Sometimes it's hard to tell what you're facing when you see small circles of brown grass on your lawn. The symptoms for dogs and disease look alike. If you've had a run of damp, mild days and cool nights, chances are it's dollar spot. That's even more likely if a dog doesn't live nearby.
This disease is common on Kentucky bluegrass, bentgrass, and bermudagrass. Bahia, zoysia, fescue, and ryegrass lawns may also be affected.
Lawns under stress from not having been fed or watered enough are most susceptible to dollar spot. Maintaining a regular feeding program with a slow-release lawn fertilizer can help prevent the disease, and even help underfed lawns recover from it. Controlling thatch in the lawn can help, too.
Dollar spot can be spread easily by people walking on the grass or by hoses, lawnmowers, and other turf equipment. So if you find dollar spot on your lawn - or on the golf course - try not to walk across it. Also, if you use a mowing service, ask whether the company cleans the blades regularly. The disease can hitch a ride on dirty blades.
Dollar spot turf disease got its name by causing circular light brown to straw-colored spots about the size of a silver dollar - although the spots may be as large as 6 inches across. They may merge into large, irregular patches. In the early morning, before dew dries, a white cobwebby growth may cover infected grass.
