Investing in your lawn is a common practice for many Americans. According to Zippia, American households spend an average of $500 annually on lawn care and gardening. The notion of spending on lawn care services is likely not foreign to you, but how can you tell if you need them? In this article, we’ll discuss how to identify different lawn diseases. We’ll also discuss how homeowners can address those lawn diseases effectively with help from a dependable landscaping company.

Brown Patch Disease

Let’s start with a fairly common lawn condition known as brown patch disease. As you’ve likely guessed from its name, this disease is known for causing brown patches to form on lawns. The patches themselves aren’t uniform in size. When you move closer to the affected patches, you may find that the blades of grass are quite dry or even dead.

Identifying this lawn disease is also easy because it often occurs during the summer. It’s the result of the fungus Rhizoctonia solani infiltrating your lawn. The softer grasses are more susceptible to this condition.

The main treatment for brown patch disease involves aerating the soil and adding protection against Rhizoctonia solani. Call your lawn care experts to handle those jobs to minimize the damage to your lawn. If you’ve dealt with brown patch disease several times in the past, then you should also consider growing different types of grass.

Rust Lawn Disease

Rust lawn disease is another condition characterized by noticeable discoloration. Upon taking a closer look at your lawn, you may discover yellowish spots all over the blades of grass. They may also appear slightly orange. Those spots will combine to make your lawn appear rust-colored and unhealthy.

The Puccinia graminis fungus is the one that causes rust lawn disease. It often rears its ugly head sometime during the latter part of summer or early fall. Interestingly, both dry and high moisture conditions can make lawns more susceptible to rust lawn disease.

The key to stopping the emergence of rust lawn disease is practicing proper lawn care. Only use the appropriate fertilizer for your specific lawn and adjust your watering practices as the climate shifts. If rust lawn disease has already set in, then you may need to remove the infected blades of grass. A lawn care expert can handle that job.

Snow Mold Disease

Now that we’ve touched on lawn diseases that emerge during the summer and fall, we can highlight one that often becomes a threat during the winter. The lawn disease in question is snow mold. Two types of snow mold disease are known to plague households. Both gray and pink snow mold can develop under snow cover, but the latter can still be a problem without precipitation.

This lawn disease is defined by white or pink threads running through the blades of grass. The blades of grass may also appear lower to the ground because of the threads pulling on them. You may also notice this disease due to the distinct odor released by either the Typhula incarnata or Monographella nivalis fungi.

No matter which type of snow mold you’re dealing with, immediate treatment should involve removing the wet leaves. You should also mow your lawn to allow the moisture to escape faster. Make sure you call lawn care services because they can apply the required treatment right away.

Fairy Ring Disease

The fairy ring is another common lawn disease we need to address in this article. You can expect fairy ring disease to emerge around the middle of spring through early summer. The fungus known as Marasmius oreades is the common cause of this particular disease. As the aforementioned fungus spreads on your lawn, it can cause water to pool in certain areas and cause the symptoms associated with fairy rings.

Similar to other lawn diseases, fairy ring also causes discoloration. This disease can lead to patches of brown grass appearing on your lawn, which may be surrounded by green rings. You may also find mushrooms growing where the fairy rings are active.

Treatment for fairy ring disease involves removing the moisture that has accumulated in the affected areas. You can reach out to a lawn care expert and ask them to aerate your soil so the moisture can escape. In addition to aerating the soil, you may have to replace certain segments of your lawn because they have been soaked in too much moisture. Using fungicide is an option if aeration doesn’t deliver the desired results.

Don’t let common diseases destroy your lawn. Contact our team at Lucky Lawn to hire us for lawn care services today. Let us take care of these issues. We can provide the lawn care you need, so please don’t hesitate to reach out!