Spring dead spot is the most common and destructive disease of which turfgrass?

• A. Bermudagrass
• B. Tall fescue
• C. Kentucky bluegrass
• D. Zoysiagrass

Answer: (A)

Spring dead spot primarily affects warm-season grasses, and among common turfgrasses, bermudagrass shows the most frequent and severe damage. The disease creates circular patches of dead or thinning turf that often reappear each spring as the grass comes out of dormancy, and bermudagrass’s growth habit with widespread stolons and dense turf provides more tissue for the fungus to infect and linger year after year. Tall fescue and Kentucky bluegrass are cool-season grasses and are less commonly and less severely affected, while zoysiagrass can be affected but not as consistently or destructively as bermudagrass. So the strongest match for “most common and destructive” is bermudagrass.