Dave Smitley...All the rain we had this summer has stopped and lawns in much of the state are looking dry. Dry weather in late September and October is when we are most likely to see grub damage. The reason for this is that a infestation of greater than 10 grubs per ft2 can consume more than 50 percent of all the turf roots in a lawn. As long as the soil remains moist and fertility levels are adequate, the turf plants will continue to grow new roots and take-up enough water.

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Kevin Frank...After a summer of rain and cool temperatures, September has had some of the driest and warmest weather we’ve had all year. If the turf hasn’t been irrigated, its growth has certainly slowed, and it’s unlikely you’ve seen any great response from a fertilizer application in late August or early September. If you didn’t apply any fertilizer in early September and are looking to boost the turf as the fall moves along, I would probably wait until some moisture returns before applying any fertilizer.

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Dave Smitley...Last night in Lansing about 7:00 PM, I noticed the air was full of small, dark flying insects. I looked closer at some that had landed on a car and realized they were the turfgrass ant, Lasius neoniger, in the middle of a big mating flight. This happens every year in late August or early September.

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Kevin Frank...Students are now back on campus, college football kicks off this weekend, I’ve actually started to see some fall leaf color already, and no doubt I’ll soon be seeing the signs advertising for core aerification of lawns on the street corner. Core aeration reduces soil compaction, creates channels in the soil for water infiltration and gas exchange and removes thatch.

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By Kevin Frank... The annual seeding window for turfgrass is now in full swing. Typically in the Detroit, Lansing, Grand Rapids corridor, we recommend seeding of turfgrass until about the middle of September.

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By Kevin Frank... Ag Expo recently wrapped up its 30th year on campus and this year the Crop and Soil Sciences tent was focused on turfgrass. After spending about 12 hours over three days occupying the booth and fielding turfgrass questions from homeowners, farmers and vendors, here are some of the common questions.

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By Dave Smitley...European chafer continues to spread and occasionally cause damage to spruce, arborvitae and some other field-grown nursery plants. Discus, Arena, or Flagship applied in July are most effective for preventing grub problems. Granular formulations remain stable until it rains. Sprayable formulations must be watered-in or covered with soil. Watch for bark-scraping damage just below the soil line this fall and early next spring.

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By Kevin Frank...My personal observations of turf stress indicators including how many consecutive days the air conditioning has been on and is the turf over the septic field brown yet, have been generally absent this summer. Although many do not consider it a blessing to have high temperatures in the 60’s the week prior to the 4th of July weekend, the cool season turf that makes its home in this state has been generally thriving in these weather conditions. Weeds have dominated most of the writings in this column this year as there really haven’t been too many other stress maladies to focus on.

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By Kevin Frank... The recent hot and humid weather not only had the air conditioners humming but also had the crabgrass spurting upward. The small crabgrass plants that I noticed a week ago now look like they’re on steroids after a week of temperatures near 90°F. If you’re going to try and control the crabgrass with postemergence herbicides, it’s best to get going before the plants really mature.

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By Dave Smitley... I never thought I would be writing about eastern tent caterpillars and forest tent caterpillars in the turf section, but if you look at the attached picture on a golf course green from near Traverse City, you can see why. Thousands of eastern tent and forest tent caterpillars have defoliated trees surrounding fairways and have started to wander – right across fairways, tees and greens. Golf course superintendents have tried spraying Scimitar, Talstar and Sevin with limited success.

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By Kevin Frank... Last year as I was cruising into work one morning scouting turf weeds at 55 mph, I noticed a trend of some folks mowing around yellow hawkweed as opposed to mowing right over it like almost every other weed that sprouts in turf.

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By Kevin Frank... It may seem odd to start considering how turf will perform this summer if the rainfall spigot shuts off, but the abundant rainfall this spring in many areas may actually hurt turf when it comes to summer drought stress.

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By Kevin Frank... With the official start of summer kicking off with Memorial Day weekend (May 22-25), some of you may fear the “Honey Do List” that awaits you this weekend. I’ve always felt the best way to counter a “Honey Do List” is to be proactive and have my own “me-do list” ready and waiting and extending for at least a full page with an over arrow at the bottom. In addition to major projects, such as constructing the newest version of the Alcatraz garden to keep out the deer, rabbits, and every other critters that like to snack on recently planted $10 tomato plants, I have a “me-do list” for the lawn.

