Treating Fungus On St Augustine Grass

September 30, 2022

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Does This Fungicide Treat The Problem

How To Control And Treat Fungus In St. Augustine Grass (Brown Patch/Large Patch Fungus)

There are many common lawn diseases that can turn your beautiful lawn into a living nightmare. Among them are brown patches, red threads, powdery mildew, rust, snow mold, etc. But all the diseases dont affect your lawn the same way.

For example, brown patches are more likely to affect some Augustine grasses like Zoysia and Bermuda grass. The occurring rate of brown patches in these two types of grass is more compared to other fungal diseases. In most cases, a good-quality fungicide will help your lawn fight brown patches. However, checking before buying is always recommended and a smart thing to do.

So, our recommendation is, before buying any fungicide, you should diagnose your lawn and find out what is causing the thriving lawn to turn into a disaster. After finding out the reason behind it, its time to check the label of the fungicide to make sure it is capable of treating your lawn problem.

How To Treat Prevent And Identify Weeds In St Augustine Grass

Since each type of weed may require a slightly different approach to eliminate, youll want to determine exactly which variety is on your lawn before you begin your control efforts. Some of the most common weeds youll find in St. Augustine grass include:

Dandelions: These weeds are easy to spot, since their bright yellow flowers make them stand out against your green grass. Dandelion petals are long and slim, and additional green leaves sprout near the base. Youve likely seen these weeds before and maybe even thought they were prettyuntil they appeared on your lawn.

Goosegrass or silver crabgrass: This grasswith its long, thick leaves that can reach up to a foot longis often confused with crabgrass. You can determine the difference between the two because goosegrass will be a white or silver color near the root.
Crabgrass: Crabgrass has long, thick leaves that grow outward from shallow roots in a star-shaped pattern.
White clover: While some homeowners enjoy having white clover in planted flower boxes, this plant can easily overtake your lawn. The flower of this weed will be pink in the center with white crescent-shaped petals.

Dollarweed: Also known as pennywort, this weed gets its name because its leaves are the shape of a silver dollar. Dollarweed growing in your lawn is often a sign that youre watering too much, as these weeds thrive in wet environments.

Does Brown Patch Go Away

Brown patch can remain dormant in soil for years until favorable conditions are achieved. When the weather warms, some properties that struggle with brown patch will no longer have signs of infections, but will return later in the year. Brown patches can be caused by a variety of factors, including soil conditions, soil compaction, and the presence of organic matter. However, the most common cause of brown patches is poor soil drainage, which can result from poor drainage of the soil.

Poor drainage can also lead to the formation of pockets of soil that are too small for the root system to penetrate. These pockets are called brown patches because they look like a brownish patch on the surface of a soil surface. Brown patches may also occur when soil is disturbed, such as when a lawn is mowed or when an irrigation system is turned on.

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How To Treat Fungus And Especially Brown Patch In St Augustine Grass

Brown Patch and Gray Leaf Spot are invading lawns all across the Houston area. You can prevent it with the Nitro Phos products we sell and if youre already affected, you can treat it with those products too.

Call Houston Grass South at 281-431-7441. In this video, Houston Grass South Owner Michael Romine talks about how to treat fungus in sod, and in particular he talks about brown patch in St. Augustine grass. At the time of this video, we didnt sell lawn chemicals, but we do now. Come by our office to pick up Nitro Phos fungicides like Eagle Turf and PCNB that work very well to eliminate brown patch and gray leaf spot.

Michael grew up in the grass business and the grass sod he sells comes from his familys farm in Bay City, TX. The Romine family knows what it takes to grow top-quality sod and thats what they do for every piece and pallet of grass they produce. Quality makes a difference in the look of your project a month from now and five years from now. Get quality grass sod at a great price from Houston Grass South!

Causes Of Brown Patch Disease

Best Fungicide for St Augustine Grass in 2022: Top 4 Lawn Treatments

Your lawn is more likely to suffer from fungal diseases under certain harsh weather conditions including high humidity and extreme precipitation. As such, homeowners in Coastal regions like Florida and California are more likely to experience brown patch disease on their lawns.

In general, the common causes of brown patch disease in St. Augustine lawns are:

Prolonged periods of wetness especially in shaded areas .
Overfertilizing and overwatering your lawn.
Too much shade.

Mild daytime temperatures of between 70-90 degrees Fahrenheit and cool nights also provide perfect conditions for the spread of brown patch disease on St. Augustine lawns.

