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 | Laetisaria fuciformis
Disease description
Coral pink to blood-red, branched, antler-like stromata or needles attached to the surface of shoots and leaves. Margins of bleached patches of grasses irregular in outline from a few centimetres to 50 cm or more in diameter. In mild cases blade tips only are damaged, but in severe cases shoots are killed. Common in the cooler, humid regions; rare in Saskatchewan, but has on occasion caused extensive damage to lawns and golf courses in Edmonton, Alberta. A similar disease, called Pink Patch (Limonomyces spp.) occurs mainly on perennial ryegrass.
Predisposing factors
- most grass species are attacked, but fine-leaved rescues and perennial rye grasses are often severely damaged
- low fertility leading to slow leaf production
- favored by moist, cool weather, yet warmer than for
- fusarium patch turf may sometimes be infected in cold weather
Cultural control
Improve supply of soil nitrogen and relieve deficiency of other nutrients. Control thatch. Use seed mixtures containing a less susceptible species such as Kentucky blue grass. |
For information about other diseases that affect turf grasses, go to Major Diseases of Turf Grasses in Western Canada. |
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For more information about the content of this document, contact Ron Howard.
This document is maintained by Shelley Barkley.
This information published to the web on November 20, 2001.
Last Reviewed/Revised on November 7, 2007.
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