Pennsylvania Turfgrass - Spring 2020

Spring 2020 • Vol. 9/No. 2

How Does Fertilizer N Evade Turfgrass Assimilation as Gas? DAN DOUGLAS: A Career of Distinguished Service in Sports Turf

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Vol. 9 / No. 2 • Spring 2020

Pennsylvania Turfgrass Council P.O. Box 99 Boalsburg, PA 16827-0550 Phone: (814) 237-0767 Fax: (814) 414-3303 info@paturf.org www.paturf.org Publisher: Leading Edge Communications, LLC 206 Bridge St. • Franklin, TN 37064 Phone: (615) 790-3718 Fax: (615) 794-4524 info@leadingedge communications.com

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Pennsylvania Turfgrass Editor Max Schlossberg, Ph.D. Penn State University • mjs38@psu.edu Pennsylvania Turfgrass Associate Editors Maria Landschoot maria.landschoot3@gmail.com Heather Welch Penn State University • hgw1@psu.edu President Pete Ramsey Masonic Villages • Mechanicsburg, PA (717) 766-2511 Vice President Tom Fisher Wildwood Golf Club • Allison Park, PA (412) 518-8384

12

14

Features

Departments

8 Cover Story

6 President’s Update

How Does Fertilizer N Evade Turfgrass Assimilation as Gas?

12 Recent Event Highlights from the

2020 Eastern Pennsylvania Golf, Lawn, Landscape and Sports Turf Conference

14 Between the Lines Dan Douglas: A Career of Distinguished Service in Sports Turf

4 Pennsylvania Turfgrass • Spring 2020

6 Penn State Turf Team 7 Advertiser Index

Secretary-Treasurer Rick Catalogna Harrell’s LLC Territory Manager (412) 897-0480 Past President Chase Rogan GCSAA Field Staff • Mid-Atlantic Region Allison Park, PA (614) 241-3037 Directors Tom Bettle Penn State University Tanner Delvalle Penn State University Dan Douglas Reading Fightin Phils Elliott Dowling USGA Agronomist, Northeast Region

16 Penn State News: Alumni Updates

Nick Huttie Allentown Parks and Recreation

18 Penn State News: Research Updates

Tim Wilk Scotch Valley Country Club

Shawn Kister Longwood Gardens

Matt Wolf Penn State University

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5

President’s Update

Labor, Viruses and Flies, Oh my!

W

elcome to the start of a new decade. It seems like yesterday that I was arguing with my mom about how much water and batteries she needed to have in the basement for Y2K. I have to admit, I breathed a sigh of relief when the sky didn’t fall at midnight back then. It’s hard to believe that twenty years have already gone by in the new millennium. This new decade has no shortage of concerns to keep us occupied.

The 2019 growing season gave the golf industry a boost in revenue and finally provided control of the moisture later in the season. Labor shortages seemed to be the overwhelming issue. Staff have been difficult to find, and they are often able to name their price. It’s frustrating when you don’t always get what you pay for, but it’s also nice to see that the working class has more disposable income. This is forcing many of us to reevaluate how much time is invested in off-the-field areas vs. playing surfaces. Lately, I find myself looking at how I manage the facility very differently. The first several years of the millennium seemed like we could do no wrong in turf. We were trying to Tiger-proof our courses. We wanted athletic fields that were absolutely stunning. Now it’s all about junior programs with forward tees and synthetic turf. I must admit, I love seeing kids on the golf course, and synthetic turf just makes too much sense in many situations.

I can no longer afford to maintain features that we installed 20 years ago and changes that we believed to be improvements at that time. I honestly think that many of the practices were more important to me than they were to our clients.

The removal of many of these features over the last two years yielded hardly any comments, but a significant savings and reallocation of labor. Now I know how my wife felt a week ago after having an inch cut from her hair…and I failed to notice.