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By Kevin Frank... Besides dandelion that is flowering everywhere in turf right now, there are numerous other weeds that are displaying their best spring colors. For some of these weeds the flowering period in the spring is the second best time to apply a herbicide for control, fall is the best, but for other weeds this spring flowering is a sign that their life is about over.

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By Fred Warner... Recently, I read a statement that some golf courses and country clubs spend up to $50,000 per year on fungicides. Whoa, obviously that implies there are some serious diseases of turf caused by fungi. But, what about nematodes? They too can cause serious problems, but are often ignored.

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By Kevin Frank... Recent heavy rainfall events and subsequent flooding of turfgrass areas caused me to dig into the files and revisit some information on turfgrass survival following flood events. Turf survival following floods depends on several factors including: turfgrass species, submergence duration, submergence depth, water temperature and light intensity.

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By Kevin Frank... The annual dandelion bloom is in full swing. Many areas of the state have already seen the first bloom and the puff ball stage will be here shortly if not already. The dandelion is certainly the most recognizable of all weeds flowering in our lawns and folks certainly have different perspectives on them.

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By Dave Smitley... I am looking for a golf course within one to two hours drive of MSU with European chafer where we could evaluate insecticides in an area of the rough that is not in play. If you have some open rough areas with a few dead patches from grubs, or some spots where skunks have damaged turf in the rough, please let me know. You can reach me at: (517)-355-3385 or via email: smitley@msu.edu.

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By David Smitley... In many cities in southern Michigan and a few in the northern Lower Peninsula (like Traverse City and Alpena), bare spots are showing in golf course roughs and home lawns due to European chafer grubs consuming turf roots. The grubs tend to be concentrated in the driest areas: sunny areas, sandy areas, slopes and hilltops. It is unusual to see any grub damage in irrigated lawns or irrigated rough, but it can happen with a heavy grub infestation if the irrigation is infrequent or on the dry side. It is more likely that you will see turf damage from skunks, raccoons, or crows that tear or pull-back turf to eat grubs.

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By Kevin Frank... Sometimes trying to remember what I did last week is tough enough, let alone trying to recall the spring weather from a year ago. However, I don’t remember playing golf in mid-March last year and I do have a faint recollection of snow on Easter.

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Kevin Frank...The deluge of rain the state received last week has certainly revived turfgrass that had been struggling from dry conditions the previous six weeks. Now the challenge is catching up with the flush of growth the rain has produced. Go slow on mowing if you haven’t been able to cut since last weekend as it is likely the turf has elongated several inches in just the past five days. If you have room to raise the height of cut this might be the time as it will make it easier to mow through the abundant growth.

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The North Central Region Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program (NCR-SARE) is announcing its 2008 Farmer Rancher Grant Call for Proposals. All needed documents are available online at http://www.sare.org/NCRSARE/prod.htm. The web site also offers state-by-state data for past recipients of the grants.

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Kevin Frank...If you missed putting down a fertilizer application last weekend you’re not too late. Now that the temperatures are feeling more like fall and we’ve had some rain to revitalize the turf, fertilizing in September will help the turf recover from summer stress. A fertilizer application will help by stimulating tillering and rhizome growth (lateral spread of turf) which help the turf fill in bare areas.

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Kevin Frank...Now that summer stress has started to fade into the review mirror many turf managers are pursuing reestablishment projects for damaged turfgrass areas. Whether the choice is sod or seeding, autumn weather is typically favorable for establishing turfgrass due to cooler weather and hopefully regular rainfall.

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Dave Smitley...The dry weather we had in August was not good for Japanese beetle grubs, but is just wonderful for European chafer grubs, and European chafer is our most important lawn pest in Michigan. European chafer can now be found just about everywhere in Michigan south of a line from Muskegon to Bay City, and in many isolated locations north of that line, including Traverse City and Alpena. Watch for patches of your lawn that stop growing and wilt, or turn off-color in September or October, especially during periods of dry weather when the soil is very dry.

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Kevin Frank...In our last Landscape Alert issue, I wrote about some of the turfgrass diseases we’ve been observing on turfgrass sites.  With respect to dollar spot I wrote, “Dollar spot is also a disease that occurs on turfgrass that might be under fertilized.  This is especially true on home lawn situations and just like red thread a light fertilizer application will help the turf recover from the symptoms.”

