Dude, Where's my Spring?

Well, since the last blog post things have not improved much weather wise. So far we have experienced a cool, wet spring that has helped green the course up, but has also brought with it a whole set of concerns we usually don't have to deal with in our warm, dry interior climate.

Many of the Members I've talked to in recent days have mentioned how this wet weather must be good for the course; and while they are right to a certain extent, the golf course turf grows easily and irrigation is not much of a concern. However, the diseases that infect turfgrass also thrive in these cool, wet conditions.

Wet, humid conditions, favorable for disease development (taken May 16)

A number of our greens are experiencing a disease problem that persists mainly in high traffic and low lying areas. I suspect the main culprit to be the disease known as pythuim root dysfunction (Pyhtium volutum). From afar, these areas appear to have a brownish tinge to them, with closer examination, the leaf blades appear to be yellowing from the tips, while general thinning is occurring among the turf's density. When we take a core sample and examine the roots, we find very few roots and those that exist appear brown and sickly looking, all of these are classic symptoms for pythium root dysfunction.

11th Green high traffic area

11th green root depth in thinning area

Pythium root dysfunction infects  bentgrass roots in the fall and spring when daily soil temperatures are between 10ºC and 23ºC. Disease activity reduces the turf’s ability to absorb nutrients and water from the soil, and also leads to root dieback when soil temperatures exceed 29ºC. The appearance of Pythium root dysfunction symptoms are enhanced by low fertility, drought stress, and low soil oxygen levels. Symptoms are most common during hot weather in summer but may be visible in the spring and fall.

So what can we do to control this disease? We have sprayed a fungicide call Heritage Maxx (azoxystrobin) which has the greatest efficacy in controlling pythium disease. The fungicide must be watered in to reach the roots and affected area of the plant. It is a systemic fungicide, meaning that it is absorbed by the plant where it remains and can provide protection against further infection.

Patio putting green, healthy turf stand

Patio putting green root depth

We applied Heritage Maxx on Saturday May 13 and are hoping to see things turn around quite quickly. However, with the continued cool and wet weather favoring disease production, it may be a few more days before the turf can recover and begin to grow roots and increase density again. We are applying a liquid fertilizer aimed at increasing the root mass and shoot density this week... it just has to stop raining so we can apply it! We are also working at selecting pin locations away from high traffic areas which are showing the most symptoms. Reduction in irrigation practices will also continue to help reduce the conditions favorable for disease, but, the rain... again... will not.

Fortunately we have caught the disease in its early stages and will still have time to grow a healthy rootmass before we head into the summer heat.

For more information on how pythium affects bentgrass, check out this article from North Carolina State University:
http://ahttp://www.turffiles.ncsu.edu/diseases/pythium-root-dysfunction

Microdochium Patch early stages, fairway

Not only are our greens doing battle with disease, there is a disease presence on our fairways as well. This disease is in it's early stages and is difficult to distinguish between microdochium patch (Microdochium nivale) and dollar spot (Sclerotinia homoeocarpa), but I suspect with the time of year and weather conditions that it is michrodochium patch. I have never seen this disease on our fairways in the spring, which is telling on just how wet and favorable for disease this spring weather has been so far. Fortunately this disease can be taken care of naturally with a little bit of warm dry weather, which is foretasted to come soon.

With any luck we will soon get our typical Kamloops spring weather, some dry warm air will go a long way in helping clear up any disease problems we are currently experiencing. Much like the Ashton Kutcher movie where his car went missing... Dude, where's my spring? June is almost here and outside of a few days, it really hasn't felt like spring. Fingers crossed that it does in fact, come soon.