Things that I notice around the property other people never will. Thoughtful conversations with players, residents, and decision makers about what is important to them has altered my perspective. Now I realize it will appear to them that I am doing more with less. It feels even better when it’s true and not just smoke and mirrors. Think of it this way, if the stars need to align in order for your program to be successful, that’s not exactly the definition of a sustainable practice. More importantly, we need to be the authors of those practices. If we start these conversations about sustainability and BMP’s, it will alter people’s perspective of us. They may realize that we are right regarding certain things they can do without. But they can’t do it without us.

The labor issue isn’t changing anytime soon. It’s a good problem to have, ultimately. When unemployment was higher, I didn’t always end up with the pick of the litter, either. I remember asking police to let someone finish out the day before they hauled him away. At least the Spotted Lantern Fly doesn’t feed on turf yet. Hopefully the closest any of us gets to the coronavirus is a headache and some empty bottles. Enjoy your spring!

Pete Ramsey PTC President

Penn State Turf Team

Jeffrey A. Borger Senior Instructor in Turfgrass Weed Management 814-865-3005 • jborger@psu.edu

Michael A. Fidanza, Ph.D. Professor of Plant & Soil Science 610-396-6330 • maf100@psu.edu

David R. Huff, Ph.D. Professor of Turfgrass Genetics 814-863-9805 • drh15@psu.edu

Brad Jakubowski Instructor of Plant Science 814-865-7118 • brj8@psu.edu

John E. Kaminski, Ph.D. Professor of Turfgrass Science 814-865-3007 • jek156@psu.edu

Peter J. Landschoot, Ph.D. Professor of Turfgrass Science 814-863-1017 • pjl1@psu.edu

Ben McGraw, Ph.D. Associate Professor of

Turfgrass Entomology 814-865-1138 • bam53@psu.edu

Andrew S. McNitt, Ph.D. Professor of Soil Science 814-863-1368 • asm4@psu.edu

Max Schlossberg, Ph.D. Associate Professor of Turfgrass Nutrition / Soil Fertility 814-863-1015 • mjs38@psu.edu

Al J. Turgeon, Ph.D. Professor Emeritus of Turfgrass Management aturgeon@psu.edu

Wakar Uddin, Ph.D. Professor of Plant Pathology 814-863-4498 • wxu2@psu.edu 6 Pennsylvania Turfgrass • Spring 2020

Advertiser Index

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Progressive Turf Equipment Inc............... 5

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Spring 2020 • Pennsylvania Turfgrass

7

Cover Story

How Does Fertilizer N Evade Turfgrass Assimilation as Gas?

By Max Schlossberg, Ph.D., and Nate Leiby, MS Graduate Student (BS TURF ’18), Center for Turfgrass Science, The Pennsylvania State University.

W

N2O Emissions

ell, to the satisfaction of article browsers, more easily and often than most realize. But the best answer remains; ‘it depends.’ Turfgrass requires greater quantities of N than any other mineral nutrient, and N sufficiency is promptly supported, or N deficiency is promptly reversed, by application of soluble N fertilizer(s) containing urea, NH4, and/or NO3.

There are four N-rich gases that arise from N fertilizers; dinitrogen (N2), nitrous oxide (N2O), nitric oxide (NO), and ammonia (NH3). In fact, every plant-available N-form (urea, NO3, NH4), or intermediate (NO2), serves as soil feedstock for at least one of the above gases. Evolution of these gases from originally plant available N-forms is undesirable. But once emitted, N2 is the least problematic of the bunch.

Agricultural soil is the greatest source of anthropogenic N2O emission on earth, accounting for nearly 70% of annual totals. Industry and combustion (fossil/other fuels) are the next greatest contributors. Nitrous oxide is a tenacious greenhouse gas that reduces protective ozone and claims very few opportunities for transformation or sequestration.