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Kevin Frank...What is drought?  I’m making no attempts to become a climatologist, but I always find it interesting to see how the term drought is thrown about.  So let’s go to the source, the National Drought Mitigation Center to find out how they define drought.  Here’s what I found from their web-site http://drought.unl.edu/whatis/what.htm

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Kevin Frank...Dollar spot and red thread are two diseases that have been appearing in turf in the last few weeks. For lawn height turf, these diseases are generally considered to cause cosmetic damage and will usually not create enough damage that would require any fungicide applications.

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Kevin Frank...I call them heat tracks, but apparently I’m about the only one. If you’re like me and you’re looking for quick information, I naturally go to Google. However when I Google heat tracks the results are some music or Nascar references. Add heat tracks in turf and the results are some of my previous Landscape Alert articles.

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Jackie Smith...Woody ornamental vascular wilt diseases such as Verticillium wilt, Dutch elm disease and oak wilt can be frustrating, not only for our clients but also for lab staff. They can be challenging to diagnose and downright impossible without a quality sample. The accuracy of results relies heavily on the sample itself. Improperly collected, stored, or shipped samples decrease the chances of isolating a pathogen.

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Dave Smitley...If your turf was damaged by grubs last year, now is the best time to apply imidacloprid, clothianidin, thiomethoxam or halofenozide to prevent grub injury to turfgrass this fall and next spring. New damage from grubs won’t appear again until this September or October.

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Steven Gower...The yellow-flowered, compound-leafed weeds are now in full bloom in our lawns. The culprits include black medic, birdsfoot trefoil and yellow woodsorrel. These weeds all have small yellow flowers and compound leaves. Just as with any other pest, identification of these yellow-flowered weeds is important to understanding why they are in the lawn. Is the site low in nitrogen? Is the site drought stressed? Are you mowing too low? These could be just a few reasons why black medic, birdsfoot trefoil and yellow woodsorrel are thriving in the lawn.

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Kevin Frank...The dry conditions that persisted across much of Michigan earlier this spring and caused many lawns to look like it was already August is well in the rear view mirror now. The storms that literally thrashed the state a couple of weeks ago and brought plenty, if not too much rain to many areas have been followed by nice, mild, Michigan summer weather that has helped the turf rebound from the spring drought stress. As we near the July 4th holiday, this has typically been one of the timings of the holiday fertilizer schedule.

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Kevin Frank...The recent thunderstorms that swept across Michigan over three consecutive days packed a powerful punch to many golf courses. From the Michigan lakeshore east to Detroit, the damage from high winds was sporadic and in some areas devastating. Straight line winds in some areas flattened or damaged at least 100 trees on golf courses, while courses just miles away escaped with minor limb damage.

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Genesee is sponsoring a Landscape and Turf Diagnostic tour of the Applewood Estate in Flint, Thursday, July 10 from 6:00-8:00PM. Cost for attending the workdshop is $15 per person before July 3 and $20 after July 4. Registration will be open until the class is filled (35 people maximum).

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Kevin Frank...
White clover and black medic
There are many weeds actively flowering in lawns right now. A couple that always catch my attention and are often found growing together are white clover and black medic. White clover is a unique weed in that some folks prefer to leave it in their lawns and has sometimes even been seeded in turfgrass mixtures for lawns. You might wonder why on earth anyone would want to seed white clover into their lawn when you may be thinking of how to get rid of it.

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Kevin Frank and Ron Calhoun...Every now and then I like to take out the turf crystal ball to see what may be lurking in the future. This spring the weather may have created the perfect storm for a crabgrass outbreak this summer. Temperatures have been cool with soil temperatures throughout much of May hovering between 50ºF and 60ºF at zero to two inches depth. Any significant rainfall has been lacking, which likely further delayed crabgrass germination. Eighty to 90 percent of crabgrass germination occurs when adequate moisture is present and soil temperatures are between 60ºF and 70ºF at zero to two inches depth. Neither of these requirements for crabgrass germination has been consistently met during May.

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Kevin Frank...Although the official start of summer is still several weeks away, with the Memorial Day weekend upon us and gas prices at $4, many folks may be spending some time around the home this weekend and that ultimately leads to some strolls around the lawn. The cool weather in May and the scant rainfall have resulted in a rather odd occurrence this year.

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Kevin Frank...
Seeding turf
The recent weather forecast indicates that it’s going to remain cool, cloudy and maybe rainy. If you’ve recently seeded turfgrass and are getting anxious to see results, remain patient. The cool temperatures are slowing germination and emergence.

