My yard is fescue/rye, zone 3/4. Have been told I have downy mildew. What do I treat this with.?
Question:Looks like gray powder on the leaves.
Answers:
Powdery Mildew and Downy Mildew are two different fungal diseases. Powdery Mildew is the more common fugal disease of turf, though fecues and ryegrasses can get Downy Mildew. Cultural practices that can reduce the incidence of Downy Mildew on turf are basically the same as for Powdery Mildew.
Increase sunlight penetration. Prune trees and shrubs to allow more light to the areas. Shaded areas from buildings will be an ongoing problem. Select resistant varieties or change the landscape design to eliminate the turf.
Reduce the humidity. Improve air circulation to remove pockets of stagnant air where high humidity is likely to occur. Pruning trees and shrubs will help improve air drainage. Adjust watering so areas stay drier.
Use resistant varieties. Improved tall fescues may be considered for shaded areas since they have minimal problems with mildews.
Fungicide use. Powdery & Downy mildew may be managed with preventative fungicide applications. The key is to apply these materials in a PREVENTATIVE mode before the disease becomes established for these materials will only protect healthy and newly developing leaves. Leaves presenting symptoms will NOT be affected by fungicide applications.
Eco-mate & Kaligreen are fungicides derived from non-toxic baking soda. Its active ingredient is potassium bicarbonate. Eco-mate is labeled for the control of Powdery & Downy mildew. Kaligreen is labeled for control of Powdery mildew. Potassium bicarbonates are approved organic fungicides.
Note: Daconil is a commercial fungicide labeled for use on golf courses and sod farms. It is PROHIBITED to use this product on home lawns. It is a federal crime to use this product in a manner inconsistent with its label.
spray with an antifungal like daconil. it's available at garden centers.
You can ignore it, or buy a fungicide (and sprayer) from a garden center.
You can make your own spray from wetable sulfur or baking soda and oil. See this website: http://www.mastergardeners.org/publicati...
There must be other infected yards with mildew nearby, for it to spread to your yard. So you are not going to get rid of it so long as wet weather persists. I assume it is going to get hotter and dryer soon, and that will pretty much take care of it.
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