Brown patch

Brown Patch is caused by a fungus called Rhizoctonia solani and can infect many different cool and warm-season grasses. Brown Patch appears in the form of spotting on the leaf blades which can bleed together to turn the leaf brown and circular areas of brown or dead grass outlined by a narrow, dark ring.

Depending on the grass type, Brown Patch can affect the turf differently. Brown Patch will affect cool-season grasses typically in late spring or during summer when temperatures are hot and humid. Warm season grasses can see brown patch around fall or during warm weather in winter months.

This disease can very quickly spread without intervention. If your lawn has Brown Patch, it can be eliminated by following the steps in this DIY guide which was put together by lawn care experts.

Follow our directions carefully and you will be able to restore your lawn and eliminate Brown Patch. It is important to closely examine your lawn to identify and make certain the damage is from Brown Patch.

Your grass can get brown spots for a variety of reasons, such as from dog urine, drought, insects and more, but it may not be brown patch fungus. Brown Patch fungus starts off in circular patches 8 to 24 inches in diameter and, over time, can blight the whole yard, turning it brown.

To really be sure it's Brown Patch you need to get down on your hands and knees and look for lesions on the grass blade. These lesions appear as a bronze or copper band around the outside edge with a tan-colored interior. If you are not entirely sure that you have Brown Patch, you can get in touch with us and we will confirm whether your fungus is Brown Patch. Walk through your yard and check your grass for Brown Patch, especially when conditions are damp. If a lawn is heavily fertilized or is regularly over-watered, it can be more susceptible to the disease.

The symptoms to look for are large irregularly shaped brown patches of grass with a dark border around the outer edge. I grew up in the grass business on our family farm in Bay City, TX, so I have the knowledge and the experience to help you make your next grass project a success.

Click to browse of library of videos covering topics important to Houston area homeowners. We have videos that describe how to select the best variety of grass for your project. We also have videos that talk about how to prepare your yard for installation and then how to install your sod. Michael has also prepared videos that talk about how to water, mow, fertilize and fight common lawn diseases. Click to download the Houston Grass Tip Sheet with information and tips to help you install and care for your lawn.

Our tip sheet describes how to install your grass sod and how to water it during the first critical days and weeks after installation.

It also gives you tips for maintaining your grass in top condition through the year. Our Houston Grass Privacy Policy. Fame Granular Fungicide. Step 2. Lawn diseases can not only make your yard unsightly, but they can also kill them. In this video we will show you the basics you can do to treat and prevent lawn disease. The most important factor in treating a lawn disease is timing. Identifying and treating early can save your lawn.

Be sure to purchase a fungicide that is specifically formulated for the lawn disease you are treating. However, you may want to rotate the fungicides that you use based on their active ingredients.

Using a variety of active ingredients will prevent the disease from growing immune to a specific active ingredient. Although it is most important to apply fungicide to the contaminated areas, applying to the entire lawn can help prevent the disease from spreading to healthy portions.

The center of this diseased area has begun to recover as the fungal activity is moving outward and because the disease primarily targets the above ground portion of the turfgrass. Brown patch on turfgrass tall fescue lawn often has a smoky brown perimeter where there is active fungal growth.

This coloration may be more apparent during the early morning hours. Infected warm-season grasses rarely have leaf spots but instead have rotted leaf sheaths where the leaf blades attach to the stem near the soil surface. Therefore, it is diagnostic for the disease if one tugs gently on the leaves in the recently discolored perimeter and the blades pull free.

Close inspection of cool-season grass blades reveals small, irregular, tan leaf spots with dark-brown borders. Bentgrass may not show individual lesions, but leaves will turn brown and shrivel.

Newly seeded tall fescue in the spring is more susceptible and more easily killed than mature fescue seeded in the fall. All types of warm-season or cool-season lawn grasses grown in South Carolina can be affected by large patch or brown patch, respectively. Unfortunately, there are currently no turfgrass species entirely resistant to these diseases available.

Brown patch is the most common and important disease of tall fescue in the Southeast. In most cases, affected areas of mature turfgrass are able to recover, but tall fescue lawns less than a year old can be killed.

Kentucky tall fescue, which was once a more commonly planted turfgrass for home lawns, has more resistance to brown patch than all turfgrass tall fescue cultivars. Large patch is the most common disease affecting centipedegrass, although all warm-season turfgrasses are susceptible. The best way to prevent brown patch or large patch in the home lawn is by following good lawn care practices. This is much easier and less expensive than the use of fungicides and can be very effective.

Fungicides can be difficult to rely upon for controlling brown patch and large patch in the home lawn, but regular applications can vastly improve the lawn appearance. Preventatively, fungicides should be applied to turfgrass tall fescue in the spring and early summer.