Poor lawn maintenance also provides the perfect conditions for brown patch fungi to invade your lawn. Lawns that are scarcely watered during spring-summer and lawns that experience high-foot traffic leading to soil compaction are, thus, more likely to be infected with brown patch fungal disease.

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Can The Grass Recover From Fungus

After youve completely rid your St. Augustine turf of disease-causing fungi, the visible signs of damage will still be present on the turf. Luckily, you can help your turf recover to its lush green, healthy appearance by doing the following:

Adopting proper irrigation practices- avoid watering your St. Augustine lawn at night and instead do so in the morning. Daytime watering is less attractive to the growth and reproduction of fungi.
Mowing at the proper height- a well-maintained lawn thats mowed at the appropriate height will have enough natural defenses to keep off fungal damage. A good height for mowing St. Augustine grass is between 3-4 inches.

Aerating and overseeding- core aeration prior to overseeding during early fall is recommended to help your turf recover from summer stress and stay healthy enough to keep off fungal diseases.

Adding Nitrogen To The Soil

Nitrogen helps to keep the grass healthy and prevent fungal infections from setting in. You can easily increase the nitrogen levels by leaving the grass clippings scattered over the lawn after youve trimmed it.

This will allow nitrogen to penetrate the soil that would otherwise be raked away and disposed of.

Similarly, you could purchase a nitrogen fertilizer that will boost the levels of nitrogen within the soil. Remember that fertilizer should only be used during the growing season – otherwise, you might fall into the trap of overfertilizing.

Diy Lawn Fungus Control Vs Professional Treatment

How To Prevent Brown Patch Fungus in St. Augustine Grass

If you discover fungus on your lawn, you want to address it right away. But should you DIY it or call a professional for help?

If the issue is a simple fix, and you know exactly what it is and how to go about killing the disease, doing it yourself can save time and money. However, if you dont choose the correct treatment, you could do more harm than good, and end up spending more in the long run. Not to mention, lawn fungus treatment products designed for consumer use arent always as powerful as those used by professionals, so it may take longer to solve the problem on your own.

Lawn fungus and disease is a common problem, and it doesnt have to mean that all of your hard work was in vain. Sometimes its due to factors out of your control, but taking the right steps to prevent and treat disease can keep your grass looking beautiful all season long.

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Select Source Propiconazole 143 Pint Select Fungicide

Select Source Propiconazole Fungicide stops cellular growth of the fungus and minimizes the impact of the disease on your lawn.

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It works as a preventative and curative measure. And it controls lawn diseases like leaf spot, powdery mildew, brown patch, spring dead spot, and summer patch. It comes with many benefits, including low odor and better residual control. Its tank mixing compatibility is high and the use rate is low.

You can also use it for ornamental applications. The Propiconazole fungicide is ideal for commercial lawns, golf courses, landscape ornamentals, and more.

Pros:

Suitable for both ornamental and turf species.
Contains low odor better working experience.

Its tank mixing compatibility is high.

Cons:

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Circular Spots On Grass Blades

Small brown leaf spots appear as the initial signs of fungal disease on St. Augustine grass leaf blades. These circular spots quickly expand into elongated or oblong tan-colored spots on the foliage. The borders are usually purplish or brown, a major sign of gray leaf spot which at some point may manifest as patches of yellowing grass in your lawn.

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Bonide Infuse Systemic Disease Control Granular Fungicide

Bonide Infuse Granular Fungicide is made to prevent and stop regular lawn diseases like brown patches, rust, dollar spot, leaf spot, and so on. This granular is also a great choice for shrubs, trees, flowers, etc. So, you get total support for your lawn from a single fungicide.

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This granular fungicide on your lawn can be easily spread by hand. Works on Zoysia, St. Augustine, Ryegrass, Bluegrass, Bermuda grass, Bent grass, and more.

For effective results, use it when you notice the signs of any diseases for the first time. It has an area coverage of 5,000 square feet.

Pros:

Can be used on both warm and cold season grass.
Treats large area covers up to 5,000 square feet area.

Besides lawn can be used on flowers, roses, shrubs, trees, etc.

Cons:

Its not effective for gray leaf spot.

St Augustine Lawn Fungus Can Be Controlled

St Augustine Grass Pest Control Kits â ePestHero

If you have lawn fungus in your St. Augustine grass, you might feel like throwing in the towel. Dont panic when you see those thin, brown patches creeping into your yard because as annoying and lawn devastating as lawn fungus can be, it actually can be treated and controlled!