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Kevin Frank...Now that the grass is finally turning green and starting to grow, we’re seeing what is alive and what is dead. This last winter was definitely full of plenty of snow and no doubt you’ve probably noticed some snow mold damaged areas throughout the turf landscape. In most cases, the snow mold has probably not killed the turf but has simply killed all of the leaf tissue.

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Kevin Frank...Winter seems to be dragging on and on this year as I await the opportunity to fire up the mower for the first time. With several locations around Michigan reporting either record or near record snow fall amounts, it’s no wonder many have cabin fever. There’s really not a whole lot to do with the turfgrass right now except to sit by patiently as the soil thaws and the turfgrass begins to slowly emerge from its winter slumber. While waiting for the turf to spring, there are some useful web resources from the MSU turf team you might want to peruse on the side while filling in your basketball tournament bracket.

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Kevin Frank...Now that summer stress has started to fade into the rearview mirror many turf managers are pursuing reestablishment projects for damaged turfgrass areas. Whether the choice is sod or seeding, autumn weather is typically favorable for establishing turfgrass due to cooler weather and hopefully regular rainfall.

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Dave Smitley...Some golf courses in the northern lower peninsula are seeing thousands of small black beetles when they mow the greens.  These are the adults emerging after the grubs completed development in the turf root zone and pupated into adult beetles.

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Dave Smitley...I had several phone calls this week from golf course superintendents worried about the big ants tunneling into their greens and making small mounds of sand.  The big rootbeer-colored ants tunneling into greens are new queens that swarmed this week during the warm, damp weather.

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Dave Smitley...European chafer grubs like dry soils, so they were very happy in July and early August this year.  Now that it rained, as dormant turf is greening-up I am seeing some dead patches in lawns due to European chafer grubs.  The grubs will be getting larger and eating more in September.  Watch for grub damage to increase in September and October. 

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Kevin Frank...Recent rainfall across some areas of the state have provided some much needed relief to drought-stressed turf, but unless temperatures cool and rainfall becomes more reliable don’t expect non-irrigated turfgrass areas to spring back to life very quickly. We recorded 0.5 inch of precipitation at our research center on campus this week, but on non-irrigated plots this is hardly enough to make up for the deficit in soil moisture conditions that has accumulated over the last month.

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Dave Smitley...I am now seeing lots of small European chafer grubs feeding in lawns and golf course roughs. The grubs will be getting larger and eating more in September. Watch for grub damage to appear in late September and October, especially during dry periods when the turf is stressed and wilting.

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Kevin Frank...On my recent road trip from East Lansing to Madison, Wisconsin for the North Central Turfgrass Researchers meeting, I observed many things. Two field mice playing in the middle of the interstate are not long for this world. My perspective on Detroit traffic jams has changed after experiencing Chicago. A work binder hanging on for dear life on the top of a Hyundai merging onto the Dan Ryan expressway is an ominous start for someone’s work day. Murphy’s Law always holds when pulling into the shortest lane at the toll booth. Landscape turf from Michigan through Indiana, Illinois and into Wisconsin is all suffering from a lack of water.

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Kevin Frank...In the last several issues of the Landscape CAT Alert, I’ve discussed different weeds that may be thumbing their nose at you this summer. Now that the heat has increased to the point where air conditioners are a valued commodity those weeds may become even more persistent. Crabgrass is certainly enjoying this latest stretch of high temperatures, and I’ve also seen some nice patches of yellow nutsedge taking hold in turfgrass. Yellow nutsedge control options for professional applicators include Certainty (a.i. sulfosulfuron) and Sedgehammer (a.i. halosulfuron). Repeat applications will likely be required to achieve control.

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Dave Smitley...Chinch bug larvae have been feeding and growing in June and early July. Now they are large enough to cause visible turf injury. Look for large brown patches in the driest parts of your lawn. Get on your knees to examine the ground around the base of turf plants on the edge of these brown spots. Chinch bugs are most active in warm, sunny afternoons.

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Dave Smitley...July is the best time to apply imidacloprid or halofenozide products to home lawns for grub control. There is no need to use one of these products unless you have had grub damage last fall or this spring. New damage won’t appear again until September.