Incomplete soil denitrification of nitrate Denitrification is the microbiologically mediated reduction of NO2 and/or NO3 following incorporation of soluble N fertilizer into warm, saturated soil. Under such conditions, the nitrate fraction of a soluble fertilizer application relates directly to early denitrification severity (Figure 1). Turfgrass systems maintained on highly porous rootzones underlain Figure 1

8 Pennsylvania Turfgrass • Spring 2020

Cover Story • continued

by functional drainage are unlikely to lose N via denitrification. While systems maintained on native soils having high organic matter content and/or water-retention are more likely, especially in mid- to late-summer.

This is the part of the article where we considered introducing complete vs. incomplete denitrification, and describing the more benign product (N2) of the former and all the a/biotic factors identified by research as comparative facilitators of it. But in the context of modern cultural techniques developed and/or adopted by the most effective turfgrass managers worldwide, it’s a non-starter. No turfgrass manager should maximize water-filled pore space in efforts toward favoring the N2 denitrification product.

Incomplete soil nitrification of ammonium Nitrification is the microbiologically mediated oxidation of soil ammonium (NH4) and a notoriously prolific generator of soil acidity. Nitrification is a two-stage process, each depending on a separate genus of chemolithoautrophic microbes. Regrettably the second stage, oxidation of NO2 to NO3, is often limited by success of the first; oxidation of NH4 to NO2. Which constitutes feedback inhibition, but by no means incites greater risk to the product of the first stage, right? Wrong. Local oxygen depletion incites electron acceptance by the freshly oxidized NO2, catastrophically reducing it to NO or N2O. Most readers will recognize ‘… fate, it seems, is not without a sense of irony…’ as a quote

by Morpheus in The Matrix (1999). But how many know Morpheus was referring to nitrogen? Hmmmm, Danny?

NH3 Emissions

Most atmospheric ammonia in North America originates from livestock operations and fertilizer application. In the presence of nitrate or sulfate, NH3 constitutes the most significant and influential precursor to smog formation, i.e., particulate matter <2.5 micrometers in diameter (PM2.5).

Elevated PM2.5 levels are monitored in numerous nonattainment regions along the US Eastern Seaboard and are statistically correlated to adverse health effects. Furthermore, ammonia deposition to surfaces, the primary atmospheric removal mechanism, is considered a significant threat to terrestrial and aquatic ecosystem health.

Urea hydrolysis Of the soluble N fertilizers, urea (46-0-0) is the safest (lowest risk of desiccating tissue) and most cost effective on a unit N basis. Current urea fertilizer best management practices (BMPs) encourage prompt ‘soil incorporation’ by cultivation, coinciding rainfall, or scheduled irrigation event(s).

Yet, turfgrass managers’ short-term prioritization of nutrient sufficiency and clientele satisfaction can preclude rainfall/ irrigation concomitance. A sizable body of published results, old and new, confirm the cost of such inaction. Most recently, following granular urea-N application to a K. bluegrass lawn at 0.9 lbs N/1000 sq. ft., Penn State Univ. researchers determined 23% of the applied urea-N volatilized 10 Pennsylvania Turfgrass • Spring 2020

over just 3 days of dry conditions. Regarding foliar application of urea-N at 0.15 to 0.41 lbs N/1000 sq. ft. to putting greens, Penn State Univ. researchers directly measured gaseous NH3 loss of 5 to 11% of the applied fertilizer over 24 hours of dry conditions (Figure 2).

Disassociation of ammonium Ammonium (NH4) fertilizer, as well as NH4 either hydrolyzed from urea fertilizer or mineralized from organic matter, comprise a plant available N form. However, soil NH4 is subject to gaseous loss. Conditions favoring this fate include: limited oxygen that incites incomplete denitrification to NO/N2O emission (as described) and moderate to severe alkalinity causing NH4 to donate its proton and volatilize as NH3.

