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m287j
21-06-2009, 11:40 AM
Hi guys,

We turned up at a regular client's place and found this ! Any thoughts on what it is ? My first thought is dollar spot.

Any help would be appreciated.

total turf management
21-06-2009, 12:34 PM
seems to large for dollar spot
what type of grass is it?
where abouts are you located?
What has the temperatures and rainfall been like? Humidity levels etc

m287j
21-06-2009, 12:53 PM
seems to large for dollar spot
what type of grass is it?
where abouts are you located?
What has the temperatures and rainfall been like? Humidity levels etc

The turf is couch. The location is metro Sydney where we have had most days under 20 lately and lots of rain in the past month. Not much humidity to speak of.

Mrs HMS
21-06-2009, 01:54 PM
Does look like Dollar Spot but what about Winter Fusarium?

DavidS
21-06-2009, 07:54 PM
It's not Dollar spot , it's to large for that, also dollar spot is usually active when the soil temp is above 20 degrees and the humidity is high. I think you have Spring Dead spot, which is very common to couch. Only way to tell is to take plug out which has dead and alive section, say 100mm deep and check the roots, if they look discoloured, rotted and the rhizomes are rotted, then it's Spring Dead Spot. I would suggest that you aerate the lawn in late August and verticut it, then start a fertiliser regime of low Nitrogen fertiliser with a high Potassium content. eg: 10: 4: 12.
I would also check the plug for any insects that might be eating the roots. Break it apart over the hole.

ian
21-06-2009, 08:20 PM
this may help spring deadspot (www.cals.ncsu.edu/plantpath/extension/fact_sheets/Turfgrass_-_Managing_Spring_Dead_Spot_in_Hybrid_Bermudagrass. htm)

administrator
21-06-2009, 11:26 PM
Spring Dead Spot can be noticed as yellow or brown patches in the lawn ranging in size between 10 cm to over a metre in diameter.

Spring Dead Spot can be seen in Spring as the lawn colour darkens. But, it actually begins in Autumn and continues over the Winter when it may be less noticeable because it goes a lighter lighter in colour during this times.

When Summer arrives, Spring Dead Spot becomes far less active, and the lawn in turn becomes more active, this leads to the lawn growth outpacing the damage occurring from Spring Dead Spot. So it becomes far less noticeable or possibly invisible during the Summer.
Tricky little bugger

SEEMS LIKE THE LEAF IS DYING BUT AS DAVE SAYS IT ATTACKS THE ROOT SYSTEM A FUNGUS .

They say its caused by stress or even to much water youve had that in the last month tons of rain inNSW i hear.

lawngreen
22-06-2009, 01:26 PM
Hi guys,

We turned up at a regular client's place and found this ! Any thoughts on what it is ? My first thought is dollar spot.

Any help would be appreciated.

We also have a couple of client's (Couch) lawns with this problem.

The fungal disease is Take All Patch that is common in buffalos (St Augustine) but also occurs in Couch. Hence its other name is Couch Decline.

A disease that can attack different grasses, and is caused by the fungus Gaeumannomyces graminis var. graminis - and, most common in Autumn, Winter and Spring especially with wet and moist conditions. The fungal disease (Spring Dead Spot - affecting couch only) also manifests itself in Autumn, Winter & Spring.

Couch Decline has been untreatable to now, but my supplier tells me there is a new product coming out in July/August 2009 that is the silver bullet for this fungal disease.

In the mean time, tell affected customers to cut out watering, and when Spring arrives, maybe aerate lawn etc to reduce moisture situation. Hope this nails it for everyone.

PS Bayer's Baycor is very good for Spring Dead Spot (a root borne fungal disease). We have treated Couch turf for this successfully.

DavidS
22-06-2009, 09:05 PM
I still wonder if it is Take All Patch, from what I have read it is only common in Tif dwarf varieties, which are normally used on Golf Course Greens or Bowling Greens. It does not effect Common Couch, Greenlees Park and Wintergreen.

http://www.greencast.com.au/news/calendar/2009-03/take-all-and-bermudagrass-decline

http://www.publish.csiro.au/paper/AP00003.htm