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Dave Smitley...The big flight of armyworm moths into Michigan back in mid-June has resulted in enough caterpillars to cause turf injury in a few places. Outbreaks are often found in turf under or near bright lights. What happened is the moths were attracted to the lights and settled nearby. Some of the female moths deposited eggs in the turf near the lights, resulting in hundreds or thousands of hungry armyworm caterpillars in early July. By the second week of July the caterpillars were nearly full grown, eating much more than they did when they were small.

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Kevin Frank...The recent round of thunderstorms that swept across many areas of the Lower Peninsula this week will certainly provide some relief to drought and heat weary turf. However, the rapid nature of the rainfall in many areas probably resulted in much of the water running off and not having the chance to soak into the soil. At the Hancock Turfgrass Research Center here in East Lansing, we received over an inch of rainfall within an hour from one thunderstorm.

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Dave Smitley...If you had grub damage to your lawn last fall or this spring you may want to consider using an insecticide to prevent grub damage this coming fall. The most effective homeowner products contain imidacloprid or halofenozide. They must be applied to lawns in July to be effective.

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Dave Smitley...If you see dead patches in Kentucky bluegrass lawns, you can check for billbug injury by the "tug test.” Pinch a clump of grass blades in the affected area between your thumb and forefinger, and pull it out of the soil. If billbugs are responsible for the turf damage, you will see several broken-off stems filled with sawdust-like frass from the billbug. Also, look for billbug larvae, pupae and, in a few weeks, adults.

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Kevin Frank...High temperatures, lack of rain in many places and high humidity, have put the hurt on turfgrass in many areas across the state. The early season sightings of diseases on lawns, such as red thread, have now been replaced by sightings of leaf spot. Leaf spot is generally active during warm summer weather. The symptoms are water-soaked spots on leaf blades that turn purple/brown/black. Turf infested with leaf spot will appear yellowish to reddish-brown, and a general thinning of the turf with no distinct pattern may occur if conditions are ideal.

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Kevin Frank...Recent scouting of the landscape has revealed some pesky weeds invading turf. I’ve noticed some really healthy patches of both white clover (Trifolium repens) and black medic (Medicago lupulina). Thinking of the recent TV show about being smarter than a fifth grader, hopefully everyone knows how to identify white clover as it is one of the most commonly observed weeds in turfgrass. However, black medic could be a little trickier and may be confused with oxalis (Oxalis stricta).

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Kevin Frank...A relatively new turfgrass disease called Waitea patch (Waitea circinata) has been making appearances in Poa annua putting greens in Michigan. Waitea patch has also been referred to as brown ring patch in Japan, but until the causal organism is confirmed to be the same in the United States, the Waitea moniker seems to be the name of choice. Waitea patch is a Rhizoctonia disease. The symptoms of Waitea patch involve Poa annua turning yellow in a ring and looking very similar to yellow patch.

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Dave Smitley...I received two phone calls this week about skunks and raccoons tearing-up fairways to find Japanese beetle grubs.  One was from Traverse City and the other from Oxford, Michigan.  Japanese beetle grubs will continue feeding for another week or two before most of them will begin to pupate.  Adults will start to emerge about July 1.   If a few hotspots on fairways need to be protected, spray with Dylox or Sevin now to stop the grubs.

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Kevin Frank...I don’t think anyone knows what a typical summer weather pattern in Michigan really means anymore, but if there’s anything that can be guaranteed it’s that the weather will be unpredictable. No doubt there will be hot spells, dry spells, downpours, and at some point we’ll wonder if it’s ever going to rain again. So how do you help prepare the turf for the wild ride it’s about to enter?

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Howard Russell...Jim Isleib, MSUE director in Alger County, sent in a sample of white grubs that a homeowner collected from his yard. The grubs were identified as European chafer, Rhizotrogus majalis  (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae). I don’t keep or have official records, but I believe this is the first confirmed report of European chafer in the Upper Peninsula.

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Kevin Frank...After the heavy frost across many areas of Michigan last night and into this morning, don’t be surprised if in the next week you observe some leaf tip burning on the turfgrass. The injury looks very similar to injury you might see from a dull mower blade or a liquid fertilizer application during the heat of the summer that can burn the leaf tips.

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Steven Gower...The yellow-flowered, compound-leafed weeds will be blooming in our lawns very soon. The culprits include black medic, birdsfoot trefoil and yellow woodsorrel. These weeds all have small yellow flowers and compound leaves. Just as with any other pest, identification of these yellow-flowered weeds is important to understanding why they are in the lawn. Is the site low in nitrogen? Is the site drought stressed? Are you mowing too low? These could be just a few reasons why black medic, birdsfoot trefoil and yellow woodsorrel are thriving in the lawn.