Soluble NH4-sulfate fertilizer (21-0-0) is the N source of choice to supply both plant-available N and pH-lowering acid. However, turfgrass soils/rootzones with pH levels >7.9 are actually too alkaline to support both objectives. Spoiler alert: plant-available N delivery will fall short of the application rate! Severely alkaline soil is better acidified and N fertilized by application of NH4-thiosulfate (12-0-0), or combinations of 21-0-0 and flowable elemental sulfur or K-thiosulfate (0-0-25), all complimented by nitrification inhibitor(s).

Preventing gaseous loss of fertilizer N

Employ physical cultivation to maximize air-filled pore space in the upper rootzone and adopt a frugal and unenthusiastic irrigation ideology. These efforts will support gas exchange and an aerobic rhizosphere more effectively than the alternative.

Avoid NO3-N sources when fertilizing: area under establishment, poorly drained areas, at the onset of a wet season Figure 2

continued • Cover Story

or prolonged/intense precipitation event, and in the warmest months of the growing season.

Avoid conventional urea-N sources when: rainfall/ irrigation is unavailable, temperatures are in excess of 85 F, treatment areas are moderately- to severely alkaline; excessively thatchy, and/or within a PM2.5 non-attainment region (Figure 3). Instead, apply N-fertilizers that feature efficiency enhancements (Figure 1), in accordance with regulations, and as needed to support desired density and vigor. Field research described above shows supplanting 25% of conventional urea-N with polymer-/sulfur- coated urea prevented 6.5% of the fertilizer-N from volatilizing 0- to 3-days following broadcast application.

When rainfall/irrigation is unavailable, yet fully-soluble N is needed by a system growing on acidic to neutral soil, apply NH4-, urea-, and/or urea-formaldehyde reaction product-based N-sources, complimented by 0.1% N-butylthiophosphoric triamide (NBPT) and 2.0% dicyandiamide (DCD) urease and nitrification inhibitors respectively.

Above described research showed over the 3 days following application of 0.9 lbs N/1000 sq. ft. of K. bluegrass, granular enhanced efficiency urea (stabilized with NBPT and DCD) emitted less than half the NH3 as conventional urea. Re-apply in accordance with regulations and only as needed to support desired density and vigor.

Future Direction and Summary

Ongoing field research comprising the co-author’s graduate thesis is evaluating NH3 volatilization and associated factors following urea and urea-based fertilizer application to creeping bentgrass fairways and putting greens. The more interesting of the experimental treatments is the complimenting of foliar urea-N applications by a petroleum derived spray oil. More results are pending!

To date, our research fully supports the 2014 designation of NBPT-amendment of urea as a Category 1 strategy/ technique for abatement of NH3 emissions by the UNECE Task Force on Reactive Nitrogen. Category 1 techniques are deemed practical, verifiably-efficient, and recommended for use in abatement strategies; relative to a broadcast application of conventional urea fertilizer. If no other soluble N-fertilizer source is available to support a critically-important granular application under warm, dry conditions, then employ of a NBPT+DCD-amended urea fertilizer constitutes a recommended best management practice (BMP).

References

Bittman, S., M. Dedina, C.M. Howard, O. Oenema, and M.A. Sutton. 2014. Options for Ammonia Mitigation: Guidance from the UNECE Task Force on Reactive Nitrogen, Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, Edinburgh, UK. Available at: www.clrtap-tfm.org Holst, G.J., M. Thygesen, C.B. Pedersen, R.G. Peel, J. Barndt, J.H. Christiensen, J. Bonlokke, O. Hertel, and T. Sigsgaard.

2017. Atmospheric ammonia, ammonium and incident asthma- A nationwide case-control study in Danish preschool children. European Respiratory J. 50:OA502, DOI: 10.1183/ 1393003.congress-2017.OA502 Schlossberg, M.J., B.A. McGraw, and R.L. Sebring. 2018.

Ammonia volatilization from putting greens foliarly-fertilized by conventional or stabilized urea. Agric. Environ. Lett.

