Lawn Disease Control

Leisure Lawn can diagnose and provide treatment for lawn diseases. There are a number of diseases which attack lawn grasses. Some symptoms of disease include brown or straw colored patches, discolored spots on the grass blades, black stripes on the grass blades, wilting, and pink colored thread-like strands on the lawn.

Diseases are caused by simple micro-organisms called fungi. They are very common in the soil and on plant debris. In order to grow fungi must have a susceptible host plant and favorable temperatures and moisture. These vary with each disease. Some diseases prefer warm temperatures and others need cool temperatures to become active. Watering in the evening or early morning can extend the time plants are exposed to high levels of moisture. Mowing the lawn very short weakens the plant and makes it more susceptible to diseases.

What you can do to minimize lawn diseases:

• Plant disease resistant varieties of grass.
  
• Fertilze the lawn regularly to keep plants healthy and more able to resist disease.
  
• Fertilize with slow release plant foods which do not stimulate fast succulent growth which is more susceptible to disease
  
• Aerate regularly to create a healthy environment for the plants.
  
• Mow the grass at the correct height to reduce stress on the plant.
  
• Follow watering recommendations to insure the plants are not wet for long periods of time.
  
• Treat the lawn with a fungicide recommended for the disease which is present.