Question
Hi,

We're in Maryland and have about 3/4 acre lawn; last year we hired a lawn care company to help. The soil is not real good -- new construction (3 years ago) and builder carted away most of the top soil, we aerated and overseeded last fall (Tall Fescue). All was going well until this Spring we noticed areas in the lawn changing color -- we were told it was red thread fungus, and the lawn folks treated with fertilizer then a fungicide about a week later.  We saw no improvement and now there are brown patches covering about 2/3 of the lawn -- the majority being in areas that get sun most of the day.   

We water every 3-4 days for about an hour first thing in the morning.

About 2 weeks after the lawn service put down their treatment we spread out a granular fungicide that listed red thread as one of the fungus it treated; again no change.

Is there anything we can do to help the lawn now?
We can't tell if grass is actually dead, dying, or maybe dormant; will it come back next spring or do we need to seed again?

Lawn service fertilized about four times during the year, with some applications of weed control and insecticide.

Please help!

Thanks,
Mirella

Answer
It's that time of year again when Lawn Care Companies send their best customers to the internet to find an AllExpert who will do the damage report for their very expensive Grass.  Why is it that the people with the most money to spend, who devote so much to their Lawns, who are the most responsible citizens and the best kinds of neighbor you could have, end up with these Lawn Care Problems?

Sheeeeeesh!

First: Am I reading this right?  Did you say that the topsoil was removed by the builder, so you aerated what was left, and then planted Grass on it?

No Soil test?

No Soil amendments?

NOTHING?

You were planning on careful and diligent fertilizing to take care of the lack of nutrients in the Soil?

Tell me I'm wrong, PLEASE.

Next: Someone diagnosed a Fungus problem in your Lawn, labeling it Red Thread, yes?  This took place while the Lawn was growing, in the Spring.  The Lawn Care company fertilized the Grass.  Then they put down a Fungicide -- identity unknown -- to kill the Fungus.  Which was followed by MORE dead Grass, especially in the Sunniest parts of the Lawn.

In desperation, you bought your own Fungicide, and you put it on the Grass, and it lsited Red Thread, but nothing happened -- nothing good, anyway.  The Fungus was still there, and the patches continued to spread -- correct?  Please correct me if I have this wrong; I'm wondering if you expected the Brown Grass to turn Green and you concluded that the Fungus was still there because the Grass was still Brown... but it was also spreading to unaffected areas.  Yes?

Finally:  Your Grass has been treated to the usual chemical Fertilizers, Weedkillers and Fungicides.  And you water faithfully, not daily but enough to keep the Grass from getting thirsty.

Let us begin.

Red Thread -- 'Laetisaria fusiformis' -- is a common Fungus that enjoys a life spent in Fescue more than anything else.  Note that I call this a 'common Fungus'.  These spores are EVERYWHERE.  They're ALL OVER THE PLACE.  You can run but you can't hide.

So why isn't there Red Thread growing all over your skin?

On your toothbrush?

Outside, why isn't it all over the Trees?  Why did it develop in some parts of your Grass FIRST?  Better, Why isn't it growing across the street on your neighbor's Lawn?  W-H-Y WHY?

Because Red Thread needs Grass that is susceptible to attack AND it needs moisture AND it needs darkness AND it needs NO COMPETITION or CONTROL from other Fungi.

Having wiped out much of the Fungi in your Grass, most of which is GOOD for the Grass (around 80 to 95 percent by various estimates) with Fungicides, repeatedly applied, you have made life wonderful for the Red Thread Fungi in your neighborhood.

To get rid of Red Thread, you don't need to buy anything.  You just have to stop making life so wonderful for the Red Thread.  Which you are doing without even knowing it.

And you don't know this because there are no commercials for doing nothing.  There are lots of commercials and ads for Fungicides.  And now that you have spent a considerable sum on them, they are richer, and you still have Red Thread.

Let's make sure we're dealing with Red Thread here, OK?  Here's the Weed Man website photo on the subject:

www.weedmanusa.com/factsheetsdetails.aspx?Id=28

and the Cornell University website photo:

plantclinic.cornell.edu/FactSheets/redthread/redthread.htm

The Cornell authorities describe Red Thread thusly: 'Red Thread occurs in the spring and fall during humid periods when the air temperatures are between 60 and 75 degrees F).  The disease is especially severe on slow-growing Nitrogen deficient turf.  Bluegrass (Poa sp), Fescue (Festuca sp), Rye Grass (Lolium sp) and Bentgrass (Agrostis sp) can be affected.  Fineleaved Fescue and some Rye Grasses are particularly susceptible.'

Given that Fescue is its Grass of Choice, I'd venture a guess that you are growing Fescue, part of a shade-tolerant blend, in areas that do not get Full Sun.  They get SOME Sun.  They just don't get FULL Sun.  If this is how it is, figure this is about as ideal as it gets when it comes to pro-Fungus conditions.

Going back to the Cornell comments, their 'Nitrogen deficient turf' comment may be a clue as to why your Lawn Care people fertilized your Grass.  And let's make one thing perfectly clear:  The Brown Grass is DEAD Grass.  It has kicked the bucket.  It is not coming back.

