Beneath a Fairy Ring lurks fungus
![[U of Nebraska, John Watkins] Dead grass of a Fairy Ring](fairy-ring.jpg) Q: What causes "Fairy Rings"? In our yard are several rings where the grass has died in an
almost perfect circle. The Agriculture Extension Agent sent a brochure naming them as "fairy
rings" but short on why they formed and how to get rid of them. -Gordon S., Sanford, North Carolina
[U of Nebraska, John Watkins] Dead grass of a Fairy Ring
A: A huge threadlike, musty-smelling mass, called a mycelium, lies beneath your Fairy Ring. This fungus
is the culprit. It starts small, maybe a spore or with fungus pieces. Growing outward in all directions, it
secretes chemicals in the ground ahead to prepare the way. The chemicals break down living matter and release nutrients for the
advancing fungus.
For a brief time, the grass ahead flourishes. Then the fungus reaches the lush area and feeds. Like an advancing horde, the fungus strips
the land of food, moves on, and abandons the stripped turf. That's why it forms a widening ring-to gain new ground and food. That's
why the grass behind dies-it starves. Mushrooms, the fruit of the fungus, spring up just behind the outer edge of the fungus.
Getting rid of it is one tough job. See Further Surfing for suggestions.
With no barriers, each year, the rings may enlarge 8 inches (20 centimeters) and reach a diameter of over 30 feet (10 meters). A ring in
France is almost a half a mile (600 m) in diameter and may be 700 years old.
For centuries people believed a myth about what causes fairy rings: fairies dance around in a ring and wear a path in the turf.
(Answered by April Holladay, science correspondent, February 13, 2002)
Further Surfing:
U of Michigan: Fairy Rings
U of Nebraska-Lincoln: NebGuide, Fairy Rings
Purdue U: Fairy Rings
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