What Can Be Sprayed on Mold That Will Not Kill Grass or Hurt Animals or Humans?

Targeting the Disease

• The first step, when choosing an herbicide for mold growth, is to identify the particular fungal disease. After all, choosing a fungicide that is safe for use on your lawn and around people and pets will be in vain if it does not kill the source of the mold growth. The easiest way to identify the disease-causing mold is usually by the color, texture and size of the mold itself. Other parallel symptoms that occur alongside the mold growth may include dead grass patches, general grass discoloration or blades of grass that appear "water-soaked." Pairing these parallel symptoms with the physical characteristics of the mold patches can help identify the fungus in your lawn. Once you have identified the fungal disease that is threatening your lawn, browse the herbicides that are rated to treat that particular disease.

Common Fungicides for Lawngrass

• There are numerous fungicides rated for use on lawngrass. Some of the most commonly used include azoxystrobin, captan, chlorothalonil, chlorothalonil + diazinon, copper ammonium, copper hydroxide, copper sulfate, fosetyl-al, lime sulfur, maneb, myclobutanil, neem oil or phosphoric acid. Fungicide availability varies on a state by state basis, so some of the fungicides listed here may not be available in your area. Still others may be available only to professional lawn service providers. But each fungicide will feature a listing of the diseases that it is designed to kill, so regardless of what fungicide chemical you purchase, make sure it is one that's designed to treat the fungal disease in your lawn.

Minimizing Grass Injury

• Once you have found a fungicide chemical that will rid your lawn of the mold growth, you need to make sure your grass is not injured by the fungicide. Each chemical fungicide will also include a listing of the species of plants to which it can be safely applied; make sure the species of grass you grow on your lawn is included in this listing. When applying the fungicide, you need to take steps to protect the other plants in and around your lawn from fungicide drift. If you have more than one type of grass growing in your lawn, check if the fungicide is safe for use on both types. If it is not, limit application to the target species only.

Human and Pet Health Risks

• If your pets and family members spend a lot of time outside on the lawn, you need to understand the potential health risks of the fungicide you select. First, read and follow the manufacturer's printed instructions exactly. By law, fungicides and other pesticides must have labels that detail all possible risks to human, animal and plant life and how to avoid these risks. So long as the printed safety instructions are followed meticulously, you can be reasonably assured that the fungicide will not present risks to your pets, grass or family members.