QuestionIs the orange rust on grass harmful to adults and children playing on the grass? We like to play bean bags and other games and we also have 14 grandkids playing on the grass. In the middle of July we get the orange rust on the grass. Last year the grass here in Central Illinois died out and we were on drought restrictions and could not water the grass. In the fall we split seeded the whole yard and seeded it with a grass seed called Black Beauty. The lawn is growing back and looking great but we have the orange colored rust growing back. It has been a very wet spring and summer until the past 2 weeks and it has been a little on the dry side.
I'm going to take a sample of the soil into our local agriculture office this week. Our lawn guy who fertilizes our lawn 6 times a summer (and has for the past 8 years) did not seem to know how to solve our problem.
Do you have any other suggestions and is it harmful?
Thank you,
Sharon Whitten
Answer Nothing is 100% safe for 100% of human beings.
Plant diseases are not usually communicable to humans.
Rust is a fungal disease which flares up when the turf is under stress - usually from lack of water and/or nutrients.
A soil analysis is an important first step.
You are on the right track.
