You Are Here: Management Updates 2000 Archive April 30, 2000

Date: April 30, 2000
Category: Diseases
Subject: Fusarium Patch, Yellow Patch

It's no surprise that this cool rainy weather is great for fungi. The two most common diseases are FUSARIUM PATCH (PINK SNOW MOLD) and YELLOW PATCH (COOL SEASON BROWN PATCH).

FUSARIUM PATCH:
Cool, wet weather and well fertilized turf favor this disease. It appears as small coppery to greasy looking spots. Because of the tremendous spore production, the pathogen is easily streaked across turf in the same way as Pythium is in hot weather. Because the cool, wet weather is not going away immediately, fungicide treatment- perhaps only spot treatments- will help prevent its spread. Don't forget to send in active samples BEFORE you spray for the research collection at UMass.

YELLOW PATCH:
This disease can cause fairly large rings of yellow to reddish turf. In most cases, it causes little damage and disappears with warmer, dry weather. Again, because we are not going to escape the cool and wet right away, fungicide treatment may help reduce the damage. ProStar is probably the most economical choice unless you have other problems active at the same time. ProStart works only against Basidiomycete fungi (i.e. it won't help for Fuarium patch). Yellow patch is caused by a different species of Rhizoctonia than summer brown patch, so many brown patch fungicides are not very effective for yellow patch. Check the labels.

- Submitted by: Dr. Gail Schumann