Dollar spot - a new disease in Scandinavia

Dollar spot is expected to become a serious problem. Two variants of the fungus (Sclerotinia homoeocarpa) have been identified in Scandinavia, but it is uncertain how widespread they are and how severe damage they may cause.

The fungus is spread with golf equipment and machinery. It causes disease on all commonly used grass species. The symptoms are light round, wilted spots that appear in the turf when it is warm and moist.

Some grass varieties are more resistant than others. Maintenance that stimulates growth can limit the damages, but the use of fungicides may become necessary especially on greens, because the spots create
indents in the surface and cause bad putting quality. The access to fungicides is limited.

The fact sheet is available in English, Swedish and Norwegian.

About STERF

STERF is a research foundation that supports existing and future R&D efforts and delivers ‘ready-to-use research results’ that benefit the Nordic golf sector. STERF was set up in 2006 by the golf federations in Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland, Iceland and the Nordic Greenkeepers’ Associations.