[Read the rest of this article...]

Kevin Frank...The spring rollercoaster of wet and dry conditions continues to persist across much of Michigan. For those areas that received a nice dumping of rain this last week, you may notice that in poorly drained areas where the soil may be staying saturated for several days, the turf may be looking a little brownish or yellow. There are several reasons for the discoloration , but one of the main reasons is impairment of the root system.

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Kevin Frank...I’m a skeptic, it’s just my nature. When someone tells me about the latest miracle grass or secret lawn potion, I usually smile, listen, wish them luck, and tell them to call me when they have some research data that backs up their claim. Recently I stumbled across some interesting facts during an early morning Google episode on the web. Listen to this!

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Dave Smitley...
Lawn and landscape: no need to treat for grubs at this time
European chafer grubs are about done feeding this spring. If your lawn sustained some grub injury last fall or early this spring, it is better to wait and apply GrubEx, Season-long Grub Control or another product containing imidacloprid in July.

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Terry Davis...I have noticed dead patches in a number of yards along my way to and from Michigan State in the last two weeks.  The rain we have had the last few days will make it very clear where there are grubs actively feeding because healthy turf will green-up quickly but the grub damaged areas won’t.  Dead patches in lawns – especially lawns with sandy soil and areas that have a slope to them are likely places for grubs to be active now.  If you see a dead patch, dig up a few shovelfuls of soil at the edge of the bare spot and look for 5/8 inch long, c-shaped grubs.  These are more than likely the larvae of European chafer if they are found in non-irrigated turfgrass.

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Kevin Frank and Ron Calhoun...April showers bring May flowers. The end of April and early May is typically the time of year when many turf areas are full of bright colorful flowering weeds. Now if you don’t mind some color and are patient, your best course of action is what I refer to as the go back inside and sit down method, i.e. do nothing.

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Steve Gower...
Family. Lamiaceae (Mint) (view images)

Life cycle. Prostrate, creeping perennial.

Leaves. Opposite, kidney-shaped to rounded leaves are approximately 1 inch wide with scalloped margins, palmate veins and long leaf stalks. Damaged leaves emit a mintlike odor.

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Kevin Frank...As many of us are starting to settle down for a long weekend of bouncing basketballs, it’s likely that the bouncing temperatures over the next weeks will get at least some of us to venture out into the lawn to look around and make plans for grooming our landscape this year.

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Dave Smitley...One new product that should be available this year is Meridian. A check on websites this week indicates that it has a federal registration but not yet a state of Michigan registration.

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Kevin Frank...
Fall broadleaf weed control
October is the ideal time to control broadleaf weeds because the weeds are storing carbohydrates in their root system and are more susceptible to herbicide applications. So if your turf is being overtaken by a wide array of broadleaf bandits, applying an herbicide now could make the difference for next year. Apply the herbicides on a sunny day when rain is not in the forecast for 24 hours. We want the herbicides to dry on the leaf surfaces and not be immediately washed off.

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Kevin Frank...It happened this morning on my drive into campus. I knew it was coming, the invasion of 40,000 students back to campus obviously gave me the first warning; the promise of another college football season that would be different than the past Spartan struggles was another sign. However, this morning when I saw that maple tree on the corner starting to show its crimson red colors, I knew autumn was officially right around the corner.

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Dave Smitley...I have seen lots of small European chafer and Japanese beetle grubs feeding in lawns and on golf courses. The grubs will be getting larger and eating more in September. Watch for grub damage to appear in late September and October, especially during dry periods when the turf is stressed and wilting.

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Kevin Frank...Labor Day is one of the holidays that comprise the “Holiday” fertilization calendar. Fertilizing turf around the Labor Day holiday will help the turf recover from summer stress. A September fertilizer application will help by stimulating tillering and rhizome growth (lateral spread of turf) that help the turf fill in bare areas.

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Kevin Frank...Now is the optimal time to look at reseeding or sodding any turfgrass areas lost to the heat, humidity and disease that sporadically plagued turfgrass managers this summer. Daytime high temperatures have started to dip and hopefully the pattern of recent rainfall will continue in the coming weeks to aid any new establishment projects. This article will focus on tips for renovating/reseeding damaged turf areas. Future Landscape Alert articles will focus on fall turfgrass management practices to ensure a successful 2007 including core aeration, broadleaf weed control and fall fertilization (we’ll touch on fall fertility in this issue).