Your Lawn Care Company however unwittingly probably spread the active Fungi all over the Lawn, if you read this part about how it spreads on the Cornell website:  'Laetisaria Fuciformis may produce spores for dispersal, however, the primary means of disperal is the spread of infected tissue and bits of the Red Thread (sclerotia) to healthy areas of Grass.  This type of spread depends upon mowing, foot traffic, and other activities which occur on the diseased turf. Invasion by the fungus is quick, and leaves may begin to die 2 days after becoming infected.'

Let's read that again: This type of spread depends upon MOWING, FOOT TRAFFIC, and other activities...'

Imagine that.  Every time the Lawnmower blade sliced across the Grass, it deposited Red Thread spores from the other side of the Lawn.  And in a matter of days, the new spores were erupting everywhere else.

You did not mention the kind of Grass you are growing.  In Maryland, anything is possible.  Regardless, the number one action for taking control of a Red Thread attack: 'Maintain adequate Soil fertility.'

You have not done that.  You have in fact done NOTHING to improve your Soil.  All those Fertilizers are headed to the Grass, or into the air as they evaporate, or down down down towards China.  Almost none of the molecules will be around after a few days.  They're chemicals.  They dissolve in water, and then they go.

But while they're down there, they do all kinds of damage.

Because Fertilizers by definition are SALTS.  And SALTS are REALLY bad for Soil.  They make Earthworms writhe and wriggle and head for the hills.  They damage microbes.  They're awful for plants.  Too much, and you kill the Grass.

But they're good for Red Thread!

Because by wiping out the beneficial, and competing, Fungi, you open the door for all the bad microbes and Fungi.  It's like putting the Police on strike.  All the crooks get out of jail, and they just take over everything.

Red Thread is especially attracted to thick Thatch layers.  Why do we get Thatch?  (And is this why you aerated? Hmmmm....)  We get thick layers of Thatch because the Thatch is not breaking down.  And it is not breaking down because there is a shortage of beneficial microbes who do that for a living.  Why?  You Fertilized them out of town.  Or, correction, your Lawn Care Company did that.  And you PAID them to do that.  Wow.

Now for the fix.

The BEST ADVICE I can give you about your Red Thread is...

DON'T TREAT IT WITH A FUNGICIDE!  

Fungicides first of all work on existing damage.  They won't stop it from spreading.

For starters, re-Seed those Brown spots where dead Grass is lieing in state.  And include Clover in the mix.  let's just say it would do your grass WONDERS to add some White or Red Clover to your Lawn to fix Nitrogen into your Soil.  Your Grass will love you for it and it's a very pretty plant to put down there.  Plus it smells nice.  It POURS Nitrogen into the Soil constantly.  And that's good, because Red Thread is a problem you find in grass that is deficient in Nitrogen.

What else is your Soil deficient in?

You MUST get a Soil test.  Don't have your Lawn Care Company do this.  Do it yourself.  It's important to get up close and personal with your Lawn.  Now that you are trying to cure it of some ugly disease, I'd say you've taken that initial step.  So take another one.  Do a Soil test.

Where your get this test done depends on where you live.  University of Maryland Extension Service prepared a list of approved Soil Testing Labs in 2007:

westernmaryland.umd.edu/Pages/SoilTestingLabs.doc

They'll provide you with all kinds of valuable data for making informed decisions about your Soil and your Grass.  The pH.  Minerals it has.  Minerals it is deficient in.  If you know what you have, you don't need to add any more.  And if you have a healthy population of microbes, you don't need to use chemical Fertilizer; the microbes will make all the Nitrogen your Grass needs, and deliver it in small, regular doses, at a rate based on the temperature of the Soil.  Like a heart that beats faster when you run, this kind of nutrition management is just dictated by Nature.  It doesn't get more perfect than that.

Since we can assume you have a Nitrogen shortage in your Lawn, it would be a good time to look in the Organic section of your local garden center (forget Home Depot and Lowes for this; they do not have anything you need) for a high Nitrogen Organic amendment.  Apply generously to your Soil and wait for the rain to water it in.  I recommened against Fish Emulsion since the odor alone is enough to kill a small child.  Well, maybe not, but you don't need that kind of publicity.  And there are so many other choices.

I should wrap it up here as it is getting late and you probably are ready for lunch by now.  But let me say one more thing that is germaine to your problem.

You have 2 choices when it comes to correcting your Soil.  You can build it up -- and this is going to require some decisions.  Or you can truck in some very good topsoil.

Correcting your Soil should have been done when you moved into the neighborhood.  BEFORE the Grass went down.  You CAN and SHOULD fix your poor quality Soil.  But this is going to require that you stop using Chemicals like Pesticides and Herbicides.  Because when you do, you don't just kill the pests and the Weds.  You kill the microbes, too.  The Earthworms.  The insects.  Now you have no Bird Food -- what's a good hungry Bird supposed to eat, anyway, once you've killed all the tasty bugs?  Proceed with caution when you deal with your Lawn.  Turn over a new leaf, and make it organic.  This won't just cure your Red Thread problem.  It will grow your Grass better than any other method.

Just wait and see.

THE LONG ISLAND GARDENER