Fungus Lawns – Treatment

As we all know, correctly maintaining your lawn will give the best looking lawn around.  It can be a lot of work from fertilizing, weeding, raking, edging, mowing and even cleanup.  The complements are well worth it.  On rare occasions, an unwelcome creature can pop up and wreek havoc with your lawn.  One of the worst critters is fungus.  A bad fungus population doesn’t happen all the time and can occur over time.  Thankfully, there are treatments for Fungus Lawns.

As with anything else, there are varieties that could attack your lawn without you knowing until it is too late.  Fungi life can start within your own yard if the environment is right or be carried by the air transferred into your lawn.

One species of fungus are Fairy Ring which grows on dead vegetation, a ring of dark circle and/or dead grass with mushrooms in extreme cases.  Another is Rust, yes rust.  Caused by warm, moist weather the fungas turns your grass to a light green, yellow or brown colored.  Slime Mold can be white, yellow or gray that holds on tight to your grass in extensively long wet periods.  Slime Mold can also occur when a lawn has not been mowed for an extended period of time. 

Fungus Lawns are not one that we want in our yards so it is important to take the necessary steps to avoid the fungi if possible to protect our lawns.  Obviously, a routinely maintained yard is the first step in keeping a healthy lawn.  Not allowing the ground to dry out, not over watering, de-thatching when necessary, fertilizing accordingly are some ways to prevent the fungi from attaching to your grass. 

The best treatment for Fungus Laws is to do everything you can to prevent the environment for the fungi to live.  If you live in an area where Fungus Lawns are more common, try watering in the morning rather in the evening so that the warmth from the day will keep the fungi at bay.  Have your soil tested to determine the health of the dirt; discuss the possible fungus issues with a local lawn company; talk with your neighbors to see if they have issues and their prevention and solution methods. 

Fungus Lawns are not we want but the treatment is usually simply stepping up your lawn maintenance program.  Do not over water nor over fertilize.  Rake the lawn to remove debris, collect grass clipping when mowing or use a fungicidal treatment to attack the particular fungi that is attacking your lawn.  A fungicidal chemical can be obtained at your local home improvement store or inquire from a local lawn company to see if they can provide the service for you.  In worst case scenerios, the grass would need to be completely removed, the soil attended to then reseed or re-sod.