--- title: Dollar Spot canonical: https://fernland.com.au/problem-solver/dollar-spot/ dateModified: 2026-08-07 09:48:58 summary: "Dollar spot is a fungal turf disease causing small sunken bleached patches, most active in warm humid weather with heavy dew." type: article keywords: [Dollar Spot, Clarireedia spp.] --- # Dollar Spot > Dollar spot is a fungal turf disease causing small sunken bleached patches, most active in warm humid weather with heavy dew. *Clarireedia spp.* Dollar spot is caused by fungal pathogens in the genus *Clarireedia* (previously classified under *Sclerotinia* and later *Sclerotinia homoeocarpa*). It affects most turfgrass species grown in Australia, including couch, kikuyu, bentgrass, ryegrass and fescue, and is one of the more common turf diseases on golf courses, bowling greens and sports fields. On the leaf, the fungus produces small lesions that are straw-coloured to bleached white with a reddish-brown to tan border, often described as hourglass-shaped when viewed across a narrow-leafed grass blade. Under humid conditions, particularly early morning, a fine cobweb-like white mycelium can sometimes be seen on affected patches before dew dries off. The fungus survives between infections as dormant mycelium or stromata (small dark resting structures) in thatch and infected leaf tissue, requiring no soil-borne spore stage for typical spread. Disease development is favoured by warm days and cool nights that produce prolonged leaf wetness or heavy dew, typically in spring and autumn, though it can occur in summer in humid or poorly drained areas. Low nitrogen fertility, drought stress, compacted soil and excessive thatch all increase susceptibility, as does mowing when foliage is wet, which spreads spores and mycelium between patches. Management relies on cultural practices that reduce leaf wetness duration and improve turf vigour: removing dew and guttation moisture early in the day, avoiding drought stress, maintaining balanced nitrogen fertility, reducing thatch through regular dethatching or aeration, and improving air movement and light penetration in shaded or enclosed areas. Mowing equipment should be cleaned between infected and healthy areas to limit spread. ## How to identify - Small, circular to irregular sunken patches of bleached, straw-coloured turf, typically 2–5 cm in diameter on closely mown turf but larger and less defined on longer swards; patches can merge into larger irregular areas under sustained favourable conditions. - Individual leaf blades show lesions with a tan to reddish-brown border surrounding a bleached white to straw centre, sometimes with an hourglass shape on narrow leaves. - In early morning under heavy dew, a fine white cobweb-like mycelium may be visible over affected patches, disappearing as the turf dries. - **Field check:** inspect affected turf early morning while dew is present for the cobweb mycelium, and examine individual leaf blades for the characteristic tan-bordered lesions rather than uniform browning, which helps distinguish dollar spot from drought stress or dog urine scald. - **Lookalikes:** brown patch and Pythium blight can produce similarly sized patches, but brown patch usually shows a darker, greasy leaf margin and larger patch size, while Pythium blight spreads rapidly in hot humid weather with a greasy, matted appearance; localised dry spot causes similar bleached patches but lacks leaf lesions and correlates with hydrophobic, dry soil beneath the patch. ## Registered products we stock - [Tombstone Duo Fungicide](https://fernland.com.au/tombstone-duo-fungicide/) — ProForce - [Sceptre Turf Fungicide](https://fernland.com.au/sceptre-turf-fungicide/) — Colin Campbell Chemicals - [Tridim 250EC Systemic Fungicide](https://fernland.com.au/tridim-250ec-systemic-fungicide/) — Colin Campbell Chemicals - [Dacogreen Weathershield Contact Fungicide](https://fernland.com.au/dacogreen-weathershield-contact-fungicide/) — Colin Campbell Chemicals - [Posterity Turf Fungicide](https://fernland.com.au/posterity-turf-fungicide/) — Syngenta - [Chlortan 720 Fungicide](https://fernland.com.au/chlortan-720-fungicide/) — PCT SureFire - [Instrata Triple-Action Turf Fungicide](https://fernland.com.au/instrata-triple-action-turf-fungicide/) — Syngenta - [Chief 625 Topflo Systemic Fungicide](https://fernland.com.au/chief-625-topflo-systemic-fungicide/) — Adama - [Clean Sweep Trio | Fungicide](https://fernland.com.au/clean-sweep-trio-fungicide/) — ProForce - [Bumper 625EC Fungicide](https://fernland.com.au/bumper-625ec-fungicide/) — Adama - [Velista Turf Fungicide](https://fernland.com.au/velista-turf-fungicide/) — Syngenta - [Medallion Turf Fungicide](https://fernland.com.au/medallion-turf-fungicide/) — Syngenta - [Quali-Pro Evolution Advance | Fungicide](https://fernland.com.au/quali-pro-evolution-advance-fungicide/) — Adama - [Emerald Turf Fungicide](https://fernland.com.au/emerald-turf-fungicide/) — Colin Campbell Chemicals - [Headway Maxx Turf Fungicide](https://fernland.com.au/headway-maxx-turf-fungicide/) — Syngenta - [Patriot SC Fungicide](https://fernland.com.au/patriot-sc-fungicide/) — Adama - [Banner Maxx Turf Fungicide](https://fernland.com.au/banner-maxx-turf-fungicide/) — Syngenta - [Dedicate FORTE Stressgard Turf Fungicide](https://fernland.com.au/dedicate-forte-stressgard/) — Envu - [Dedicate Turf & Ornamental Fungicide](https://fernland.com.au/dedicate-turf-ornamental-fungicide/) — Envu - [Interface Stressgard | Turf Fungicide](https://fernland.com.au/interface-stressgard-turf-fungicide/) — Envu - [Lexicon Intrinsic | Fungicide](https://fernland.com.au/lexicon-intrinsic-fungicide/) — BASF - [Quali-Pro Enclave | Fungicide](https://fernland.com.au/quali-pro-enclave-fungicide/) — Adama - [Exteris Stressgard | Turf Fungicide](https://fernland.com.au/exteris-stressgard-turf-fungicide/) — Envu - [Maxtima | Fungicide](https://fernland.com.au/maxtima-fungicide/) — BASF - [Rapide Aqua 500SC Fungicide](https://fernland.com.au/rapide-aqua-500sc-fungicide/) — PCT SureFire - [Reserve Stressgard | Turf Fungicide](https://fernland.com.au/reserve-stressgard-turf-fungicide/) — Envu ## Image credits - [Photo: Glenobear via Wikimedia Commons (Public domain)](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:DollarSpotSymptoms.jpg)