Controlling Lawn Diseases

Properly identifying and controlling diseases in your lawn can be one of the more challenging aspects of lawn care. Left alone, diseases like brown patch or dollar spot can quickly turn a beautiful lawn into a splotchy mess, or worse. Even trained experts can have trouble identifying a lawn disease. Without correct identification, a disease can be difficult to control.

But if you take a thoughtful approach, know when to ask for a little help, and get familiar with the conditions under which common lawn diseases thrive, you can beat them. Here are the simple steps to control common lawn diseases.

Identify the disease. This seems obvious but it is often not as simple as it sounds. Some lawn diseases, such as rust, are pretty easy to identify. But others look similar and may take a trained eye to properly identify. You can, however, do a little homework and narrow the possibilities.

Almost all lawn diseases are caused by fungi. Each type of fungus thrives under specific conditions, usually a combination of heat, humidity, light and moisture, and may occur only at a specific time of year or in a certain region of the country. Some diseases only attack specific types of grasses. Others thrive when the lawn is not being properly cared for, whether it’s getting too much or too little water or fertilizer, isn’t being mowed at the proper height, or has developed a thick layer of thatch.

If you get to know a little about what different lawn diseases look like and the conditions under which they thrive, you can often identify them or at least narrow the choices. Visit the Disease Identifier and you’ll find helpful tools, including photographs, for identifying many lawn diseases.

Seek assistance. If you still can’t positively identify which disease is infecting your lawn, take a sample of the turf to your local nursery or cooperative extension office. A 1- to 2-foot piece of sod, taken from the edge of the diseased area, is usually best. (Ideally, half the sample should be healthy grass; the other half should show symptoms of the problem.) Write down the type of grass you have, how old it is, how you care for it and the specific symptoms you have seen and when. If necessary, some state cooperative extension offices will send the sample out for lab testing.

Adjust lawn care practices. Once a disease is properly identified, you can often adjust how you care for your lawn and create conditions that are less favorable for the disease and more favorable for healthy growth of your grass. For example, heavy thatch encourages the development of many diseases, including brown patch and dollar spot. Aerating or dethatching helps reduce the problem. Over-fertilizing and improper watering also encourage disease. Care for your lawn properly and many diseases won’t be serious problems.

Overseed with resistant varieties. If a lawn disease becomes a persistent problem, you may want to switch to a different type or variety of grass. Turf breeders have developed many new varieties that resist common diseases. Your cooperative extension office or local nursery can give you specific variety names.

Use a fungicide. Get the upper hand on the most common lawn diseases by using Bayer Advanced™ Fungus Control for Lawns Granules. Bayer Advanced™ Fungus Control for Lawns Granules will cure most diseases and provide up to 2 months of protection against further infection.

Protecting Plants from Insects and Disease

Good cultural practices and selecting well-adapted species will go a long way in preventing landscape plants from being attacked by insects and diseases. For example, watering roses at their base without wetting the foliage will help minimize black spot, the most troublesome disease of roses in many parts of the country. And over-fertilizing, whether it be of lawns, roses or trees, is known to invite both insects and disease. Good sanitation – just cleaning up prunings and other plant debris that may harbor insects or disease – will also reduce problems.

Choosing plants that are well-adapted to the area in which you live as well as to the exact spot in your garden (sun or shade, wet or dry) where you will plant them, will also help minimize pests. Simply put, healthy plants have fewer problems. And many plants, including flowers, trees and roses, are available in varieties that have been selected or bred to resist known insects or diseases. For example, did you know there are varieties of roses, zinnias and crape myrtles that naturally resist powdery mildew? But despite a gardener’s best intentions, pest problems inevitably occur. Bayer Advanced offers a variety of effective systemic (active ingredients are absorbed into plant tissues) pest control options for flowers worthy of summer review. Indoor plants should be sprayed or treated outside, then brought back inside once dry.

Bayer Advanced™ All-In-One Rose & Flower Care Concentrate is an exclusive formula that feeds and protects against insects and diseases in one easy step. It provides six weeks of protection against major disease problems, including black spot, powdery mildew and rust, of roses, hibiscus, and other flowers and shrubs. It also controls many insect pests, including aphids, adult Japanese beetles, lace bugs, scales, thrips and whitefly. No spraying is necessary; just mix in a bucket or watering can and pour around the base of the plant. Root uptake starts the systemic process that distributes the product throughout the plant.

