You Are Here: Management Updates 2003 Archive March 28, 2003

Date: March 28, 2003
Category: Diseases
Subject: Spring Turf Problems, Gray Snow Mold, Pink Snow Mold

The turf disease samples have started to arrive. Most of the problems at this point are related to the winter. Some putting greens have straw-colored Poa annua (mostly) plants that seem to have been injured by ice or other abiotic condition beneath the snow. Luckily, many of the plants have green bases to the leaves and living crowns, so signficant recovery can be expected.

It's been a great year for snow mold because of the long duration of snow cover. The results of the UMass snow mold trial and superintendent study will be available soon. For those who were not hoping for disease, here are a couple of reminders. Typhula blight (gray snow mold) causes the larger patches and is most common on higher cut grasses. Diagnosis can be confirmed by looking for the small reddish-brown sclerotia (survival structures) embedded in the infected leaves. As bad as it can look, decent recovery can be expected from the living crowns. You can help this process by raking away the matted mycelium and dead leaves. Disease activity stops after snow melt so no fungicide is needed.

Fusarium patch (pink snow mold) is more common on golf courses. It can kill plants and remain active with cool, wet weather. Watch for new coppery to greasy small patches with the upcoming weekend weather. If you are unsure of the diagnosis, try placing a cup-cutter plug in a plastic bag with a moist paper towel overnight in a cool place. In the morning, look for a fringe of pinkish mycelium at the edge of the patch. This fungus can be spread easily with mowers and feet and may require fungicide treatment if we stay in cool, wet weather.

- Submitted by: Dr. Gail Schumann