Monday, April 8, 2013

As was predicted the weather has turned much warmer in the mid-Atlantic and Northeastern U.S.
Showers and some T-storms are putting down precipitation that is made up of relatively warm water, which can rapidly increase soil temperatures, particularly near the surface where new roots are initiating growth from crown buds.  

New rooting of creeping bentgrass and Poa annua in green's height situations, appears to be a 'neck and neck' proposition (which bodes well for the creeping bentgrass).   Usually, the Poa annua has a bit of a competitive advantage when it comes to early rooting, but it doesn't not appear to be much this year. 

Earthworm activity has substantially increased of late, so Mother Nature's aerifiers are doing their job, but making a bit of a mess in the process.  These critters can disrupt the chemical barrier provided by preemergence herbicides which reduces effectiveness (even more so that mechanical core cultivation).  Dr. Dave Shetlar at The Ohio State University is a valuable resource for you with regard to reducing earthworm populations. 

As an aside, the book 'Managing Turfgrass Pests' published in the early 90's by myself, Dr. Peter Dernoden, and Dr. Shetlar has been recently revised and should be available to you by the end of this month.  Many updates, photos, and new cultural control strategies have been added to this second edition.  


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