Welcome Back Summer Pests
Summer is cranking at full throttle now and so are many of the pest problems that we face each year.
Weeds like yellow nutsedge, kyllinga, and goosegrass are easy to find. We've made great strides in our quest to eliminate goosegrass, but it still pops up in high traffic areas along cart paths. It's under attack as we speak. Sedges and kyllinga are also major headaches that we are battling at the moment.
Bugs like annual bluegrass weevils were a big issue for the first time last year. This year we've managed to keep them at bay so far, but they are relentless and can't be ignored. Cicada killer wasps are an annual visitor that most of you have seen and perhaps run from on occasion. They are the large burrowing wasps that leave piles of soil on the greens, tees, and bunker edges. They don't sting, but are intimidating and a big nuisance.
New for this year are nematodes. These are parasites that feed on roots. Weak roots from nematode damage will result in very poor heat tolerance, increased disease pressure, and a host of other problems that can result in dead turf. Symptoms of poor turf vigor have been evident recently so we sent samples to a lab earlier last Monday. Friday the results came back and revealed very high populations of several different plant parasitic nematodes. We treated last night and are crossing our fingers that it will alleviate the issue. Roots are the key for survival in the heat so it's important for us to do all we can to keep them happy.
Fairway aeration went well last week with only a few hiccups. The ground was very hard in some places and the machines bounced around a lot. This caused some of the turf to heave in places. It is a good example of why we should do this every year. If we skip a year like we did last year, the ground gets so hard that the machines don't function properly.
Weeds like yellow nutsedge, kyllinga, and goosegrass are easy to find. We've made great strides in our quest to eliminate goosegrass, but it still pops up in high traffic areas along cart paths. It's under attack as we speak. Sedges and kyllinga are also major headaches that we are battling at the moment.
Bugs like annual bluegrass weevils were a big issue for the first time last year. This year we've managed to keep them at bay so far, but they are relentless and can't be ignored. Cicada killer wasps are an annual visitor that most of you have seen and perhaps run from on occasion. They are the large burrowing wasps that leave piles of soil on the greens, tees, and bunker edges. They don't sting, but are intimidating and a big nuisance.
New for this year are nematodes. These are parasites that feed on roots. Weak roots from nematode damage will result in very poor heat tolerance, increased disease pressure, and a host of other problems that can result in dead turf. Symptoms of poor turf vigor have been evident recently so we sent samples to a lab earlier last Monday. Friday the results came back and revealed very high populations of several different plant parasitic nematodes. We treated last night and are crossing our fingers that it will alleviate the issue. Roots are the key for survival in the heat so it's important for us to do all we can to keep them happy.
Fairway aeration went well last week with only a few hiccups. The ground was very hard in some places and the machines bounced around a lot. This caused some of the turf to heave in places. It is a good example of why we should do this every year. If we skip a year like we did last year, the ground gets so hard that the machines don't function properly.
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| Aerators in action last Monday |
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| Hard ground made it difficult to get a clean result. When the machines bounced out of the ground the turf heaved up. |
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