# Why is Grass turning brown?



## stevensutt (Mar 21, 2020)

Many sections of my lawn appear to be turning brown. It's the fine fescue that's turning brown. On the tall fescue the tips are white. Why? Is this disease? Should I put down DiseaseEX?

Maybe the grass is being tricked into dormancy? We have had a week of almost freezing night temps, 34, 35 degrees at night here in Kansas City. Is that what's causing it?

A quick history of product use:

3/26 - preemergent
4/16 - fertilizer - 29-0-5, right around 3/4 pound nitro per 1000
4/21 - grub ex

I mow every 4 days for the most part not taking off much more than 1/3. And the mower has a brand new blade.

Rain has been a little more than normal for spring, but really, pretty normal. Rain over the last 2 weeks was 1/2 " on 5/7, 1/2" on 5/4, I have not watered at all.

I feel like it's the cold weather.

What do you folks think?


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## KentuckyBlue (May 11, 2019)

I just posted a very similar issue with my lawn. "Strange Yellowing in lawn - KBG". Do you think we have the same issue?


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## grasscorrection (May 2, 2019)

Goodness, my first thought was that the mower blade needs sharpening as the ends don't look clean. And that there's a layer of thatch in there.


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## stevensutt (Mar 21, 2020)

grasscorrection said:


> Goodness, my first thought was that the mower blade needs sharpening as the ends don't look clean. And that there's a layer of thatch in there.


Thatch definitely. I just started learning about lawn care last year. I was going to de-thatch/power rake this fall. I'm going to buy the Greenworks Corded DeThatcher. Do you think the thatch is contributing to the brownness? I know the pics look like the grass ends aren't clean. New blade, so I'm not sure why.



KentuckyBlue said:


> I just posted a very similar issue with my lawn. "Strange Yellowing in lawn - KBG". Do you think we have the same issue?


I don't know if it's the same issue. My lawn is Fescue mix, not KBG if that makes a difference. Any answers on what's going on with your lawn KentuckyBlue?


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## bernstem (Jan 16, 2018)

Tan lesions on blades with a darker border. Die back from the tips. Looks like a fungal disease. Also a dull mower blade and a lot of old dead grass below. Whether the fungus is the cause of the dead grass or needs treatment is harder to say. There could be something else going on and the disease just happens to be there at the same time since it doesn't look like a crazy amount of lesions. Is it in small spots, larger patches, or the whole lawn? Do you have pictures of the lawn so we can see what it looks like from a bit of distance?


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## stevensutt (Mar 21, 2020)

I just mowed and realized the issue is much more widespread than I thought. The last picture is from 3 days ago. I realize the time of day and amount of sunshine effect how the color looks but this gives you an idea of how much it has faded in 3 days. The brown blades are prevalent.


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## john5246 (Jul 21, 2019)

Had this happen to my PRG last year, get out and get some Scotts DiseaseEx, the sooner the better. If I'm not mistaken this is what mine looked like last year.


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## stevensutt (Mar 21, 2020)

john5246 said:


> Had this happen to my PRG last year, get out and get some Scotts DiseaseEx, the sooner the better. If I'm not mistaken this is what mine looked like last year.


Thanks. I'm going to run up to Lowe's now. I'm assuming even if it's not a fungal or disease that putting down disease ex won't hurt the lawn. It's so widespread (but not everywhere) that I kind of think it is a disease.


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## troksd (Jul 27, 2018)

Its hard to say without a tissue test, I am guessing melting out or dollar spot. Apply both a product with Azoxy (DiseaseX) - which does not handle dollar spot and a product with propiconazole.


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## john5246 (Jul 21, 2019)

stevensutt said:


> john5246 said:
> 
> 
> > Had this happen to my PRG last year, get out and get some Scotts DiseaseEx, the sooner the better. If I'm not mistaken this is what mine looked like last year.
> ...


Correct, you can just put it at the preventative rate.


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## Ecubed (Apr 26, 2018)

stevensutt said:


> Many sections of my lawn appear to be turning brown. It's the fine fescue that's turning brown. On the tall fescue the tips are white. Why? Is this disease? Should I put down DiseaseEX?
> 
> Maybe the grass is being tricked into dormancy? We have had a week of almost freezing night temps, 34, 35 degrees at night here in Kansas City. Is that what's causing it?
> 
> ...


