RUST ALERT!!
RUST FUNGAL DISEASE:
Our summer weather conditions promote a lot of fungal disease in lawns.
We are seeing RUST in a large percentage of lawns in our area. Rust is a relatively minor fungal disease, but it is messy with the yellowish-orange spores getting onto shoes and mowers.
Most heathy lawns should grow through the disease and the best way to help the lawn recover is keep the lawn healthy through good mowing, watering and feeding. We do adapt our fertilization based on conditions to help lawns recover if rust or other disease is present. We generally do NOT recommend fungicide treatments for Rust!
Here is some information from University of Illinois and Iowa State:
https://web.extension.illinois.edu/turf/rustlawn.cfm
https://hortnews.extension.iastate.edu/turf-grass-rust
The best way to minimize the fungal disease is to minimize the stress on the lawn, as we discussed in previous emails.
HAVE A SPRINKLER SYSTEM??? DON’T MISS THIS!!
It is critical that homeowners with sprinkler systems make sure that the times for their zones are set to water longer and less often
SUMMER WATERING GUIDELINES:
- Water in the morning.
- Do NOT water at night if you can avoid it. This can lead to more fungal disease
- Use a water timer if morning is a difficult time to water (ask us if you need suggestions)
Dormancy
If you choose not to water, the grass will go dormant. This is a very natural process that helps the lawn protect itself from the heat. In dormancy, the grass will turn brown.
If you let the lawn go into dormancy, make sure that you:
- DO NOT MOW when the lawn is dormant or drought stressed.
- Minimize all traffic on the lawn during this time. No jumpy things, no kiddie pools, no slip and slides (in fact most of these things amplify the heat underneath them so it makes the lawn stress even more).
- Lawns in dormancy will still need at least 1/4 to ½ inch of water every 2-3 weeks to keep the crown of the plant alive and able to recover when conditions improve.
- When a lawn suffers drought, some areas may thin out, which is natural as the plants are all fighting for soil moisture. Typically when the rains return, most areas will recover depending on the severity of the conditions.
MOW HIGH!!!!
- The single greatest contributor to lawn stress (which also contributes to fungal disease) is mowing too short.
- You should be mowing at the highest setting on your mower.
- Mowing height should be at least 3.5 inches, but higher is better if possible (we prefer 4 inches).
- You should never mow more than 1/3 of the grass blade.
- Consistently mowing too short will cause your lawn to die!
Under Stress Conditions – Stay Off/Don’t Mow : If your lawn is showing signs of drought stress and growth has slowed or stopped, (brown spots, a silverish sheen, or it sounds crunchy when you walk on it) please stay off of it as much as you can. You do not need to mow your lawn if it is not growing!
OTHER FUNGAL DISEASES:
You can learn more about specific fungal diseases in our area at the University of Illinois Turf Fungal Diseases Page (http://extension.illinois.edu/focus/index.cfm?problem=fungal-disease-turf)
