Time for Greenkeepers to take Action

Once your spring treatment is done you are ready to tackle the season.

Reduced organic matter means a reduced breeding ground for disease

Water & nutrients move better when thatch is reduced – we lose 13 % infiltration per annum is we do not follow sound cultural practices – this in turn have a snow ball effect on your oxygen levels in the soils & overall plant health.

Brooming sand in by hand give you the sand channels required.

The Graden is a great tool to reduce surface organic.

Disease

On your bent/poa greens (cool season) greens your spring & early summer summer applications set you up for the season. Chemistry rotation & applying the right product at the right time are critical.

My go to guys are as follows:

Sept: Banner Maxx – washed into the soil with my Qualibra targeting soil borne diseases

Oct: Banner Maxx – not watered in

Nov, Jan, March: Subdue Maxx & Daconil WS – reduce the pythium oospores in the soil & dollar spot protection

Dec: Heritage + Daconil WS – always my Christmas gift to myself – covering me on 28 diseases for 28 days.

Jan: Instrata & Subdue Maxx – anthracnose, pythium, dollar spot

Feb: Heritage & Daconil WS Once you see the disease with the naked eye you are in the curative/eradicant stage of the disease which is devastating, difficult & costly to recover from.

Insects

The most sustainable way to tackle your damaging insect population e.g. mole crickets is to apply your insecticides to the soil in spring to target the eggs, 1st & 2nd instars.

The upside: Reduce the population annually

Target as many adults as you can by using surf washing powder and watering it in late afternoon.

Less adults less eggs.

Weeds

I am not a herbicide fan, however I have come to see the benefits of a few products:

Pennant Magnum – applied to weed prone kikuyu/bermuda fairway/semi areas to prevent goose grass & crab grass germinating – best applied after spring treatment (don’t apply to greens).

Casper – a phenomenal safe herbicide to take care of 99% of your weed issues.

Once you have your pest under control you can focus on your fabulous playing surface – as you know NoMow not only pays for itself, but it raises the bar in playability, rooting, plant health & colour.

I have used this product since 1997 where I started on the Leopard Creek fairways, semi, tees & bunker faces. Plant growth regulators are global tool used by all the leading turf managers.