Does your lawn have small reddish or pinkish patches? Did the patches start small and are now growing in size? If so, your lawn may have Red Thread Disease. If, after careful examination, you discover that you do have Red Thread you may have many questions such as: What is this? What caused it? What do you do about it? Let’s explore Red Thread and what it means for your lawn.
Identifying Red Thread – Red Thread is a fungal organism that causes patches of turf to turn brown and produce strands of red threadlike material. These threads are caused by a fungus – Laetisaria fuciformis / Corticium fuciforme and they grow on infected blades of grass. The threads can extend to around an inch past the height of the grass. The pinkish/red fungus can be unsightly but usually lawns will recover.
What causes Red Thread? – Red Threat is really a symptom of one or more of the following: improper watering, poor grass, poor soil or all of the above.
- Watering – Overly moist soil and dry roots can lead to optimal conditions for Red Thread to develop. Over watering can make the disease worse. To help lawn drainage and aeration (letting oxygen in and carbon dioxide out) aerate the lawn using a hollow spike lawn aerator in autumn.
- Poor Grass – Red Thread is most severe on Perennial Ryegrass. Having a good mixture of types of grasses can help your grass be more resistant.
- Poor Soil – Newer lawns typically don’t have the most biologically active soil and are therefore subject to disease issues. The more biologically active your soil is, the fewer problems your lawn will have.
What can homeowners do to avoid optimal conditions for the growth of the fungus?
- Avoid the spread of the disease from lawn clippings. While the disease is severe bag clippings to avoid allowing the fungus to spread.
- Do not over water the lawn. Check for overly moist soil and allow for water to be absorbed. Water only every few days if you notice soggy areas.
- Feed the lawn when necessary because when lawns and grasses are lacking in nitrogen they are much more susceptible to the onset of Red Thread.
- Consult Professional Lawn Care services like Pro-Tech to discuss the need for chemical or non chemical controls.