There are several ways you can treat your lawn to inhibit the spread of lawn fungus, as well as stop lawn fungus that is already infecting your grass. The two biggest factors here are having timely applications of a good fungicide and ensuring that your lawn is being properly watered. Seems simple enough, right? It can be! However, it does take some effort and expertise to figure out exactly which fungicide is best for your St Augustine lawn. You need to find the right balance of water to keep your grass green and lush without overdoing it.

When given proper attention, water, and treatments, your lawn will thrive! There are things that you can do yourself to figure out what could be causing the fungus you see affecting your lawn. There are also treatment programs that you can have a professional lawn care company come out and apply for you. Before we look at preventive measures, lets look at common causes of fungus you see in your St. Augustine grass!

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Fungus On St Augustine Grass

21 September, 2017

St. Augustine grass is a warm season grass that is found in much of the southern United States. Many varieties of St. Augustine are known for their shade tolerant properties. St. Augustine is a high maintenance grass that demands proper watering, regular mowing and adequate fertilization to maintain its lush carpet. Improper maintenance or cool, wet weather can cause a fungus problem in St. Augustine grass.

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Gray Leaf Spot On St Augustinegrass

Factsheet | HGIC 2151 | Aug 1, 2022 | |

Gray leaf spot of St. Augustinegrass caused by Pyricularia grisea. Photo by Lane P. Tredway, University of Georgia, Athens, GA

Gray leaf spot is a fungal disease that occurs most commonly on St. Augustinegrass , but occasionally may also be found infecting tall fescue, bermudagrass, centipedegrass, and ryegrass in home lawns. On St. Augustinegrass, the initial leaf spots are small and brown, but they expand rapidly into large, oval or elongate, tan to gray leaf spots, which are surrounded by purple or brown borders. A yellow halo may surround some of the spots, or a general leaf yellowing may occur.

During warm, humid weather, the fungus produces a grayish mycelium and numerous spores on dying foliage, which gives a grayish appearance to the spots. Blades of grass will wither and die if leaf spots are numerous. Under favorable conditions for disease development, large areas of turf may appear to be scorched, resembling extreme drought stress.

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How To Know What Fungicide To Use For St Augustine Grass

Why Does My Lawn Have Brown Or Discolored Patches Of Grass

How to Treat Fungus in St. Augustine Grass

You put hours into your lawn, doing everything you were told to do to make the grass green and lush. Youve aerated, fed, watered, and mowed, and everything looked great until suddenly, it didnt. Almost overnight, there are patches of dead grass. Or maybe some spots are an unusual color, or just look off somehow. Whatever the issue, its unsightly, and it looks to be spreading.

Oftentimes, when a lawn develops problems like dead or discolored areas, the culprit is disease or lawn fungus. But before you give up and decide to just replace your lawn with artificial turf, you should know that your grass can be saved. By correctly identifying the problem, and applying the proper treatment, you can eradicate the disease and go back to enjoying a yard full of healthy grass.

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Gray Masses Of Fungal Threads On Turf

If you see small circular patches on your grass blades measuring approximately 2-3 inches in diameter youre probably dealing with a fungus in your St. Augustine grass, specifically dollar spot disease. These quickly progress into irregular patches of brown or dead grass.

At a closer look, individual blades will have tan lesions on the margins. After a session of rain, youll spot whitish to gray masses of fungus in small patches on your lawn. These white masses can easily be confused with spider webs when looked at from afar.

How To Care For St Augustine Grass

sparkling. For best results, grow St. Augustineâs wort in full sun, although it can tolerate some shade. In fact, these are the most shade tolerant of the warm season grasses. Floor. Provides good drainage for St. Augustine grass. Good garden soil is sufficient. Water. For best results, keep the soil evenly moist. St. Augustine grass tolerates a wide variety of soils and, once rooted, is moderately drought tolerant, but better adapted to temperature and humidity. St. Augustineâs wort tolerates heat and humidity well, making it popular in regions such as the southeastern United States. fertilizer. St. Augustineâs wort works best when fertilized regularly and on a schedule. Fertilize it in the spring when it turns green.

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Use A Natural Fungicide To Kill Fungus In Grass

You can also use natural fungicide instead of a commercial product. Natural treatments include:

Baking soda and water

Mix one tablespoon of baking soda and 5 litres of water. Spray the solution on your lawn every three days until the fungus dies.

Neem oil is also an effective fungicide. Mix four tablespoons of neem oil with 5 litres of water. Spray every few days until the problem is gone.

To use compost tea, use four cups of tea per gallon of water. Compost tea is made from tap water combined with a few cups of organic compost.

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