3:180019. doi:10.2134/ael2018.04.0019 Schlossberg, M.J., B.A. McGraw, R.L. Sebring, and K.R. Hivner. 2018. Nitrogen recovery and loss from Kentucky bluegrass fertilized by conventional or enhanced-efficiency urea granules. Agronomy 8:144. doi:10.3390/ agronomy8080144

NH3 Concentration (µg/m3) < = 0.4 0.4 – 0.8 0.8 – 1.2

2017 Average Ambient Ammonia Concentration

http://nadp.slh.wisc.edu/lib/brochures/AMoNSheet.pdf

1.2 – 1.6 1.6 – 2.0 2.0 – 2.4 > 2.4

Figure 3 Spring 2020 • Pennsylvania Turfgrass 11

Recent Event

500 ATTENDED

the Eastern PA Turf Conference in January

T

he 2020 Eastern Pennsylvania Golf, Lawn, Landscape and Sports Turf Conference and Trade Show was presented by the Pennsylvania Turfgrass Council and featured speakers from the University of Tennessee, Rutgers, Penn State Extension, the Baltimore Orioles, the United States Golf Association, and the United States Department of Agriculture.

The event will return to the Shady Maple Conference Center on Friday, January 22, 2021.

Special thanks to the following companies that sponsored the conference: Helena Agri Lawn and Golf Supply Deer Country Farm & Lawn Aqua-Aid Solutions Syngenta The Professional Grounds Management Society

PBI Gordon Fisher and Son Hummer Turfgrass Turf Equipment and Supply Company Harrellâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Plant Food Company Elliott Dowling of the USGA

Tom Samples of the University of Tennessee

12 Pennsylvania Turfgrass â&#x20AC;˘ Spring 2020

The event was offered in association with: Lawn Care Association of PA Central PA GCSAA Professional Grounds Management Society Keystone Athletic Field Managers Organization Philadelphia Association GCS Keystone Association GCS Pennsylvania Recreation & Parks Society USGA Nicole Sherry of the Baltimore Orioles

Trade Show

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ANY SIZE AD IN PENNSYLVANIA TURFGRASS MAGAZINE OFFER GOOD FOR 1 ISSUE AND LIMITED TO NEW ADVERTISERS ONLY

Contact kristin@leadingedgecommunications.com or 615.790.3718 to take advantage of this offer!

Cannot be used in conjunction with other discounts, offers or current advertising agreements. Limited to one single ad in one issue only. Space is limited and available on a first come, first served basis. To ensure the integrity of our publications and for the benefit of our readers and advertisers, publisher reserves the right to revise, reclassify, edit or reject any Ad Material or any portion thereof at any time. Offer good through 6/30/2020.

Spring 2020 â&#x20AC;˘ Pennsylvania Turfgrass 13

Between the Lines

Between the Lines Dan Douglas: A Career of Distinguished Service in Sports Turf

D

an Douglas’s 35-year career in Sports Turf Management in many ways parallels the growth of the industry in Pennsylvania.

President of the Keystone Athletic Field Managers Organization (KAFMO) since its inception in 1993 and Eastern PA Turf Conference committee chairman since 2018, Dan has been named the Pennsylvania Turfgrass Council’s George Hamilton Distinguished Service Award recipient for 2019. This award is presented to individuals who have exhibited outstanding service to the turfgrass industry. It is considered PTC’s highest individual honor and Dan was recognized by the membership in a formal ceremony at the Penn State Golf Turf Conference at University Park last November.

Dan has previously been honored five times as the Minor League Baseball Eastern League Groundskeeper of the Year, twice as the STMA/MiLB Sports Field Manager of the Year, and in 2001 received STMA’s highest honor, the Harry C. Gill Founders Award. We asked him to look back and share some of his career milestones with others in the field.

Early Days What draws a young man to turf management? Dan started playing golf at the age of eight and so had been around turf most of his life, but at Penn State he started out as a forestry major and then switched to soil conservation. “It wasn’t until one of my general agriculture classes took us out onto the playing field at Beaver Stadium that I got

hooked on turf, and more specifically, sports turf,” he recalls.