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Ron Calhoun...It sure seems like there has been a lot of clover this year. It may be that there is more clover, or it could be that it is flowering more profusely than other years. In most cases the clover is going to be an indication of nutrient depleted soils. This can be seen in lawns where the homeowners recently installed an irrigation system and use it too much. The most common occurrences are in lawns that have not been fertilized since seeding or sodding.

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Kevin Frank...Dollar spot and red thread are two diseases that have been appearing in turf in the last couple weeks. For lawn height turf, these diseases are generally considered to cause cosmetic damage and will usually not create enough damage that would require any fungicide applications.

[Read the rest of this article...]

Dave Smitley...A visit to a sod farm damaged by billbug this week revealed that most of the larvae had already pupated. This means that damage to turf from billbug is over for this year in southern Michigan.

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Dave Smitley...Lawn care professionals and homeowners that have seen problems with Japanese beetle grub injury to turf in previous years may want to consider protecting lawns with an application of Merit, Arena Mach II, GrubEx, or Bayer Season-Long Grub Control before August 15.

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Kevin Frank...Dawg days of summer has always been one of those sayings that floats around every summer when we get to late July/early August. The saying typically signifies some hot, humid, nasty weather that causes us all to slow down and search out some air conditioning. I’ve noticed this slowing down behavior not only in my slightly used puppy (Can’t call him new anymore since he was rescued from doggie jail back in May.), but also in my lawn that has been crawling along the last couple weeks.

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Kevin Frank...Now that summer has arrived, one of my favorite summer weeds, crabgrass, is ready to bust loose. Currently most of the crabgrass sightings indicate that it is still in the relatively early stages of growth and development, but it will progress quickly, so if you want to try and rid it from some of your turf areas you need to act now. Crabgrass is much easier to control in the young juvenile stages of growth than it is once it really gets going.

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Dave Smitley...
Did you have grub damage last fall or this spring?
If the answer is yes, then now is the time for professionals to apply Merit, Mach 2, or Arena, and for homeowners to apply GrubEx or Bayer Season-long Grub Control. These products work best when applied in July or early August. A grub treatment with one of these products now will prevent turf injury from grubs in the fall and next spring.

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Kevin Frank...In my recent travels around mid- and southeast Michigan, I was surprised by the amount of turf damage I observed from mowing traffic on drought-stressed turf. (see photo) Thinking back about one week, the weather was just right for this type of damage to occur. Prior to this week’s rainfall, the dry conditions and then very hot temperatures on Friday and Saturday resulted in many areas of turf, even irrigated areas, being stressed and possibly wilting.

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Kevin Frank...There have been many reports of leaf spot disease on home lawns in Michigan in the last couple weeks. In the past, leaf spot and melting out disease were considered the same disease but recently they have been classified as two different diseases. Despite the different classification, these diseases closely resemble each other, but tend to be active at different times of the year. Leaf spot is generally active during warm summers while melting out is active during cool, wet weather typical of spring.

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Dave Smitley...As we approach the end of June and the weather turns warm and sunny, watch for chinch bugs in dry, sunny areas of your lawn. The turf will start to turn yellow and brown, looking very similar to drought stress. Check these areas for chinch bugs by getting down on your hands and knees on a sunny afternoon and part the turf down to the soil line. If you have chinch bugs you will see some tiny black bugs scurrying for cover.

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Kevin Frank...The Memorial Day weekend is often used as a reminder for a fertilizer application to the turf before we launch into the air conditioner season. If you haven’t applied a fertilizer yet this spring or maybe applied fertilizer in mid-April and want to sustain the color and quality of your turf throughout the summer, the application of a slow release fertilizer in the next week is advisable. An application of a slow release fertilizer at this time would provide a gradual “feeding” of the turf over the summer months.

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Kevin Frank...As we roll into the summer kickoff weekend, I’ve noticed that one weed has been particularly voracious throughout the landscape – speedwell. To some, it is very important to distinguish between the different types of speedwells. There is corn speedwell, creeping speedwell and germander speedwell to name a few, but no matter the speedwell, at this time of the year I wouldn’t spend too much time pulling the trigger finger on the squirt bottle of herbicide.