I'm in Lee's summit and while cutting the grass I was noticing something very similar. I didn't think disease would be an issue with night time temps this past week near freezing.... very frustrating


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## Ecubed (Apr 26, 2018)

This is what mine looks like.. :x


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## KentuckyBlue (May 11, 2019)

@Ecubed

Looks like we are all having the same issue..


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## bernstem (Jan 16, 2018)

Not all fungal diseases happen during the heat and humidity. Snow mold is a good example. Not all fungal diseases need fungicides either.


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## jgturnier (May 14, 2020)

Same thing happening to me in Western Shawnee on my kbg yard. I have 4 year old builders grade sod, so I'm going to take this opportunity to kill my front yard and start over. Trying to figure out what seed to go with. Why are there so many varieties of kbg? Good gosh


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## jgturnier (May 14, 2020)

Also, the tips of my grass look frayed like I have a dull blade, but I have sharpened it three times this year to make sure it's good. I this the grass rips like this from the weakened state. Not sure, but that's my theory


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## stevensutt (Mar 21, 2020)

@jgturnier And my blade is brand new so I think your theory might be plausible.
@KentuckyBlue That's exactly how mine started a few days ago and has gotten progressively worse.
@Ecubed your grass looks exactly like mine.

I went ahead and threw down some Scots DiseaseEx at the curative rate - 4lbs/1,000. I got 10,000 sq. ft., so need 40 lbs, the bags were 10 lb bags so I needed 4 bags at $20 each...ouch.


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## double_e5 (May 3, 2020)

In KC also. My KBG looks pretty good, but was over at my mom's on Sunday and did a quick walk through her backyard that I did a TTTF renovation on in the fall and I didn't see any noticeable sign of disease/fungus, but it just looked a little "off". Color wasn't great, but I don't see it every day and not much at all with this quarantine crap. I noticed the frayed tips also. Looks like I need to get my rear end back over there and get some fungicide down.

Crazy weather we've had over the last 10 days or so.


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## FuzzeWuzze (Aug 25, 2017)

jgturnier said:


> Also, the tips of my grass look frayed like I have a dull blade, but I have sharpened it three times this year to make sure it's good. I this the grass rips like this from the weakened state. Not sure, but that's my theory


Have you given your mower a tune-up? Besides blade sharpness, blade speed can play a big impact if if your mower is getting bogged down and not spinning as quickly as it should for whatever reason, new spark plug, old gas, grass caked on the underside of the mower, all things to think about possibly?


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## jgturnier (May 14, 2020)

I have a 48" hydro walk behind with three blades. All the under carriage "tremendous build up of filth and muck", to quote the legend Fletch, is not present. Also, on the areas of my yard where the turf is healthy, there are no signs of blade issues. I have discovered this year that I was mowing my yard too high. I never thought there was a downside. I was mowing my kbg at maybe 4.5" and never changing. When it came out of spring this year it was the best it had ever looked, and then quickly soured with the fungus issue. I learned that there is a tremendous amount of debris between the thatch layer and the top of grass. I realized my mower was not mulching well at all.....I thought the bigger commercial end mowers obliterated the grass, but not true. So I have put on mulching blades and put the plate over the discharge shoot.


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## jgturnier (May 14, 2020)

bernstem said:


> Not all fungal diseases happen during the heat and humidity. Snow mold is a good example. Not all fungal diseases need fungicides either.


@bernstem I see that you have Solar Eclipse in your mix....where did you find it? I can't seem to find it online. It is highly rated in the NTEP for our area. Also, it looks like you have a very similar mix to what I am thinking. Have you been satisfied with it? Any learnings to share? I am going for an all dark blend.


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## bernstem (Jan 16, 2018)

jgturnier said:


> @bernstem I see that you have Solar Eclipse in your mix....where did you find it? I can't seem to find it online. It is highly rated in the NTEP for our area. Also, it looks like you have a very similar mix to what I am thinking. Have you been satisfied with it? Any learnings to share? I am going for an all dark blend.


My lawn is old, and the Solar Eclipse is a Monostand in the back (except for in the shade). I don't remember where I bought it. LIkely either Seed Super Store or Hogan Seed. I wouldn't be surprised if it is no longer available. It was not easy to get 8 years ago.

