Arkansas Turfgrass - Winter 2020

T H E A R KA N S A S T U R F G RA S S A S S O C I AT I O N M AG AZ I N E • W I N T E R 2020

Utilize All Your Tools to

PROTECT YOUR TURF FROM WINTER INJURY

ATA ANNUAL CONFERENCE NEWS

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T H E A R KA N S A S T U R F G RA S S A S S O C I AT I O N M AG AZ I N E CO N T E N T S • W I N T E R 2020

33rd Annual ATA

CONFERENCE

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10

FEATURES

DEPARTMENTS

8 Upcoming Event –

ATA Annual Conference

10

Cover Story –

Utilize All Your Tools to Protect Your Turf from Winter Injury

6 President’s Message 7 Index of Advertisers 7 University of Arkansas Turf Team

Find this issue, Podcasts, Events and More: T H E T U R F Z O N E.C O M

4 • A R K A N S A S T U R F G R A S S • Winter 2020

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Winter 2020

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P R E S I D E N T ’S M E S S AG E

Education

Arkansas Turfgrass Association P.O. Box 185 • Bryant, AR 72089 Tel: 501-860-0187 Published by: Leading Edge Communications, LLC 206 Bridge Street, Suite 200 Franklin, TN 37064 Tel: 615-790-3718 Email: info@leadingedge communications.com

Richard Covert ATA President

for Uncertain Times

F

all has arrived in Arkansas! The crisp mornings and cooler days are always a welcome relief from summer. Even in this crazy year, football is providing a welcome distraction and the Razorbacks are giving us some hope with their recent wins (and year two of that natural grass playing surface sure looks nice on television).

I know that the string of event cancellations this year has been disappointing and we will all miss being together in Hot Springs in January. However, when the Board considered the status of the annual conference earlier this year, it was apparent to all of us that an inperson event was simply not practical. We could not risk exposing attendees to illness and penalties with the convention center and hotels would have been financially devastating to our organization if we had moved forward with an in-person event and had to cancel at the last minute or had low attendance.

The exciting upside is that a virtual event will allow us to have a greater variety of speakers than we have had in previous years. We will learn from a variety of turfgrass and extension experts from around the country, as well as from our local U of A faculty and graduate students. Talks will be geared towards our usual tracks of golf, sports turf, and lawncare and will provide credits for pesticide recertification for the state of Arkansas and professional development points for GCSAA. We will also be presenting our annual awards for Field of the Year, Golf Course of the Year, and Turf Site of the Year.

We hope that the low registration price of $90 per person, coupled with the lack of travel costs, will allow more attendees than ever before to experience our outstanding education opportunities. Classes will be scheduled throughout the week of January 25–29 and will be recorded for those who wish to watch later. The recordings will be available through February 5.

Your association needs your continued support! Education is one sure way to improve your business and make yourself a more valuable employee. Also, we recognize that many of our members are experiencing financial challenges with reduced budgets this year and we have asked our presenters to include information in their talks about cost savings and low-cost options during this time.

I am looking forward to learning with you all in January and especially looking forward to our 2022 Annual Conference when we can all celebrate together again!

Richard Covert ATA President

ATA OFFICERS Richard Covert, President Baptist Health Systems Richard.covert@baptist-health.org Kyle Sanders, Immediate Past President Sanders Ground Essentials 501-315-9395 kylesanders@sandersground.com Jeff Haskins, Treasurer Paragould Country Club 870-780-5883 Ja1116@earthlink.net Karen Cooper Executive Director 785-331-9225 ataturfgrass@gmail.com Doug Karcher, Ph.D., Education Chair University of Arkansas • 479-575-5723 karcher@uark.edu Pat Berger, Director Emeritus University of Arkansas • 479-575-6887 pberger@uark.edu Charlie Bowen, Director Emeritus Arkansas Hydroseed • 501-315-7333 charliebowen@yahoo.com Seth Dunlap Arkansas State Plant Board seth.dunlap@agriculture.arkansas.gov 501-225-1598 Mark Brown Nabholz • 501-749-7459 rmbrown2@ualr.edu Rodney Fisher Life Member, Founding Member Agra Turf, Inc. • 501-268-7036 agrarod@yahoo.com Ron Fisher Agra Turf, Inc. • 501-268-7036 agraron@yahoo.com Steve Ibbotson Conway Parks & Rec. • 501-328-4173 Steve.ibbotson@cityofconway.org Josh Landreth Ace of Blades • 479-530-7001 aceofblades@cox.net Mark Mowrey, Director Emeritus Oaklawn • 501-538-1600 bntgrns@yahoo.com Guy Oyler Jerry Pate Turf & Irrigation goyler@jerrypate.com • 501-317-5980 Rodger Pevehouse Life Member Michael Rush Rush Lawn Care • 501-279-8980 mrush@rushlawn.com

