass blades that we can usually correct with regular, proper fertilization. But when we get two or three consecutive days with highs of 85 or above, followed by much cooler, wetter conditions, leaf spot can accelerate into its destructive melting-out phase. Reverse the order, two or three days of cool, wet weather, followed by 85-plus temps, and we can see the same disease.

So far this summer we have had at least three such stretches of weather, and this week we are experiencing these conditions yet again. I fear we will be seeing a lot of leaf spot in the melting-out phase over the next two weeks. And, being mid-August, it's pretty likely we will have to endure at least one more such weather episode.

So what's to be done? Most of this is reiteration from previous posts.

• Avoid watering at night. Wet turf at night is especially conducive to leaf spot establishment and acceleration. Obviously, there's nothing we can do about overnight rain, but we can control our watering habits.

• Mow at the highest setting. The shorter turf is, the more susceptible it is to disease.

• Check discolored spots in your lawn. If you notice brown, yellow, or even purplish spots in your lawn, dig into the soil. If the soil is dry, you most likely have a watering issue. If the soil is moist, however, it is most likely a disease issue.

If you suspect you have a disease problem, let us know. Send in pictures (please see our recent post about the best pictures to send), give us a call, email, or text us. The sooner the disease is treated, the more likely it is to avoid having to repair the damage.

We are here to help! Your applicator will let you know if they see damage while doing your lawn, but with as many as seven or eight weeks between applications, a lot can happen. We can't fix it if we don't know there's a problem.