Use deep tillage to break up compacted soil horizons. Crop rotation helps to reduce inoculum levels, but long-term rotations are necessary to eradicate the fungus. Annual Kentucky Alfalfa Variety Test Report, Progress Report 351. Plants are often killed during winter, resulting in stands failing to regrow in spring. Active infections in spring cause patches of plants to turn yellow, wilt, and die.
Rotted crowns are yellowish-brown to brown, and they eventually disintegrate.
White cottony fungal growth is often present on infected stems and crowns before dew dries. Infections begin in late October from airborne spores. The fungus is common in fields and pastures in many areas of Kentucky and survives as sclerotia in soil for 4-5 years or longer. The fungus also attacks clovers. If fall seeding, seed as early as possible to allow plants to develop larger, more resistant crowns.