6 • A R K A N S A S T U R F G R A S S • Winter 2020

Ricky Self Cypress Creek r.self@yahoo.com • 501-605-8000

TheTurfZone.com is the central hub for turfgrass research and information from multiple state turf associations.

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U N I V E R S I TY O F A R KA N S A S T U R F T E A M

INDEX OF A DV E RT I S E R S

Doug Karcher, Ph.D. Professor 479-575-5723 karcher@uark.edu

Agra Turf, Inc......................................................5 www.agrainc.com

Mike Richardson, Ph.D. Professor 479-575-2860 mricha@uark.edu John Boyd, Ph.D. Visiting Assistant Professor Cooperative Extension Service Little Rock 479-575-2354 Jwb019@uark.edu John H. McCalla Jr. Program Technician III 479-575-5033 jmccall@uark.edu Eric DeBoer Program Technician / Ph.D. Student ejdeboer@uark.edu Thomas Walton – M.S. Student

Beam Clay...........................................................5 www.BEAMCLAY.com • www.PARTAC.com HollyFrontier Speciality Products..... Back Cover www.hollyfrontierlsp.com Leading Edge Communications...............3, 5, 7 www.LeadingEdgeCommunications.com Progressive Turf Equipment Inc.......................3 www.progressiveturfequip.com Smith Seed Services..........................................5 www.smithseed.com The Turfgrass Group..... Inside Front Cover, 13 www.theturfgrassgroup.com

To discuss advertising opportunities, contact Leading Edge Communications:

615-790-3718 888-707-7141 ( TOLL FREE )

sales@leadingedgecommunications.com www.LeadingEdgeCommunications.com The statements and opinions expressed herein are those of the individual authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the Arkansas Turfgrass Association, its staff, or its board of directors, Arkansas Turfgrass, or its editors. Likewise, the appearance of advertisers, or their identification as Arkansas Turfgrass Association members, does not constitute an endorsement of the products or services featured in this, past or subsequent issues of this quarterly publication. Copyright © 2020 by the Arkansas Turfgrass Association. Arkansas Turfgrass is published quarterly. Subscriptions are complimentary to members of the Arkansas Turfgrass Association. Third-class postage is paid at Jefferson City, MO. Printed in the U.S.A. We are not responsible for unsolicited freelance manuscripts and photographs. Contact the managing editor for contribution information.

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U P CO M I N G E V E N T

33 Annual ATA rd

CONFERENCE JANUARY 25–29, 2021

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he Arkansas Turfgrass Association annual conference will take place virtually during the week of January 25–29, 2021. The ATA Board of Directors voted unanimously over the summer to make this change for the 2021 event in order to protect the health and safety of all members. There will be numerous opportunities for learning during the week and pesticide recertification credits and GCSAA PDI points will be available. We will also be recognizing our outstanding members with our annual ATA awards for lawn, golf, and sports!

Education sessions will occur throughout the week via a virtual platform and will be recorded for your convenience. We recognize

8 • A R K A N S A S T U R F G R A S S • Winter 2020

that it is challenging to sit in front of a screen for extended amounts of time and we are making every effort to provide a variety of learning opportunities at convenient times so that everyone can gain new knowledge while also getting the necessary credits for recertification or professional development.

