# Mycelium Spreading Over Newly Planted Seed



## Z0rkNY (Jul 6, 2018)

I have mycelium spreading rapidly over a large patch of lawn that is top-soil and seed (no grass, trying to establish some new turf). Should I dig up the top soil and start over, or is it ok to leave in? I already dug up some spots where mycellium sprouted. It appears to be growing. I have read mixed information that mycelium is either harmless to new seed germination or will prevent the seeds from germinating.

I stopped watering the soil, but it has been rainy and will be rainy for the next few days. Wondering if I should dig this all up and start over in a week or two.

This is planted in a shaded backyard with about a 4 hour window of direct sunlight and dappled light throughout the day. I planted a shade fescue mix.


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## Suburban Jungle Life (Mar 1, 2018)

I read in another thread you put down a bunch of milo. Is that in this spot?


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## Z0rkNY (Jul 6, 2018)

Yes, but it was underneath the top soil. Could the Milo be causing the issue? Should I be worried or just stay the course?


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## pennstater2005 (Jul 17, 2017)

It could be indicative of underlying disease or fungus. Make sure you aren't over watering it. I would just use the back of a plastic rake and gently break it up.


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## g-man (Jun 15, 2017)

That looks like milo effect. It normally doesnt cause any damage.

https://thelawnforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=323


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## Mozart (Jul 17, 2018)

Looks like milorganite to me, I had the same panic in July.

Not sure if blight would show up if you don't have grass, but milorganite will definitely cause white fuzzy stuff over dirt. Here is a picture from my lawn in July. If you look closely you may even be able to see some milorganite prills.



Edit: Based on distribution of white stuff in my picture it seems to be more severe where grass is growing. I would be curious if your worst spots sprout first?


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## pennstater2005 (Jul 17, 2017)

Why does milorganite do that though? It doesn't have anything to do with moisture? I've had it as well and it's mostly been harmless however last year it was popping up in my reno here and there and I ended up with a fungus.


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## GoPre (Oct 28, 2017)

Wow, I didnt know that can happen with Milo, I just learned something new.

Following because I am curious!


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## Z0rkNY (Jul 6, 2018)

pennstater2005 said:


> Why does milorganite do that though? It doesn't have anything to do with moisture? I've had it as well and it's mostly been harmless however last year it was popping up in my reno here and there and I ended up with a fungus.


What fungus did you have? What impact did it have on the reno? How did you address it? Just asking in case I need to address it myself.


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## Mozart (Jul 17, 2018)

I've only used Milo once, in July. It rained heavy for 3-5 days after application before I noticed the mycelium.

I don't have any dry Milo applications under my belt for comparison but I do suspect the excess moisture causes the Milo mycelium explosion.


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## pennstater2005 (Jul 17, 2017)

Z0rkNY said:


> pennstater2005 said:
> 
> 
> > Why does milorganite do that though? It doesn't have anything to do with moisture? I've had it as well and it's mostly been harmless however last year it was popping up in my reno here and there and I ended up with a fungus.
> ...


Never was 100% sure. But it looked like this

I ended up applying a fungicide and spoon fed nitrogen a couple weeks later. It grew out and the KBG filled in the empty spots.


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## j4c11 (Apr 30, 2017)

This is fungus munching on the organic matter in Milorganite. It's not the same fungus that attacks live grass(brown patch etc). If you got grass seed in the area, it will probably munch on that too though. I often added rye berries to my mushroom bags to enhance production, and mushroom spawn is often produced on bird seed substrate so seed is a favorite with hungry mycelium.


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## Z0rkNY (Jul 6, 2018)

Just wanted to circle back (two weeks later) with an update.

The Mycellium is gone and the area has grown a nice, beautiful patch of fescue. Just putting this here in case someone searches the forum in the future and finds this post as assurance that the mycellium will pass!


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