During Dan’s senior year in 1986, Penn state alumnus Joe Ketterer recruited him to work for a landscape contracting company in Virginia. One of the client sites was George Mason University, which was rapidly expanding their athletic programs and facilities.

GMU hired him away from the landscape contracting company so he could concentrate on making their playing fields as safe and playable as possible — priorities that still form the gold standard of sports turf management. “At the time I was one of the first groundskeepers to carry the title ‘Sports Turf Manager’ for a university’s athletic department,” he remembers.

Five years later and just months after marrying his wife, Cathy, Dan Douglas got a call from Dr. Waddington at Penn State to say that the Reading Phillies were looking for a full-time groundskeeper. Most minor league teams didn’t put much effort into their playing fields at that time, so this was a unique opportunity. The owner of the Reading Phillies, Craig Stein, is a Penn State alumnus who shared his vision. Thanks to the support he has received from the Reading Phillies organization, he has been able to make Minor League Baseball groundskeeping a satisfying 30-year career.

KAFMO and the PTC A few years after arriving in Reading, Dan Douglas was approached by Penn State Extension educators Don Fowler and Jim Welshans. The fairly new Sports

Keystone Athletic Field Managers Organization 1451 Peter’s Mountain Road Dauphin, PA 17018-9504 www.KAFMO.org • Email: KAFMO@aol.com

14 Pennsylvania Turfgrass • Spring 2020

Turf Managers Association was growing and looking to form state chapters. Don and Jim recruited him to help form the Pennsylvania chapter, which became the Keystone Athletic Field Managers Organization (KAFMO). KAFMO now has over 350 members and is involved in education, scholarships, awards, and raising funds for sports turf research.

Dan is grateful to the Reading Fightin Phils organization, his family, and dozens of past board members for making it possible for him to stay directly involved with KAFMO over three decades.

Dan says his initial involvement with the Pennsylvania Turfgrass Council was “mostly me being selfish for the members of KAFMO.” He describes the PTC conferences and trade shows of the early nineties as “legendary” and says the behind-the-scenes experiences he had and the connections he made there were instrumental in the success of KAFMO. As KAFMO was gaining its footing, the PTC, the Penn State Turf program and Penn State Extension provided a strong foundation for its development.

Since 2000, Dan has served two six-year terms on the board of the Pennsylvania Turfgrass Council. He sees his involvement as a PTC director raising money for turfgrass research now as “in a way giving back to the programs that supported my professional life and the accomplishments of KAFMO.”

High Points When asked to describe a high point in his professional life, Dan Douglas immediately flashed back to the year 2012.

Contact: Linda Kulp, Executive Secretary Phone: 717-497-4154 kulp1451@gmail.com

Contact: Dan Douglas, President Phone: 610-375-8469 x 212 KAFMO@aol.com

“The entire 2012 season was a high point. We hosted the Eastern League All Star Game that included a zany hitting competition the day before,” he reminisces. “The hitting competition had a lot of elements to it that were never attempted before, but we were able to pull them off.” He credits the trio of Penn State interns on the crew that year with the fact that the field played so well all year.

At the end of the season Dan was named the Eastern League Groundskeeper of the year and MiLB/STMA’s Double A Sports Field Manager of the Year. “The awards have my name on them,” he says, “but it was the dedicated crew that really deserved the recognition.” He is proud that all three interns from that year are finding success in the turf industry and fulfillment in their personal lives: one is recently engaged, one is recently married, and the other

is married with a child. “The professional and personal accomplishments of those who looked to me as a mentor are what I’m most proud of.”

Changes in the field When asked about then and now, Dan Douglas says that one major aspect of turfgrass management that has changed over the past 35 years is the amount of information that is available. “Everything is a Google search away now,” he says.

