Spring is hopefully around the corner and eventually all of this white stuff will begin to melt. I am frequently asked if snow can damage lawns…. And my response is you MAY see some snow mold on your grass once the melting is finished.
Gray Snow Mold
There are two types of snow mold that you may see; the first is gray mold and the second is pink mold. Pink mold is more dangerous for your lawn’s health than the gray mold is. So how does your lawn get “snow mold” you ask? Snow mold occurs when your lawn is covered from snow for long periods of time (typically the mold develops when the ground isn’t completely frozen). If you see signs of mold existing and/or starting to develop, there are some things that you can do to help remedy the moldy situation.
Signs of Snow Mold:
Snow mold forms on your lawn in circular patches (3-12’’) of matted, dead grass. Once the case becomes more severe, it can take over larger amount of your lawn. Keep in mind that it is possible to have gray and pink snow mold on your grass at the same time. Pink mold occurs when the web-like mycelium matures. It will create a pink salmon color on your green grass blades. Gray mold develops the same way only the mycelium webs appear to be grayish-white on the grass blades.
Pink Snow Mold
How to prevent Snow Mold:
In the future you can help to prevent snow mold from growing by mowing your lawn until it stops growing (typically December in our area). In addition, cleaning up your leaves in the fall helps hinder any molds from developing.
How to repair your lawn after Snow Mold occurs:
Fungicides can be used for both gray and pink snow mold(s), however, fungicides can also cause damage to your lawn….so be careful. Once your lawn begins to dry out the mold will usually go away. To help speed up the repairing process, you can rake over the patches of snow mold and throw away the debris. Raking it out will help dry things out quicker. And of course, if you just don’t want to bother dealing with this “moldy” problem…you can simply call a professional.
