Are you seeing red and gray patches in your lawn?

The most likely cause is probably Snow Mold. There are two kinds of Snow Mold. Red and Gray. While the colors may be different both kinds tend to be circular in shape. Besides the coloring the only other major difference to note is that snow need not be present for Gray Snow Mold to occur.

Wondering what to do?

First off don’t panic. It may be helpful to remember the damage is cosmetic only. While it may not look pretty, your lawn is not ruined. It will recover.

Once you’ve recovered from the shock the best thing to do is to get the damaged areas gently raked out so the grass stands up and has a chance to dry out.

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Next. Speed up Recovery

As soon as the weather starts to warm or a couple weeks before the lawn actually starts to grow is a good time to apply you first fertilizer of the season.

This will help your lawn to wake up and begin the process of filling in those areas that appeared to be dead.

Remember, as your lawn begins to grow, helping it dry faster when the spring rains come can be done by keeping the height short to begin with. It is important, however, to remember to raise the height of your mower at the daily temperatures start to climb!

As the lawn begins to grow and the mowing starts those ugly circles will begin to disappear and fresh new grass will take the place of the old and winter damaged turf.

Steps you can take to prevent or reduce the severity next year

Next fall is the time to be thinking about what your lawn needs to survive the winter in fair shape.

Here’s a few things you can do:

  • Fertilizer in the late fall (around October 15th) to promote cell strength and resistance to disease
  • As the temperatures begin to lower so too should the cutting deck on the mower. WARNING: Remember the 1/3 rule! Bring the turf height down slowly over time as the grass slows down
  • Two cuttings in the same week may be necessary. If you find when you cut five days after the first one and you’re not removing much grass – that’s a good sign you can lower your blades a bit
  • Once the grass appears to stop growing altogether is the time to make your final cut as low as possible without scalping (Bottoming out with the mower blades and cutting into dirt)

HAVE A HAPPY SPRING!