How to Kill Fungus on Grass

A healthy lawn can increase your home's value by up to 11 percent. Don't let grass problems eat up your property value. Fear not if your grass showing signs of a fungal infection, such as slime, rust-looking patches or growths on the individual grass blades. While there are numerous lawn fungicides on the market that can treat certain fungus problems, the University of California's Integrated Pest Management program reports that simply providing your lawn with the right care can help kill the fungus and keep it from returning — no matter what the specific fungus is that you're facing.


Water only in the morning. This allows the sun to burn off any excess moisture that's present on your lawn's surface, and drier conditions helps kill existing fungi while reducing the conditions that new fungi, such as the rust fungus, need to grow.


Reduce your irrigation so that you're only watering your lawn when the underlying soil is dry to a depth of 8 to 12 inches. Over-watering and waterlogged soil creates conditions that harbor fungus growth and encourage new fungi invasions. Letting your soil dry out between watering helps kill fungus that affects roots, such as spring dead spot and pythium root rot.


Minimize the amount of shade on your lawn by using a saw or pruning shears and cutting back overhanging trees, shrubs and hedges, and rearranging your garden furniture. Increasing sun exposure helps dry out your lawn while the sun's solarizing effects also kill shade-loving fungi.


Mow your lawn once or twice a week, or as necessary to maintain optimal height for your lawn's specific grass species. Mowing boosts the lawn's ability to resist diseases. It also helps minimize the spread of existing fungus — constant shearing keeps fungus from maturing and producing spores — and increases sun exposure and air circulation, which also kills fungi.


Monitor your fertilization schedule, only applying fertilizer when necessary for your specific lawn grass species and regional needs. For example, grass that gets too little fertilizer can be more susceptible to fungus such as anthracnose, while over-fertilization increases your risk of fungi such as leaf smut. Correcting your fertilization schedule can create healthier grass that's inhospitable to fungus growth.