Superintendent collaboration in action: The kikuyugrass excellence summit

Permalink | Cultural

PACE Turf member Kevin Hutchins at Mission Viejo Country Club in Mission Viejo, California sponsored the first Kikuyugrass Excellence Summit in February, 2010, with a mission to improve kikuyugrass performance by enhancing communication among kikuyugrass superintendents and sharing their expert knowledge of kikuyugrass management. More than 25 golf course superintendents who currently manage kikuyugrass met to discuss all aspects of kikuyugrass management as a fine turf type for golf courses. The group has agreed to have periodic meetings in the future to further share ideas and test results. 

Three documents were prepared for the Summit:

• Kikuyugrass Summit Mission Statement (44 KB pdf)
• Kikuyugrass Management Survey Results (156 KB pdf)
• Kikuyugrass Summit 2010 February 1, 2010 - Summary (131 KB pdf)

PACE Turf has setup a Kikuyugrass Working Group Forum that can be read by the public, but with posting in the forum restricted to PACE Turf members. Information updates will be posted in the forum and research results will be posted in Super Journal and other scientific and trade publications.

List of Attendees

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       

Name	JobTitle	Company
Bill Houlihan	Superintendent	Black Gold Golf Club
Brian Archbold	Superintendent	El Niguel Country Club
David Michael	Superintendent	Friendly Hills Country Club
Juan Maldonado	Superintendent	Glendora Country Club
Dennis Fowler	Superintendent	La Jolla Country Club
Sean Cincotta	Superintendent	Laguna Woods Golf Course
Matt Deuel	Superintendent	Las Posas Country Club
Arnie Peredia	Superintendent	Los Coyotes Country Club
Jose Prieto	Superintendent	Los Serranos Country Club
Bruce Duenow	Superintendent	Los Verdes Country Club
Robert Gluck	Superintendent	Mesa Verde Country Club
Kevin Hutchins	Superintendent	Mission Viejo Country Club
Ron Benedict	Superintendent	Newport Beach Country Club
Larry Stowell	Scientist	Pace Turf
Wendy Gelernter	Scientist	Pace Turf
Pat Gradoville	Superintendent	Palos Verdes Golf Club
Jim Pitman	Superintendent	Rolling Hills Country Club
Gus Nelson	Superintendent	San Clemente Golf Course
Rich Liddle	Superintendent	San Gabriel Country Club
David Zahrte	Superintendent	Santa Ana Country Club
Kurt Desiderio	Superintendent	Saticoy Country Club
Mike Wolpoff	Superintendent	Sea Cliff Country Club
Ken Graves	Superintendent	South Hills Country Club
Candice Combs	Superintendent	Torrey Pines Golf Course
Jim Baird	Extension Specialist	UC Riverside
Pat Gross	Director	USGA
Tim Wren	Superintendent	Yorba Linda Country Club

Research on biorationals for control of nematodes

Permalink | Diseases

Nematodes are causing increasing problems on golf course greens (read more here), and, with the cancellation of Nemacur (fenamiphos), there are few effective products available for their control. For this reason, we conducted a field study on the efficacy of several different biological control agents for control of nematodes — particularly the root knot nematode, Meloidogyne. We found that:

• An experimental product based on the beneficial bacterium Bacillus firmus had the best results, causing significant reductions in root knot nematodes (RKN) without any associated phytotoxicity
• The amino acid methionine also caused reductions in RKN, but also caused significant damage to bentgrass at the rate tested
• The other products tested included Biofence, which is based on ground mustard plant tissue) and Inoculaid (a mixture of beneficial bacteria). Neither of these products had an impact on nematode populations

Bottom line: Bacillus firmus, which has been shown in previous studies to have potential as a nematicidal agent, showed promise in this trial for control of root knot nematode. Further work is needed to confirm this, and to identify optimal use patterns. This product, which is under development at Bayer Environmental Sciences, is not yet available for sale, but if research continues to confirm its promise, we hope expect to see it made available very soon.

Project title: Biorational products for nematode control

Principal investigators: Larry Stowell, Ph.D., CPAg and Wendy Gelernter, Ph.D., PACE Turf LLC and Michael McClure, Ph.D., University of Arizona

Cooperator: Troy Mullane, Rancho Santa Fe Farms Golf Club, Rancho SAnta Fe, CA

Sponsor: PACE Turf LLC

Click here for the full report (206 KB pdf)

Video: Compaction relief

Permalink |

If one photo is worth 1,000 words, this video is priceless. Watch Dennis Fowler, La Jolla Country Club, California, get some relief from compaction that developed in USGA greens following several years of shallow (3 inches deep) aeration practices. To ease compaction, deep tine aeration was conducted. You can judge for yourself how effective the process was for breaking through the compaction layer and reducing compaction throughout the green.

The process utilized a Weidenmann Terra Spike GXi with 0.25 inch diameter solid tines to a depth between 6 and 8 inches. The equipment was operated by Matt Marsh for Larry Lane of Turf Time West, Inc.

Was this video helpful to you?

There's plenty more where that came from at the PACE Turf Information Center, where turf managers go for real solutions to their turf agronomic problems. Sign up today, and get immediate access to all of PACE Turf's membership services for $275 per year, or just $ 0.75 per day. For expert agronomic advice that helps you prevent pest, soil or water problems before they occur, it's money well spent!

For more information, please visit our home page or read what other turf managers have to say about the benefits of membership. Please also feel free to contact us at any time. We look forward to working with you soon.