Summer is a great time to have a lawn. It provides fun for pets and children, creates an inviting space for hosting social events, and feels nice on the toes. There are some common summer lawn problems to be aware of though to direct you back on track when your lawn starts to struggle.
Fungus is prevalent in many lawns throughout the growing season. Summer conditions can offer optimal temperatures for varying species to flourish.
Leaf Blight
This lawn disease, formally known as Ascochyta, appears in the form of the lawn taking on a straw-like appearance. These bleached looking patches can appear overnight in many cases. Cool season grasses, the majority of lawns in Colorado, are highly susceptible to leaf blight. To confirm a diagnosis in your lawn take a look at the individual grass blades. The top and bottom parts of the blade will be green but the mid section will be yellow and dry.
Weather usually attributes to this disease and not necessarily the fault of the lawn owner. When there are drastic weather changes, such as alternating between hot/dry and cool/rainy. Fortunately most cases clear up on their own and don’t leave lasting damage to affected lawns. Some action can be taken however to adjust watering to only happen in the early morning so any excess water above the soil can evaporate rather than laying on the blades all night. This will prevent unwanted moisture that attracts leaf blight.
Dollar Spot
This disease appears as clusters of silver dollar sized round patches of sunken straw colored grass. The cause is generally from some poor lawn maintenance and in most cases can recover with an adjustment to the way the lawn is cared for. Mowing with the blade too low, not providing adequate fertilizer, and water sitting on the grass too long can all make a lawn more at risk for dollar spot. A similar watering technique used for leaf blight is recommended for treating this fungus.
Others
Summer Patch, Fairy Ring, Brown Patch, Red Thread, and Powdery Mildew are some of the other fungal diseases that can spread throughout your lawn during the summer. Just like leaf blight and dollar spot it is important to keep water off the lawn. Fungus as a whole requires high humidity to spread. Even when the sun goes down there is still a lot of heat in the air and on the ground which raises the humidity when water is sitting above the soil.
Drought/Heat Stress
A well fed lawn that has been maintained with good lawn care practices is the foundation to preventing lawn disease. If there is an aspect missing in the care then there is risk for disease and other stressors can become overbearing to the lawn. Sometimes drought and heat stress can be a common summer lawn problem. This can be so intense for the grass that it will go dormant until favorable conditions return.
In these cases the lawn will appear dead but it is not. The grass is saving its resources for the root system until more ideal circumstances nourish the lawn again. When a lawn has gone dormant in the summer it is actually better to not water it so that it can stay dormant until the fall. The lawn will come back on its own. At this time it is necessary to address what was missing the care routine or in the overall lawn health.
Contact Erbert Lawns
Knowing the ins and outs of what kind of care a lawn needs is a lot of information to retain and takes up a lot of time. Get your weekends back and hire Erbert Lawns to help get your lawn on track. Our Lawn Technicians are trained to diagnose lawns, treat any conditions, and provide each lawn they work with proper fertilizer. We send the same expert everytime a service is scheduled so that the same set of eyes is on your lawn every time and can notice any changes, improvements, or concerns right away. Call us today to learn more about our Weed Control & Fertilization program, a program that will give your lawn all it needs to stay healthy and green all summer long.