Three or four courses will be offered each day and each class will be about 50 minutes in length, including time for question and answers at the end. Each course will be recorded and made available to all registered attendees later in the day. All classes will be available through Friday, February 5, giving everyone at least a full week to view as many courses as they would like.

THE VIRTUAL FORMAT has given us the opportunity to include more speakers than in previous years and the lineup this year includes: SHAWN ASKEW Virginia Tech • PoaCure® (methiozolin) • Goosegrass Control VIKRAM BALIGA Texas Tech • Multi-purpose, water efficient landscape design MIKE GOATLEY Virginia Tech • Cultural practices for turfgrasses LISA GOATLEY The Cascade Group

COSTS & REGISTRATION The conference cost will be $90 per person this year, which includes access to all sessions (live and recorded) as well as annual ATA dues. There will also be a special corporate rate for businesses with more than three attendees. Registration information will be sent no later than December 1, 2020 and will also be available on the ATA website after that date.

For more information about REGISTRATION for the 33rd Annual ATA Conference, visit our website

www.arkansasturf.net and follow us on Facebook and Twitter.

We hope to see you there!

HELP SUPPORT ATA by Becoming a Sponsor Our sponsors help us produce this event while keeping our prices as low as possible.

• Work-Life balance in uncertain times ROB GOLEMBIEWSKI Bayer • Summer stress on turfgrass LEE MILLER University of Missouri • Turfgrass disease ID and treatment THOM NIKOLAI Michigan State University • History of Pesticide Usage • Lightweight rolling ERIC REASOR PBI Gordon • Sedge and Kyllinga control • Annual bluegrass control in warm-season turfgrass CHRISSIE SEGARS Texas A&M • Equipment calibration • Turfgrass selection, including new cultivars

If you are interested in learning more about AVAILABLE SPONSORSHIPS, please contact Karen Cooper at

ataturfgrass@gmail.com There’s still time to submit ATA AWARD APPLICATIONS The following awards will be presented:

ATA FIELD OF THE YEAR Football / Soccer or Baseball / Softball ATA GOLF COURSE OF THE YEAR Private / Resort or Public / Municipal ATA TURF SITE OF THE YEAR Commercial or Residential Site For more information about AWARD SUBMISSIONS, visit our website

www.arkansasturf.net All submissions are due by December 15, 2020.

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COV E R S TO RY

UTILIZE ALL YOUR TOOLS TO

PROTECT YOUR TURF FROM WINTER INJURY

By Mike Richardson, Eric De Boer, and Thomas Walton – University of Arkansas

L

ast winter (2019–20) was a very mild one for the Natural State. In Fayetteville, our daily high and low temperatures were consistently above the 30-year average and, more importantly, we only had a handful of days when the temperature dropped into the teens and no days where we were in the single digits (Figure 1). However, don’t let one nice, mild winter lull you into thinking that you should not be doing everything you can to prepare for the winter ahead. This is especially true for golf course superintendents that are using warm-season grasses such as ultradwarf bermudagrasses on their greens.

Winterkill has been an ongoing challenge over my 20+ years of doing research in Arkansas and there are still no “magic bullets” or “super grasses” that will solve all of your problems.

Although we usually think about those super low temperatures as being the main culprit, winterkill can also be the result of winter desiccation or low-temperature diseases such as spring dead spot. We have conducted countless field trials associated with winterkill at the UofA-Fayetteville over the past twenty years and have investigated everything from cultivars to fertility programs to various winter over-seeding approaches to the use of plant growth regulators (PGRs), wetting agents, fungicides, and protective covers. What have we learned? You should use the best available genetics, apply proper fertility, utilize PGRs, and possibly apply wetting agents, fungicides, and covers!! ALL of the tools in your toolbox should be in play when preparing for the dark days and cold nights of winter. Another factor that is always an issue when winterkill shows up is the overall health of the turf going into the winter. Remember, any area that has

10 • A R K A N S A S T U R F G R A S S • Winter 2020

been weakened by shade, poor drainage, traffic, compaction, weed competition, herbicide injury, etc., is likely going to be an area that could be damaged by a hard winter.