After spending a lot of time and effort creating educational opportunities for the members of KAFMO and the PTC, he is pleased to be part of the effort to disseminate unbiased information. He hopes grounds managers take the information these organizations provide back to their facilities. But he is also old school enough to hope they aren’t afraid to “learn the old-fashioned way — trial and error.”

Spring 2020 • Pennsylvania Turfgrass 15

Penn State News: Alumni Updates

Penn State Students Take First and Second Place in 2020 STMA Student Challenge

On

January 15, four teams of Penn State turfgrass students competed in the 2020 Sports Turf Managers Association (STMA) Student Challenge at the Palm Beach County Convention Center in West Palm Beach, Florida. Thirty-one teams, representing 2-year and 4-year turf programs in colleges and universities from across the country, participated in the annual event sponsored by STMA in partnership with the SAFE Foundation, Hunter Industries, and Ewing. Penn State teams took first place in the in the 4-year division and second place in the 2-year division. The other two Penn State teams placed within the top 10 in the 4-year division. Winning teams received a cash award, a plaque, and medallions for each team member.

Dr. Ben McGraw oversees training students for the STMA Student Challenge, as well as the Golf Industry Show’s Turf Bowl. The teams begin studying in September and meet regularly to study irrigation, sprayer and spreader calibration, turfgrass and pest ID/management, and other subjects.

Sixteen Penn State students were able to travel the annual STMA conference in West Palm Beach due in large part to funds donated by the Pennsylvania Turfgrass Council and the Keystone Athletic Field Managers Organization. Students took advantage of many activities at the conference, including a student forum, student lunch, and diverse educational sessions.

Fall 2019 Graduation

C

ongratulations to the graduating class of Fall 2019!

A complete list of the turf students who received their degrees in December is available below. We can’t wait to see what they achieve next!

Turfgrass Science Collin Domblesky Andrew King Jackson Kramer Riley Morgan Micah B. Osenbach Daniel Palmiscno Ian M. Patterson

Gregory Scott Pinto John G. Shupp Zachary Thomas Smith Adriaan Smit Van Der Merwe Joshua Lee Warren Andrew Wilfahrt Matthew Ryan York

Turfgrass Science and Management Joseph David Berggren Andrew Cook Tyler Edward Dalton Trever Allen Gill Kevan Reid Kenna

Jacob S. Miller Nicholas James Penwell Bradley Proud Caleb Michael Robinson

16 Pennsylvania Turfgrass • Spring 2020

First and second place STMA Student Challenge teams. From left to right: Page Alcorn (4-yr team), John Schupp (4-yr team), Micah Osenbach (4-yr team), Ian Patterson (4-yr team), Cody Sander (2-yr team), Jeremy Eggeman (2-yr team), Paul Baich (2-yr team), and Daniel Allison (2-yr team). On far right of photo: Dr. Andy McNitt and Ms. Dianne Petrunak.

Sixteen Penn State students, representing the four teams that competed in the 2020 STMA Student Challenge in West Palm Beach, Florida.

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Penn State Alumni Updates Sean Heath (2 year program) is currently the golf course superintendent at Montclair Country Club in Dumfries, Virginia.

Matt Krebsbach (BS, ’16) is now a Supervisor at Aurora Sports Park in Aurora, Colorado.

Spring 2020 • Pennsylvania Turfgrass 17

Penn State News: Research Updates

Fungal Pathogen Increases Potential Seed Yield in Turfgrasses

Improvement of Baseball Infield Mixes

By Matthew Sheltra and David R. Huff, Center for Turfgrass Science, Plant Science Dept. Penn State

ntro: Much of a baseball game is played on the infield skin. Players expect the bare soil to provide firm footing and consistent ball bounces. An ideal infield soil retains a firm yet forgiving consistency across a wide range of moisture levels. This trait allows the game to continue during rain and prevents the field from getting too hard as it dries out. It also gives the field manager a wider target to hit when hand-watering. Players’ cleats can easily penetrate the soil, but the cleats do not remove chunks and leave only small indentations. This is known as the “cleat-in, cleat-out” effect (Fig. 1) Objectives: Our research goal is to measure the “cleat-in, cleat-out” phenomenon with a novel lab device (Figure 2).

