Keeping customers’ properties disease-free is tough. Plus, lawn care operators have plenty of other issues to worry about. Our advice: keep things simple and sweet.
Predicting what diseases will pop up and when is impossible, so use cultural practices and broad-spectrum fungicides to your advantage. Below, we cover the ‘why’ behind disease pressure, but if you want to get straight into control, skip to the next section.
Wild, Wild Weather
Here in the Midwest, we experienced extremely high disease pressure at the beginning of June, and the culprits were rain and humidity.
The rain caused nitrogen to leach away, opening the door early for low-nitrogen diseases like red thread and dollar spot. The hot and humid weather helped other diseases like brown patch thrive, too. We personally saw brown patch in four-inch-high turf, and we’d never seen it with the “smoke ring” in tall-mown turf before in all our years.
Over the past few weeks, conditions have gotten drier, and things have calmed down a bit. Pressure can come right back with a flip of a switch, though. With accounts and reputations on the line, early control is important.
Simple and Sweet
Whether you’re dealing with brown patch, summer patch, or anything else, an early-season DMI will alleviate pressure, and a late-season DMI will keep up the momentum into the fall.
We mentioned keeping things simple and sweet, and the best way to do this is to pick a fungicide with two active ingredients. We recommend Zoxy-PG and Pillar (liquid and granular) to our customers. These dual-action products cover pretty much everything, so you won’t even need to worry about what specific disease(s) you’re dealing with.
Don’t Forget Fertility
Fungicides should be used in conjunction with proper fertility practices; improperly fertilized or disease-damaged turf is even more susceptible to further issues.
Keep an eye on nitrogen levels to avoid deficiencies, keep up with watering, and keep your mower blades sharp. Dull blades lead to weaker plants. If your customers’ lawns are stressed, now’s also a great time to overseed.
Be Prepared
This fall is going to be a tough one, but your ATS rep has the tips and products you need to get through it and minimize callbacks. Reach out to your rep today, or if you’re new to ATS, find a rep here in seconds.
This blog was co-authored by Nikki Hendrickson and Andy Weadge