I do like my blend in the front. I think Prosperity is a great cultivar. Award did well in the transition zone. I can't really tell the different cultivars apart in the front. If I was going to redo the lawn (and I might next year), I would go with a monostand. Probably of Bluebank, I just need to look and see how well it likes sub 1 inch mowing.


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## jgturnier (May 14, 2020)

@bernstem I was thinking Bluebank plus Award plus maybe Bewitched. I'm wanting to maintain the height at like 2-3"....I'm not that interested in going low. I can't find information regarding the use of these super elite breeds but keeping it higher...do you think there is a downside in that? Basically I want a super dark KBG lawn in the 2-3" range, that has good disease resistance.


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## bernstem (Jan 16, 2018)

This is a bit of a thread hijack so if you want to keep it going a new thread might be a good idea. All of my cultivars will do well at 2-3 inches. If you look at NTEP, you get see the cutting heights, watering conditions, and Nitrogen amounts. Many of the sites are in your height range.


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## KSUDVM (Jun 29, 2019)

Jumping on the KC (Lenexan) bandwagon as I've got similar/identical leaf lesions on my KBG as well. I sent a turf sample to Rutgers April 21, 2020 with the following diagnosis and input from their plant diagnostic lab:

" Ascochyta leaf blight was identified on this sample. This minor fungal leaf blight causes yellow or tan leaf lesions and will thin turf usually (not always) during cool and wet periods in the spring and fall. Regular irrigation, higher nitrogen inputs, and frequent mowing generally favor the disease, so it is not uncommon to find disease activity on high value or well maintained turf areas. The fungus generally does not kill the grass, but it may occasionally thin the stand. Ascochyta generally just blights the leaves, so the turf usually recovers with normal mowing and fertilization, and most importantly, an improvement in weather conditions. Fungicides are generally not necessary, but an application of a labeled DMI or strobilurin fungicide should "clean-up" any fungus activity. I would not expect Serenade to perform well for this disease."

A sample I sent to KSU in August 2018 produced an identical diagnosis of Ascochyta and I have had identical lesions since my first spring (2016) in our new construction sodded lawn. I can speak from experience that the feedback offered by Rutgers may be a standard recommendation for northern zones encountering Ascochyta but here in the transition zone this beast never goes away. I'll see signs from early April through to dormancy in the fall. Now that I'm confident in my disease diagnosis, I plan on shifting to TTTF either via over seed or complete reno. A 2018 1k full reno to TTTF shows mild signs of disease but nothing like the KBG. I'll also start fungicides at the first mow in 2021 to nip it before it gains a foothold. I can offer more details if interested, as this is the much abridged version (most details and photos are on ATY).


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## double_e5 (May 3, 2020)

I guess I can count my lucky stars as @jgturnier and @KSUDVM are seeing this in their KBG. I'm kind of between both of them in northern JC and I took a good look at mine this morning. I don't see any of these issues so far.


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## stevensutt (Mar 21, 2020)

@KSUDVM That is some really good information. The diagnosis from the two schools sounds exactly like what's happening in my/our yards. It's a little disheartening that "Regular irrigation, higher nitrogen inputs, and frequent mowing generally favor the disease" as that's what we're kind of supposed to do.

I may have wasted my $80 putting the DiseaseEx down but we'll see if it improves the grass. It sounds like putting DiseaseEx down at the preventative rate early in the Spring is the thing to do.


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## KSUDVM (Jun 29, 2019)

My wife will vouch for me, I've just about lost my mind over this yard! This year, I've finally reached the stage of acceptance and am having a bit more fun trying to come up with my best solution as there is very little on the forums regarding Ascochyta to use for guidance.

Don't feel bad, I threw down an application of DiseaseEx and plan to alternate with Eagle 2EW for 4 applications and reevaluate there. In the past I've been cautious with regular use of fungicides to preserve the microherd as best as I can; however, that's gotten me nowhere in the last four years so more aggressive I go!


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## jgturnier (May 14, 2020)

The other weird thing is that I have patches that are solid dark green. An an area that I overseeded a couple of years ago looks fine.

I think I might give up on my KBG dreams. Kill it off and seed a fescue blend. Depression.


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