Genetics are always a great place to start when thinking about avoiding winterkill. The development of cold-tolerant bermudagrass cultivars really ramped up back in the 80s and 90s and was led by the turfgrass breeders at Oklahoma State University, including Dr. Charles Taliaferro and now Dr. Yanqi Wu. Some of their landmark bermudagrass cultivars that have really “moved the needle” in terms of cold tolerance include early vegetative cultivars like Patriot and seeded cultivars like Riviera and Yukon. In recent years, a number of new hybrids such as Latitude 36, Northbridge, and Tahoma 31 have shown even more promise for protection against winterkill. The Arkansas Razorbacks installed ‘Tahoma 31’ bermudagrass in Reynolds Razorback Stadium in 2019 and that selection was primarily based on its superior cold tolerance. The Razorbacks have also converted most of Baum Stadium to ‘Latitude 36’ over the past 5–6 years. Over that time period, issues with winterkill have been almost non-existent with these new grasses. Although more energy has been focused on developing cold-tolerant bermudagrasses than other species, there are also some exciting new developments on the horizon for traditional lawn grasses like St. Augustinegrass.

When looking at the ultradwarf bermudagrasses (UDB) for putting greens, there are fewer options with regards to genetics, but we have certainly seen differences in our trials.

We conducted a 3-year trial at Fayetteville that included the major UDB cultivars Champion, MiniVerde, and Tifeagle.

1

FIGURE 1 – Temperature patterns in Fayetteville, AR during the 2019-2020 winter. The 30-year average minimum and maximum temperatures are represented as 0, so anything above 0 represents “above-average” and anything below 0 represents “below-average”.

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COV E R S TO RY • continued

Although the degree of winterkill that was observed each year was strongly influenced by the severity of the weather, we consistently saw less winter injury on MiniVerde and Tifeagle than we did on Champion (Figure 2). We recently published that work and would be happy to share a full copy of the paper (De Boer et al., 2019). There are also some new cultivars and experimental lines out there that appear to be promising, but it is too early to make a strong recommendation regarding their winter survival.

When it comes to management, some of our earliest studies looked at the effects of fall fertility programs and plant growth regulators, specifically Primo, on winter injury of bermudagrass.

Historically, it was believed that nitrogen should not be applied in the fall to grasses like bermudagrass and you should switch to a

“winterizer” fertilizer that was high in potassium to avoid winter injury. Studies over the last 20 years from Arkansas, Kentucky, and Virginia have consistently shown that applying nitrogen in the fall is not a contributing factor to winter injury, as long as potassium is not deficient. Our current recommendations are to continue applying some nitrogen into September and October, but the rates should be reduced just because the grass is not growing as much and does not need as much nitrogen. We have also seen some positive benefits of applying Primo (trinexapac-ethyl) going into the fall, but all of that work was done on golf course fairway turf, so we’re not sure if it is applicable to other species or surfaces. Both fall nitrogen and Primo have also shown a positive benefit on early-spring greenup in bermudagrass.

FIGURE 2 – Winter injury on three ultradwarf bermudagrass cultivars following the 2016–2017 winter in Fayetteville, AR. The center plots are the uncovered control plots, where all cultivars were severely injured.

12 • A R K A N S A S T U R F G R A S S • Winter 2020

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COV E R S TO RY • continued

Over the last five years, much of our work has focused on managing winter injury on ultradwarf putting greens and most of those studies have revolved around the use of protective covers and wetting agents. The use of protective covers during the winter season is a proven strategy to combat winterkill in warmseason grasses. Covers enhance survival of bermudagrass by retaining more moisture in the crowns and maintaining soil temperatures above a critical threshold. Historically, it was recommended that ultradwarf bermudagrass putting surfaces should be covered when the predicted low temperature was going to be below 25 °F. Recent field trials at our location have demonstrated that the predicted temperature for covering greens can be lowered to 15 °F with no reduction in winter survival (DeBoer et al., 2019a). This strategy can be financially beneficial

to a golf course as the labor required to cover and uncover greens is significant and this reduction in the covering temperature can significantly reduce the number of covering events during the winter. In addition, reducing the number of coverings can also allow the course to be open for play more in the winter, which can impact revenue for the club.

