Fighting Spring Dead Spot starts months in advance.
Spring Dead Spot (Ophiosphaerella herpotricha) is a disease of bermudagrass that appears as brown circular patches of affected turf when the grass greens up in spring. However, the problem actually begins in the fall. Unlike most turfgrass diseases, Spring Dead Spot (SDS) does its worst damage below the surface. It starts attacking vulnerable roots, rhizomes and stolons during colder weather, and then shows up as dead spots later when the grass comes out of dormancy.
 Because the turf is weakened from underground, the dead spots on the surface can actually collapse and create indentations. The disease is so persistent, many superintendents believe Spring Dead Spot is incurable.
To restore damage from SDS, first control the fungus and then encourage the spread of bermudagrass back onto the affected patches. Establish new turf plantings using clean sod with no history of Spring Dead Spot.
Follow these other helpful steps as well:
- Winterize your roots: Increasing the cold-hardiness of bermudagrass helps to prevent SDS, so apply potassium in the fall to strengthen the roots for winter. Avoid late-season nitrogen because it promotes leaf growth at the expense of roots.
- Don't encourage the disease: Spring Dead Spot likes heavy thatch and wet, compacted soil, so aerate and dethatch regularly. Irrigate susceptible turf with light, frequent waterings. A low soil pH (5.2 to 5.3) also appears to help fight the disease.
- Treat with a good fungicide: Kestrel® MEX fungicide from Phoenix Environmental Care uses the effective active ingredient propiconazole to provide 21-28 days of systemic Spring Dead Spot control. For best results, make one or two applications in the late summer or early fall, using enough water to get the chemicals into the root zone. Low-odor Kestrel® MEX is the only propiconazole formulation with a "Caution" label.
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TURF DISEASES
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Spring Dead Spot
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