Main infectious diseases of grasses used in sports turf and their control: a review

   This review commences by detailing the significance and classification of turfgrass stands, along with an overview of global leaders in turfgrass culture, breeding, and seed production. An overall assessment is provided for the state of sports turfs, including football pitches and golf courses, from economic and eco-geographical perspectives, covering their distribution within the Russian Federation. The article thoroughly describes the taxonomy infection cycles, and specific pathogenesis of pathogens causing diseases of natural sports surfaces. These diseases are classified by affected plant organs into those impacting the root system and those affecting the foliar apparatus (leaves, grass). As causal agents of root rots, fungi from the genera Fusarium, Rhizoctonia, Gaeumannomyces graminis, and oomycetes from the genus Pythium are noted. Among the significant infectious diseases affecting the foliar apparatus of sports turf, rust diseases, various leaf spots, and powdery mildew are described. It is demonstrated that many dominant pathogens can equally infect both underground and aboveground parts of host plants; these include fungi from the genera Bipolaris and Drechslera, known to cause root rots, leaf spots, and seed necrosis. Dangerous winter diseases of playing fields described include snow molds, caused by cryophilic fungi. Alongside common diseases of sports turfs, attention is paid to relatively new ones, including anthracnose, blast, and ‘fairy rings’ of various etiologies, which have reached epiphytotic levels on golf courses in several countries in recent decades. Information is provided on the only recorded bacterial disease found on sports grounds – bacterial leaf wilt (Xanthomonas translucens); the names of viruses capable of affecting turf grass are also listed. The review systematically organizes data on methods for controlling sports turf diseases. It is of both theoretical and practical interest for researchers and students specializing in turfgrass science, as well as for agronomists in the field of sports turf management.

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