Weather conditions such as storms or changes in humidity and temperature typically exacerbate the damage. Bacteria, fungi, and oomycetes are causal factors of blight. As with many plant pathogens, many types of blights are highly contagious. The impacted areas could include leaves, branches, flowers, fruits, stalks, seedlings, tubers, etc. In this article, we will provide an overview of different plant diseases known as blights and provide a general description of each type and their control methods.īlight refers to a group of plant pathogens that cause plants to undergo chlorosis (yellowing) then browning and then die-off in parts of the plant. Many of these pathogens are specific to a few plant species and are not genetically related to each other. There are many different causes of blighting on various crops and economically important vegetables. Some most notable blights include the potato blight that caused the Irish Potato Famine of 1846-50, the bacterial leaf blight in rice that swept through Asia in the 1960s that caused the lost of up to 80% of crops, and the southern leaf corn blight epidemics of 1970-1971 which total 1 billion dollars in economic damages. Blight on plants has had a significant impact on human populations, movements, and diets throughout history. The word “blight” does not refer to one specific plant disease, but rather a general term that describes conditions that severely hinder the healthy growth of plants. Call or text 80 to talk to a specialist.Plant and animal diseases are a huge threat to the livelihoods of agrarian societies. Stewarts’ specialists can help identify lawn problems like ascochyta. If it does, following the treatment guidelines above will help control the infection and slow the spread of the fungus. However, even after following these prevention steps, your lawn may still become infected with ascochyta. Sharpen your lawnmower blades periodically to prevent damage to the tips of the grass bladesįollowing these tips will help decrease the chance that your lawn will suffer from ascochyta.Aerate your lawn yearly to allow nutrients and water to penetrate into the soil.Cultivate a healthy, thick lawn to discourage fungal growth.
Keep your lawn’s thatch layer small (less than half an inch thick is best) to prevent spores from hiding there.To prevent your lawn from developing ascochyta, try the following: Aerate your lawn yearly to reduce the thatch layer (where the fungus lives on dead grass tips)Īscochyta can spread when spores hiding in the thatch layer of the lawn are disturbed by rain and routine lawn maintenance.Make sure to water well -about 1 to 1.5 inches when temperatures approach 80 degrees.Avoid mowing too often and only cut 1/3 of an inch at a time.When mowing, keep the grass blades about three inches tall.Clean your lawnmower deck frequently to avoid spreading the disease from one part of your lawn to another.It takes two to three weeks for the disease to run its course and for the grass to turn green again. Instead of cutting the grass blades smoothly, dull mower blades pull at the grass and tear the blades, making the lawn more susceptible to ascochyta. Dull mower blades tear and cut grass unevenly. The fungus that causes ascochyta to show on grass usually enters through tips of the grass that are damaged by dull lawnmower blades.
However, the crowns and roots of the grass are seldom affected, so the grass rarely dies because of the disease. Sometimes the grass blades develop a dark line separating the green half of the blade from the yellow half. The disease causes grass blades to turn yellow from the tip to about halfway down the grass blade. The fungus is present throughout the year in most lawns, but the spores flare-up in favorable conditions.Īscochyta can live on dead grass tips in the thatch layer of the lawn, and spores can spread when they are disturbed by splashing water or mowing. The disease comes on quickly-sometimes it appears as though the lawn turned yellow overnight. Lawns that develop ascochyta turn yellow and often have healthy green grass dispersed within the patches of yellow grass. Because of the rain followed by days of increased temperatures, Ascochyta is prevalent this spring season. Ascochyta leaf blight is a lawn fungus that is active when temperatures turn hot after long periods of wet, cool weather.
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