Sifi-Elite: Turf Disease Control: This is a preventative program you sign up for. For those who want the best, here it is. Many lawn-lovers prefer this program as a means of ongoing prevention and/or some added insurance to help that their lawn always look its best, and they’re willing to pay for it. When done in combination with Grub/insect control it represents the very best service the professional lawn care industry has to offer, right up there with golf course quality.
Disease Cause & Effect: Turf disease (Pathogens) are always present in the soil everywhere. Everyone has them. Symptoms (turf damage) from these pathogens are triggered and appear only when the right conditions (soil temperature, humidity, moisture & nitrogen levels) are present for a sufficient amount of time. It’s worth noting, that if you’re seeking disease control because of repeated disease occurrences or outbreaks, its likely because the micro environment around your turf is promoting favorable condition for the disease to reproduce and thrive. For example: extended periods of leaf wetness of 12hrs or more or incorrect watering at the incorrect time or amount, soil compaction/poor drainage, limited air flow, high nitrogen at the wrong time, excessive thatch build-up. If any of these examples are present in your turf and not corrected or cannot be corrected, then only two options remain. Either, replace the turf with other plants suitable for that environment (converting to flowerbeds, ground covers or other hardscapes) or manage and control the inevitable disease with our SifiElite turf disease control applications.
Disease Cure & Expectations: We carefully time these treatments during the typical time when turf diseases most commonly manifest their symptoms. A normal preventative treatment consists of an initial treatment then a follow-up treatment 28 days later as outline by most chemical labels. We also implement integrated pest management (IPM) practices by changing fungicide chemistries with different modes of action to prevent pathogen resistance. Fungicide treatments are very effective, however, repeat treatments may be necessary if conditions for disease persist. In the cases where prevention does not seem to last, we almost always find the above micro environmental conditions readily present, and therefore either the environment or the plant species need to change. Potential treatment success is assessed during an examination estimate prior to any treatment or plan of action by GreenMaster. It’s also worth noting that simple drought/heat stress is commonly mistaken for turf disease.
Disclaimer: There may be other unseen or unknowable factors contributing (either now or in the future) to the declining condition of your lawn. It is impossible to eliminate all unknown factors that might result in treatment failure.
Disease Testing: Testing for disease pathogens at OSU turf diagnostic lab prior to treatment is recommended, however it can get expensive, and its very time sensitive and should be done ASAP. Infected turf samples should be dug up from the edge of the area where there is active disease (ex. from the edge of a patch). The sample should encompass approximately half diseased and half healthy tissue. Soil-laden ends of the sample should be wrapped in aluminum foil. Samples could be placed in a plastic bag, but DO NOT seal the bag completely. The package should be sent using expedited mailing such as FedEx or UPS. Hand-delivering the samples directly to the laboratory is also an option. The quicker they get the sample, the faster they can diagnose the problem. Don’t want to do it yourself? GreenMaster can extract and deliver a sample same day for a fee of $75.00.
OSU Turf Diagnostic Lab location: 127 NCR, Stillwater, OK 74078
Lab Phone: (405) 744-6830
Contact person(s): Nathan Walker Ph.D
Test Pricing: Residential $25/sample, Commercial $100/sample
Other Recourses: Dennis Martin (PhD) Turfgrass professors at OSU or Keith Reed our county extension specialist.