{"id":19422,"date":"2020-07-08T08:39:24","date_gmt":"2020-07-08T12:39:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/ipm\/?page_id=19422"},"modified":"2020-07-10T10:49:22","modified_gmt":"2020-07-10T14:49:22","slug":"black-lawn","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/ipm\/ipddl\/black-lawn\/","title":{"rendered":"&#8220;Black Lawn&#8221;"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><em>By Alicyn Smart, Plant Pathologist &amp; Director of the Plant Disease Diagnostic Laboratory, University of Maine Cooperative Extension<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>July 8, 2020<\/em><\/p>\n<h4><strong>Question: My grass has turned black in some areas. What is the cause of this?<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p><strong>Answer:<\/strong> Many lawns across Maine have experienced these same symptoms. The reason for this is due to a fungal disease that infects lawns that are stressed. The lack of rain in June has caused lawns that are not watered to become stressed and provided an opportunity for this fungal disease to become an issue. Reseeding the area and watering the grass when we are experiencing a drought will limit this from happening again. <em>It is not necessary to apply any pesticide to the lawn.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\t\t<style type=\"text\/css\">\n\t\t\t#gallery-1 {\n\t\t\t\tmargin: auto;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t#gallery-1 .gallery-item {\n\t\t\t\tfloat: left;\n\t\t\t\tmargin-top: 10px;\n\t\t\t\ttext-align: center;\n\t\t\t\twidth: 33%;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t#gallery-1 img {\n\t\t\t\tborder: 2px solid #cfcfcf;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t#gallery-1 .gallery-caption {\n\t\t\t\tmargin-left: 0;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t\/* see gallery_shortcode() in wp-includes\/media.php *\/\n\t\t<\/style>\n\t\t<div id='gallery-1' class='gallery galleryid-19422 gallery-columns-3 gallery-size-medium'><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon portrait'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/ipm\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2020\/07\/black-lawn-3-m-hutchinson.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"225\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/ipm\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2020\/07\/black-lawn-3-m-hutchinson-225x300.jpg\" class=\"attachment-medium size-medium\" alt=\"area of lawn affected by a fungus\" srcset=\"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/ipm\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2020\/07\/black-lawn-3-m-hutchinson-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/ipm\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2020\/07\/black-lawn-3-m-hutchinson-105x140.jpg 105w, https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/ipm\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2020\/07\/black-lawn-3-m-hutchinson-317x423.jpg 317w, https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/ipm\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2020\/07\/black-lawn-3-m-hutchinson-423x564.jpg 423w, https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/ipm\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2020\/07\/black-lawn-3-m-hutchinson-634x845.jpg 634w, https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/ipm\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2020\/07\/black-lawn-3-m-hutchinson.jpg 750w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 320px) 85vw, (max-width: 768px) 67vw, (max-width: 1024px) 62vw,225px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt><\/dl><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon portrait'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/ipm\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2020\/07\/black-lawn-2-m-hutchinson.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"225\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/ipm\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2020\/07\/black-lawn-2-m-hutchinson-225x300.jpg\" class=\"attachment-medium size-medium\" alt=\"area of lawn affected by a fungus\" srcset=\"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/ipm\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2020\/07\/black-lawn-2-m-hutchinson-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/ipm\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2020\/07\/black-lawn-2-m-hutchinson-105x140.jpg 105w, https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/ipm\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2020\/07\/black-lawn-2-m-hutchinson-317x423.jpg 317w, https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/ipm\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2020\/07\/black-lawn-2-m-hutchinson-423x564.jpg 423w, https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/ipm\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2020\/07\/black-lawn-2-m-hutchinson-634x845.jpg 634w, https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/ipm\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2020\/07\/black-lawn-2-m-hutchinson.jpg 750w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 320px) 85vw, (max-width: 768px) 67vw, (max-width: 1024px) 62vw,225px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt><\/dl><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon portrait'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/ipm\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2020\/07\/black-lawn-1-m-hutchinson.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"200\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/ipm\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2020\/07\/black-lawn-1-m-hutchinson-200x300.jpg\" class=\"attachment-medium size-medium\" alt=\"close up of lawn grass affected by a fungus\" srcset=\"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/ipm\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2020\/07\/black-lawn-1-m-hutchinson-200x300.jpg 200w, https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/ipm\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2020\/07\/black-lawn-1-m-hutchinson-93x140.jpg 93w, https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/ipm\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2020\/07\/black-lawn-1-m-hutchinson-317x477.jpg 317w, https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/ipm\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2020\/07\/black-lawn-1-m-hutchinson-423x636.jpg 423w, https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/ipm\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2020\/07\/black-lawn-1-m-hutchinson-634x953.jpg 634w, https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/ipm\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2020\/07\/black-lawn-1-m-hutchinson.jpg 665w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 320px) 85vw, (max-width: 768px) 67vw, (max-width: 1024px) 62vw,200px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt><\/dl><br style=\"clear: both\" \/>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n<p>In the last week, we have received dozens of questions from homeowners and landscapers about black areas in lawns across Maine. The University of Maine Plant Disease Diagnostic Lab has said this is due to a fungal disease <span id=\"m_-5074859788533220315gmail-m_805187485621282819m_9002747914291738190gmail-docs-internal-guid-d9872f67-7fff-230a-ff85-94048306731f\">called <em>Cladosporium<\/em> sp.<\/span>, and the black you are seeing is the fungus growing on the grass. The reason for this widespread disease is due to the dry weather we experienced in June, resulting in the grass becoming stressed. This fungal disease is only problematic when lawns are stressed, which is why it became an issue.<\/p>\n<p>A healthy lawn will not struggle with this disease, so to limit the spread, water the lawn if we experience another dry period. In the areas where the grass is black, the area must be seeded since this grass is dead.<\/p>\n<h4><strong>Additional Resources<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p>To learn about the correct way to seed a lawn, see Bulletin #2367, <a href=\"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/publications\/2367e\/#seeding\">Establishing a Home Lawn in Maine<\/a>. Also see Bulletin #2166, <a href=\"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/publications\/2166e\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/publications\/2166e\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1594317910745000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGInktEKrpsFGUuSzdKLCpjjXuXow\">Steps to a Low-Input, Healthy Lawn<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Alicyn Smart, Plant Pathologist &amp; Director of the Plant Disease Diagnostic Laboratory, University of Maine Cooperative Extension July 8, 2020 Question: My grass has turned black in some areas. What is the cause of this? Answer: Many lawns across Maine have experienced these same symptoms. The reason for this is due to a fungal [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"parent":1825,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"templates\/page-withsidebar.php","meta":{"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-19422","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>&quot;Black Lawn&quot; - Cooperative Extension: Insect Pests, Ticks and Plant Diseases - University of Maine Cooperative Extension<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/ipm\/ipddl\/black-lawn\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"&quot;Black Lawn&quot; - Cooperative Extension: Insect Pests, Ticks and Plant Diseases - University of Maine Cooperative Extension\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"By Alicyn Smart, Plant Pathologist &amp; Director of the Plant Disease Diagnostic Laboratory, University of Maine Cooperative Extension July 8, 2020 Question: My grass has turned black in some areas. 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