The intent is to develop mixes with fewer “chunk-outs” and extend the range of water content where the mix holds together without becoming too soft. In addition, the project will determine which clay minerals are best suited for this use and allow the properties of a sand-clay blend to be predicted from lab testing.

This project is being funded jointly through grants from the Pennsylvania Turf Council, the Keystone Athletic Field Manager’s Organization, and a competitive grant from SAFE, the Foundation for Safer Athletic Fields www.safefields.org

I

nteractions between turfgrass hosts and fungal organisms can be problematic (like dollar spot disease) or advantageous, such as the symbiotic relationship between endophytic Neotyphodium and several genera of turfgrasses. In the Huff lab at Penn State, a unique pathogenhost system is being studied which does not benefit the plant but may ultimately benefit turfgrass seed production.

When dioecious buffalograss is infected with the endophyte Salmacisia buchloëana, a series of developmental changes take place. S. buchloëana induces opposite sex organs in both male and female plants. The fungus also leads to an alteration of meristem determinacy, resulting in a greater number of flowers compared to uninfected plants, which in turn increases ovary production ten-fold (Chandra, 2007).

For example, a non-infected that produces 10 flowers will produce 100 flowers when infected. Currently, our research aims to unravel the mechanisms through which S. buchloëana alters its host via genetic, metabolic, and morphological analysis of the system. Through this work, we hope to find how the fungus triggers increased ovary production so that we might replicate those conditions in the absence of the pathogen and in doing so, increase seed yield dramatically in buffalograss and in other turfgrass species.

FIGURE 1: Flowers of male buffalograss only produce orange male anthers (left); whereas, the same plant infected with the fungus Salmacisia buchloëana produces purple female pistils (right), an organ that male plants are genetically programmed not to produce.

18 Pennsylvania Turfgrass • Spring 2020

By Dr. Andy McNitt and Mr. Evan Mascitti

I

FIGURE 1: Top – clean cleat-in, cleat-out; Bottom – chunk-outs

FIGURE 2: Chunking device under construction

Turfgrass Entomology Lab Updates

Covers That Make the Difference

By Ben McGraw, Associate Professor of Turfgrass Entomology

T

he last Turfgrass Entomology update stated rainfall was a major driver of insect-related issues in Pennsylvania in 2017. Little did we know that was just the tip of the iceberg. Warm and excessively wet springs in 2018 and 2019 have led to some bigger insect pest outbreak years than we have observed in the last decade.

Earthworms problems have been on the rise and continue to be an area of study for the lab. Our long-term cultural control studies have cast doubt on the ability of fairway topdressing dressing programs and acidifying fertilizers to reduce casts. We will continue to examine these effects over a longer time scale than traditional studies, as well as assess effects of products that have recently come to market. We will be soil sampling courses in spring to better understand conditions that favor earthworms and determine if corrective measures may be taken to discourage populations in these areas.

Audrey Simard joined the lab in January. She has recently completed her master’s degree at the University of Wisconsin, where she characterized how fungicides may have negative impact on pollinators. Her Ph.D. project is part of a USGA-funded study examining plant defense mechanisms against ABW.

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Subscriptions are complimentary to PTC members. Presorted standard postage is paid at Jefferson City, MO. Printed in the U.S.A. Reprints and Submissions: Pennsylvania Turfgrass, allows reprinting of material published here. Permission requests should be directed to the PTC. We are not responsible for unsolicited freelance manuscripts and photographs. Contact the managing editor for contribution information. Advertising: For display and classified advertising rates and insertions, please contact Leading Edge Communications, LLC, 206 Bridge St., Franklin, TN 37064, (615) 790-3718, Fax (615) 794-4524.

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