Dealing with Lawn disease late in the year?

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northeastlawn
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Dealing with Lawn disease late in the year?

Post by northeastlawn » October 23rd, 2017, 12:27 pm

So this October has had as much in common with August than it has with Fall. the highs were not as hot, but it was very muggy and warm. Plus we didn't get much rain.

Last few days I am noticing some kind of fungus on the tips of the KBG I just put down. Its partially yellow with brown spots. I am way past my first frost date and hesitant to put down any Urea to encourage the grass to out grow it.

Today and tomorrow look to be warm and muggy, then we get at least an 1" of rain, then the temps fall fast. Any suggestions on dealing with this late in the year?

I was going to cut it a bit shorter and bag the clippings, then apply some serenade. Which seems safe, but wondering it I should more.

SNOWBOB11
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Re: Dealing with Lawn disease late in the year?

Post by SNOWBOB11 » October 23rd, 2017, 7:00 pm

It’s strange, I thought fungus problems would be basically a non issue this late in the year but about 3 days ago I noticed several areas on my reno that had rust breaking out. Rust had been quite prevalent this year in my neighbourhood but in the last few weeks I’ve noticed much less of it on others lawns as the temps have cooled some. I cut then applied seranade yesterday hoping it would help not let it get any worse. It’s so odd being it’s so late though. I mean there’s a chance of flurries end of this week.

northeastlawn
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Re: Dealing with Lawn disease late in the year?

Post by northeastlawn » October 23rd, 2017, 7:52 pm

It doesn't seem to be rust.

Its not suppose to get that cold here, but I am more worried the grass won't be able to out grow whatever fungus is on the grass due to the colder temperatures. I cut it a bit shorter and applied serenade after.

I'd throw down some urea, but know that is a no-no. Hopefully the rain itself will cause a growth spurt that may cause the grass to out grow whatever it is the lawn has.

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ken-n-nancy
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Re: Dealing with Lawn disease late in the year?

Post by ken-n-nancy » October 23rd, 2017, 8:02 pm

northeastlawn wrote:
October 23rd, 2017, 7:52 pm
Its not suppose to get that cold here, but I am more worried the grass won't be able to out grow whatever fungus is on the grass due to the colder temperatures. I cut it a bit shorter and applied serenade after.

I'd throw down some urea, but know that is a no-no. Hopefully the rain itself will cause a growth spurt that may cause the grass to out grow whatever it is the lawn has.
Depending upon exactly where you are, you might still be okay with a light urea application (no more than 0.5#N/K) at this time. For example, Hingham, MA and Plymouth, MA have average first frost dates of Oct 15 and Oct 17, respectively, which is only about a week in the rear-view mirror. Particularly with the much warmer than average fall so far, with 1-week forecasts indicating continued warmer than average temperatures, I think you'd be okay with a light urea application, especially since there is significant rainfall in the forecast for the next week. Better get it done quickly if you're going to do so, though!

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andy10917
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Re: Dealing with Lawn disease late in the year?

Post by andy10917 » October 23rd, 2017, 8:03 pm

I hate to write this, because I get upset when somebody who's looking for an excuse twists what I write into a half-baked excuse to justify what they wanted to do - long before I wrote it. Someone will, and I'll get quoted as their reason...

Almost everything in lawn care is based on trade-offs. If you don't have a better plan than Urea and the current conditions seem to indicate Urea, THEN DO IT. Yes, you're taking chances - are the possible downside chances less than the chances of leaving the Rust alone? THEN DO IT.

Stop being binary and use your head. Think out the options and pick one that you think is the best combo - I'm not writing laws, I'm informally sharing experiences. I may never have considered your situation.


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ken-n-nancy
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Re: Dealing with Lawn disease late in the year?

Post by ken-n-nancy » October 23rd, 2017, 8:11 pm

andy10917 wrote:
October 23rd, 2017, 8:03 pm
Almost everything in lawn care is based on trade-offs. ... are the possible downside chances less than the [upside] chances? ... Stop being binary and use your head. Think out the options and pick one that you think is the best combo...
+1

Sometimes circumstances necessitate doing something which would normally not be recommended and even "against one of the rules of thumb." A lot of lawn care is risk management and strategic thinking.

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Re: Dealing with Lawn disease late in the year?

Post by northeastlawn » October 23rd, 2017, 10:05 pm

I figured Andy would be happy one person on here wasn't looking for an excuse to get an extra fertilizer app in :-)

It already started raining lightly. If I am home when its raining hard I'll throw some Urea out. Last year the lawn didn't seem to stop growing until December, and I didn't put any urea down after October 20th. I'll take a chance on one more app to help the lawn outgrow the fungus.

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