What is Snow Mold?
Snow mold is a fungal disease that appears in early spring as the snow melts and may continue during wet weather in the fall and spring, as long as the temperature is between 32° F and 60° F. Snow mold is most likely to occur after a long winter with frequent snowfall. Areas with piled up snow (i.e. driveway edges or sidewalks) will be hit the hardest. Low-lying areas where moisture collects are also very susceptible to snow mold. 

Types
There are two types of snow mold: gray snow mold and pink snow mold. Pink snow mold is more severe, as it infects the crown of the plant. Gray snow mold only infects the leaf. 

Symptoms
Symptoms of snow mold include circular patches (3”-12”) of dead and matted grass. It is very uncommon to have both types of snow mold at the same time. 

Pink Snow Mold first appears in the lawn as circular, pinkish or red-brown color patches. The center of the patches may be a bright white and have a web-like mycelium, resembling cobwebs, growing at the surface. 

Gray Snow Mold first appears in the lawn as circular, whitish-gray patches. The center of the patches may have a web-like mycelium, resembling cobwebs, growing at the surface. It also has tiny black dots that appear on the grass blades making it easy to distinguish from pink snow mold. 

Causes
Snow mold occurs after an extended period of snow cover on the ground that is not completely frozen, but it can also occur during cool periods that have a large amount of moisture. Turf grasses are hosts, but they are not usually killed from the disease. Other causes include:

• Lawns with extra-long grass 
• Thick layers of leaves and/or debris 
• Fertilizer treatment high in nitrogen too late in the season 
• High levels of thatch 

Prevention
The key to preventing snow mold is putting your lawn to bed properly before winter.

• Lowing cutting height to 2” or lower in late fall. Continue to mow until grass stops growing. 
• Be sure to rake up leaves (or use a lawnmower to mulch leaves into lawn). 
• Dethatch lawn to increase airflow. 
• Avoid using fertilizers high in nitrogen late in the season (We suggest using Schultz Winterizer Weed & Feed because it contains slow-release lawn food low in nitrogen). 
• Reduce watering in mid fall to help prepare grass for dormancy. Leaves full of moisture also make easier targets for snow mold to appear. 
• Reduce traffic patterns on lawn so the soil does not become compacted, causing poor drainage. Poor soil drainage leads to moisture retention which in turn creates a higher susceptibility to snow mold.

Treatment
If snow mold appears on your lawn, remove any piles of snow that are still around. Then lightly rake the matted area to loosen the grass and rake out any dead grass or damp, decomposing material. Reseed any bare spots on your lawn when temperatures warm up and follow up with a spring fertilizer treatment. For great fertilizer products check out: Schultz Fertilizer.

If severe enough, a fungicide treatment is recommended. Ask your local lawn and garden retailer for assistance.

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