Welcome to the “Turf Agriphone” sponsored by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. This message is being recorded for the week of May 11-18, 2001.
Rain is falling here in Guelph at the time of recording this message. It is really needed. According to the weather data from Ontario up to May 8 we have received about half the rain from last year. Our growing degree days are higher than this time last year. We have had good temperatures for turf growth, but moisture has been the limiting factor. The dry conditions have caused some browning of the shallow rooted grass species such as rough bluegrass and creeping bentgrass on home lawns. Expect a bit of a surge of growth after the rain.
The dry conditions have meant that there are virtually no disease problems to speak of at the moment. If we do get a few days of rain, expect to see some leaf spot and possibly some red thread. There may be some Fusarium patch activity if we have some cool nights associated with this rain.
More calls coming in about leatherjackets. These are 1.5-2.0 cm long larvae that are grey/green in colour. Unlike caterpillars, they do not have any legs. Leatherjackets feed on the turf blades and the crowns and can cause a fair bit of damage http://www.gov.on.ca/OMAFRA/english/crops/facts/damage.jpg. I am still interested in the distribution and spread of this pest. If you are encountering leatherjackets in areas outside of Burlington, Ancaster, Niagara, Windsor and Sarnia, please give my office a call at (519) 824-4120 x2597 or send me an e-mail at pcharbon@omafra.gov.on.ca.
Black turfgrass ataenius are starting to emerge from their overwintering sites now on golf courses. They can be founding flying around on sunny afternoons around golf greens. Make a note of areas with heavy adult flights. Check these areas in about 3 weeks time for signs of ataenius grub feeding. The damage usually shows up first on collars and the edges of fairways.
Forsythia have pretty much finished flowering here in Guelph. I have not seen any crabgrass yet, however. Lawn care companies are in the middle of their crabgrass treatments. With the product Dimension you have a much larger window for pre-emergence crabgrass treatments because of the early post emergence activity provided by this product. Many people seem to be skipping the pre-emergence crabgrass treatment in favour of an Acclaim treatment later in the season, if necessary. Remember not to apply these crabgrass products to lawns that have been reseeded because the products will prevent weed seeds from germinating, but they will also prevent grass seed from germinating. For Dimension, you must wait 3 months before reseeding.
Dandelion flowering has peaked here in the Guelph area. Even though this is the time when homeowners expect weed control, it is often best to wait a couple of weeks to let the spring annual weeds germinate and then they will be controlled by the herbicide application too. The exception might be areas that have a lot of ground ivy and other hard to control weeds. It is best to apply herbicide when they are flowering.
Annual bluegrass seedhead formation is peaking also. To help maintain a good putting surface on greens, try light vertical mowing to control grain. I would advise, however, to wait until we get some rain to start any cultural practices such as core aeration, verticutting, topdressing, etc..
In general, now is usually a good time for core aerating turf. Conditions should be ideal after the rain. Any turf that did not get a late season fertilization would probably benefit with a light nitrogen application right now. Turf that did get a late season fertilization should be good for a couple of weeks still.
A research company is trying to find sites for hairy chinch bug insecticide trials in the Guelph, Cambridge, Kitchener or Hamilton area. They are looking for commercial turf sites with a history of hairy chinch bug damage. They would like to be able to go in in a couple a week or so when the chinch bugs are moving in from their overwintering sites to get some adult counts. If you think you have such a site and are willing to have research conducted there, could you please give me a call at (519) 824-4120 x 2597.
Again, thanks for phoning the Turf Agriphone for this week. The next agriphone message will be recorded on Fri. May 18,2001. – See more at: https://lawnsavers.com/turf-hotline-2001/turf-agrifax-week-5-2001-may-11th-2001.html#sthash.gdNVaNTY.dpuf