Unfortunately, even when covers are used, winterkill can still be observed on putting greens in more northern locations (Figure 3). Another strategy that we are currently studying is the inclusion of an “air gap” under the cover to further reduce extreme low temperatures on the greens. An air gap prevents the cover from coming directly in contact with the surface of the putting green and could provide additional insulation and warmer temperatures than covers alone. Things like straw

FIGURE 3 – Winterkill on an ultradwarf bermudagrass green in Fayetteville, AR that was covered during the winter. Note better recovery in areas where ripples occurred in the cover.

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3

or pine needles have been used for decades, either alone on the surface of putting greens or underneath tarps, to retain heat and reduce fluctuations in temperature more efficiently than covers alone. In recent trials conducted at the University of Arkansas, (De Boer et al., 2019b; Thomas Walton, unpublished) we have experimented with the inclusion of alternative air gap treatments under covers such as synthetic “batting” material (Hendrix Batting, High Point, NC), drainage pipes, and straw erosion blankets (Figure 4). The results so far have been promising, as air gap treatments can raise soil temperatures a few degrees compared to covers alone. It is also clear that the use of air gap products will add cost and labor to the process and should only be considered in very difficult locations on a course that are more prone to winter injury, such as a shaded putting green.

FIGURE 4 – Various materials used to create an “air gap” under a protective cover. Materials include straw erosion control blankets (green), synthetic batting (white) and ABS drainage pipes.

4

Another approach that we have seen promising results with is the use of wetting agents in the winter to reduce the likelihood of desiccation injury. Hydrophobic sands and localized dry spot are common problems on putting greens and the use of wetting agents (surfactants) is now considered as essential to putting green management as mowing and fertilizers. In the winter months, when greens are dormant, the presence of dry conditions are not as easy to diagnose and may be overlooked by the superintendent. We have conducted a number of studies looking at a single application of a wetting agent in early winter (December) and have seen a positive effect of those treatments on winter survival (De Boer, 2019a; De Boer, 2020). Although the benefits have not been observed from year to year, when we have had an unusually dry and cold winter, the results have been very evident. Since the cost of these products is not a major hindrance, we consider their use to be a good insurance policy to help prevent winter injury caused by desiccation.

Finally, all turfgrass managers should be aware of the disease problems that can exist in turfgrass systems during the winter months. Spring dead spot is considered a low-temperature disease of bermudagrass and is often more problematic during very cold winters. On high-value turf areas such as putting greens, golf course fairways and tees, athletic fields and even some lawns, managers should consider the use of fall-applied fungicides to minimize the occurrence of this disease. We discussed a number of strategies for reducing and controlling spring dead spot in a previous edition of this magazine (Richardson, 2019).

Managing turfgrasses in Arkansas to minimize winter injury can be a complex process, but it is important for managers to look at their entire program and utilize all of their tools to best address this issue.

REFERENCES De Boer, E.J., M.D. Richardson, J.H. McCalla, and D.E. Karcher.

2019a. Reducing ultradwarf bermudagrass putting green winter injury with covers and wetting agents. Crop, Forage, and Turfgrass Management 5:190019. https://doi.org/ 10.2134/cftm2019.03.0019.

De Boer, E.J., M.D. Richardson, and J.H. McCalla. 2019b.

Increasing winter soil temperatures with air gaps on ultradwarf bermudagrass putting greens. ASA-CSSA-SSSA International Annual Meeting, San Antonio, TX. De Boer, E.J., M.D. Richardson, J.H. McCalla, and D.E. Karcher.

2020. Effect of late-fall wetting agent application on winter survival of ultradwarf bermudagrass putting greens. Crop Forage and Turfgrass Management https://doi.org/10.1002/ cft2.20035.

Richardson, M.D. 2019. Spring dead spot and large patch – spring diseases that need fall attention. Arkansas Turfgrass, Fall 2019, pp. 12–14. •

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