Home Gardening

Drought stress may encourage Take-all disease
The Coast Gardener Newspaper and Web Column - May 18, 2002

Some homeowners fought a losing battle last summer against a fungal disease that killed large areas of St. Augustine and centipede grass in Coastal lawns. Take-all root rot, caused by the fungus Gaeumannomyces graminis var. graminis, emerged a few years ago as a serious disease that can turn a healthy, lush lawn into bare ground infested with unsightly weeds. This abnormally dry weather is not helping in the fight against this disease.

Homeowners can easily confuse take-all disease with another fungus, brown patch, or even drought stress. Brown patch is easier to treat than take-all, and the turf will usually recover. Take-all, however, can lead to the complete destruction of the turf.

Begin scouting your turf now. It is important to remember that this is a root disease and by the time leaf symptoms are noticeable, the root systems have already been severely damaged. The first symptoms of take-all appear in the spring and summer. Leaves will gradually turn yellow, which leads to an overall yellow appearance of the lawn. Later, severe thinning of the turf will occur that can lead to large areas of dead grass and bare ground. Grass roots become quite rotted and detach from the grass.

What can you do to help stop take-all before it takes over your lawn? The following tips can help minimize the damage of this disease and other fungal problems if you suspect your yard might be suffering.

The above management practices offer the best defense against take-all. Lawn care publications are available at your local county office of the Mississippi State University Extension Service or online at http://www.MSUcares.com/pubs/.

These archived gardening columns were written by Chance McDavid, former Harrison County Extension Agent.