Bayer Advanced™ Disease Control for Roses, Flowers & Shrubs Concentrate cures, stops and prevents plant diseases. The systemic formula provides rainproof protection against most common plant diseases such as anthracnose, black spot, flower blight, powdery mildew, rust, scab and southern blight. It can be used on roses and other flowers, including azaleas, camellias and rhododendrons, landscape trees and shrubs, ground covers, vines and houseplants.

Bayer Advanced™ Tree & Shrub Insect Control Concentrate provides 12 months of insect protection with one application. It contains Bayer’s MERIT® systemic insecticide for maximum, rainproof results. No spraying is required; just mix and pour at the base of the tree or shrub. It controls many insect pests, including adelgids, emerald ash borers, aphids, adult Japanese beetles, lace bugs, leaf-feeding beetles, psyllids, scales, thrips, whitefly, and many wood boring pests. Bayer Advanced™ 12-Month Tree and Shrub Protect and Feed Concentrate also contains Merit plus a slow-release fertilizer. It comes in ready-to-use granules and can be used on container plants.

Bayer Advanced™ 3-in-1 Insect, Disease & Mite Control Ready-To-Use with it's exclusive triple protection formula provides long-lasting control against insects, diseases and mites in one easy step. Systemic, rainproof protection lasts up to 30 days. It kills insects, cures and prevents diseases and controls mites and spider mites. Bayer Advanced™ 3-in-1 Insect, Disease & Mite Control Ready-To-Use can be used on roses, flowers, houseplants, ground covers, vines, ornamentals, shrubs and trees. It comes Ready-to-Use, Concentrate, and Ready-to-Spray.

Bayer Advanced™ Dual Action Rose & Flower Insect Killer Ready-To-Use is a systemic insecticide. It comes in a convenient, ready-to-use hand-pump sprayer. It contains fast-acting beta-cyfluthrin, which kills pests on contact, and MERIT®, for 30 days of rainproof, systemic protection. Use it on flowers, roses, shrubs and trees to control adelgids, aphids, adult Japanese beetles, bagworms, boxelder bugs, lace bugs, leaf-feeding beetles and caterpillars, psyllids, scales, thrips and whitefly.

Time for a Summer Watering Tune-Up

With summer heat continuing to bare down on lawns and gardens this month, it’s a good time to fine-tune watering practices and double check all irrigation equipment to make sure it’s operating properly.

First, make sure you’re watering deeply and efficiently. After watering, probe the soil with a stiff wire or rod. It will move easily through wet soil and stop when it hits dry. You can also check water penetration by digging around with a shovel. Lawns should be watered to a depth of 6 to 8 inches. Most annuals, perennials and vegetables should be watered at least 12 to 18 inches deep. Water shrubs to a depth 18 to 36 inches, depending on how tall they are. Trees should be watered to a depth of at least 3 to 4 feet. Deep watering leads to deep roots and plants that can better withstand heat and drought.

Next, check your irrigation equipment. If you have an automatic sprinkler system, watch it run. If necessary, adjust spray patterns and fix broken sprinklers. Also check drip lines for clogged emitters.

Repot root-bound container plants. Lastly, refresh mulches, making sure you’ve got a good 2 to 3 inches around trees and shrubs.

Zone in for Fast, Long-lasting Mosquito Control

Controlling mosquitoes takes a multipronged approach, and Bayer Advanced has all the weapons you'll need.

To kill mosquitoes where they hide in lawns and foliage, use Bayer Advanced™ Mosquito Killer Concentrate in ready-to-spray or concentrate. It kills on contact and provides protection that lasts for weeks. It also kills fleas, ticks and 58 other nuisance pests.

To kill flying mosquitoes, use Bayer Advanced™ Mosquito Killer Plus Outdoor Fogger. It kills on contact and lasts for hours ? ideal for treating outdoor areas where you work and play. Plus it kills over 15 other flying and crawling pests including flies, gnats, spiders and ants.

To kill mosquitoes before they emerge, use Bayer Advanced™ Mosquito Preventer Granules which kills mosquito larvae in 24 hours. Just sprinkle it in standing water. Approved for water gardens, birdbaths and fishponds.

More tips on controlling mosquitoes, see this month's feature story at BayerAdvanced.com.