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Howard Russell, Ben Yost, and Chad Follis...Last week, Kevin Frank forwarded me some photographs of a caterpillar that Chad Follis found in one of his client’s lawns. I emailed Kevin back to say his caterpillar was really a sawfly larva and asked if there were trees around the area where larvae were seen. Sawflies are primitive members of the order Hymenoptera, which includes bees, wasps and ants. We encounter most sawfly pests feeding on the foliage of trees and shrubs. (see photos) Sawfly larvae typically pupate and overwinter in the soil so I first thought Chad’s sawflies had climbed down from a nearby tree or shrub and were wandering around a bit before retiring to the safety of their soil retreats. Wrong!

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Kevin Frank...I’m starting to lose count, but in the Lansing area I think we’re up to 10 days in a row of rain. The biggest struggle in managing turf with this type of weather is finding a time to mow. We often get questions about mowing turf when it’s wet and whether or not this is detrimental to the turf.

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Kevin Frank...Seedheads are starting to appear in big numbers in lawns this week. (see photo) This is a normal occurrence that happens every May across Michigan. Most of the common turfgrasses found in lawns produce seedheads including Kentucky bluegrass, perennial ryegrass and of course Poa annua (otherwise known as annual bluegrass). Seedheads not only detract from the appearance of the turf but the seed stalks are tough to mow so make sure you have a sharp mower blade.

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Kevin Frank...Every now and then something shows up on turf that makes me think just a little more than usual. Earlier this week I noticed that my front lawn started looking a little yellow/whitish, and I quickly concluded that last weekend’s mowing was the culprit. I was victim of what must be a dull mower blade and I was ready to hide my face in shame for my neglect of not following my own advice.

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Ron Calhoun...Everyone has their favorite weed that they struggle to control in turf, but when it comes to the really tough to control weeds, quackgrass often tops the list. The first step in controlling any pest is proper identification and there is no better place to start identifying turf weeds than with the resources at: www.msuturfweeds.net.

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Dave Smitley...The European chafer grubs are almost done feeding this spring and will soon be pupating and turning into beetles. In Lansing, you can expect to see the first European chafer beetles in mid-June.

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Kevin Frank...Last weekend I awoke to find the landscape flush with the brilliant yellow flowers of our most identifiable turf weed – dandelions. Dandelions tend to pop-up all over the place but are definitely a force to be reckoned with in any thin turf areas. The initial flush of dandelions is at full peak right now in the middle of the Lower Peninsula. It’s always interesting to hear people’s perspective on dandelions. Some folks appreciate the color and don’t worry about trying to control them; others view dandelions as the annual spring assault on their lawn.

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Dave Smitley...European chafer grubs are almost done with their spring feeding frenzy. At the same time, turf in lawns is beginning to grow rapidly, filling in areas damaged by grubs in April. At this time it is best to water and fertilize lawns attacked by grubs, or to re-seed areas where large patches of turf died.

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Kevin Frank...Back in 2004 I became aware of a local chapter of Moles Anonymous – those individuals often shunned by society due to their mole problems and their feeble attempts to extradite Mr. Mole from their lawn. Many homeowners in Michigan who have started to wander out to their lawns in the last couple weeks have turned an ankle as they’ve stepped in a mole tunnel. If you’re one of the Moles Anonymous legions, you’ve no doubt started to form your plan for ridding these little devils out of your lawn. Here are the common myths about moles.

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Kevin Frank...After last summer’s challenging growing conditions, it’s likely that many are looking to reseed some damaged turf areas this spring. Depending on location there are certainly some grub hot spots around and many of these areas will need to be reseeded. The recommendation is to wait about one to two weeks after applying a grub insecticide before reseeding.

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Dave Smitley...European chafer grubs have been actively feeding on turf roots the last two weeks. New patches of thin or dead turf have recently appeared throughout southern Michigan, including parts of Eaton, Ingham, Genessee, Oakland, Monroe, Wayne and Ottawa counties. I expect peak damage this week in Monroe and southern Wayne County, followed by peak damage in one to two weeks in the Lansing area. South-facing slopes of lawns or any areas where the soil is sandy or dries quickly are the most likely to harbor European chafer. Spring feeding on turf roots and the resulting dead patches in home lawns may grow larger over the next three weeks.

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Dave Smitley...This is the time of year that European chafer grubs begin to wake-up from their winter snooze to begin munching on turf roots again. Watch for patches of brown turf and bare soil to increase in size in April. (see image)

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