Dollar spot occurs on all turf grasses grown in Kansas due to which pathogen?

Dollar spot occurs on all turf grasses grown in Kansas due to which pathogen?

• A. Sclerotinia homoeocarpa occurs on all turf grasses grown in Kansas
• B. Pythium spp. causes the disease in Kansas
• C. Rhizoctonia solani causes the disease in Kansas
• D. Bacteria cause the disease in Kansas

Answer: (A)

Dollar spot is caused by the fungal pathogen Sclerotinia homoeocarpa, which can infect many turfgrass species grown in Kansas. This makes it a disease that can appear on all common turfgrasses in the region under the right conditions (humid, warm days with cooler nights and leaf wetness). The symptoms create small, circular, light-centered patches that resemble dollar spots on the lawn. Other choices describe different pathogens or pathogens that cause different diseases (Pythium causing damping-off or blight, Rhizoctonia causing other patches, bacteria causing bacterial diseases), so they don’t match dollar spot.

Dollar spot is caused by the fungal pathogen Sclerotinia homoeocarpa, which can infect many turfgrass species grown in Kansas. This makes it a disease that can appear on all common turfgrasses in the region under the right conditions (humid, warm days with cooler nights and leaf wetness). The symptoms create small, circular, light-centered patches that resemble dollar spots on the lawn. Other choices describe different pathogens or pathogens that cause different diseases (Pythium causing damping-off or blight, Rhizoctonia causing other patches, bacteria causing bacterial diseases), so they don’t match dollar spot.