What do higher fairway expectations and lower fairway mowing heights mean for disease pressure on cool-season fairways?
Rob Golembiewski, PhD, Bayer Green Solutions Team: I always look at it from the standpoint of overall turf health. We know there’s a direct correlation between mowing heights, root length and plant health. The lower the heights of cut you go, the more you end up with reduced root systems. In some years, it might not have a serious impact. But as we move into more stressful summers, turf starts becoming a little more susceptible to abiotic stresses – heat, drought, wear – as well as biotic stresses –and disease pressure. With those increasing expectations, superintendents are managing fairways now much like they used to manage greens 30 or 40 years ago. We are really starting to push the limits with these fairways and with that comes added pressures.
What are signs that cool-season fairways are susceptible to foliar diseases?
I always go back to the basic turf pathology class when we talk about the disease triangle. When you look at the disease triangle, we first talk about the host being the turf species, and then about the pathogens on a given golf course. We’re going to have certain pathogens that are present and have potential to infect turf. And the third component is the environmental factors. When we look at the susceptibility of cool-season grasses, ultimately, I go back to the environment and the cultural practices. Are we under-fertilizing or over-fertilizing? Are we underwatering or overwatering? And what does Mother Nature serve up in the form of irrigation or precipitation? Moisture is going to be the key driver as far as disease or disease development. Too much and you’re more likely to see a lot more disease or susceptibility to disease as we go forward. Superintendents have gotten a lot more effective as far as managing irrigation. But the real curveball comes from rainfall or precipitation from Mother Nature.
How will a winter like this past one where we saw heavy snow, then it got warm and then we saw snow again in some cool-season regions challenge superintendents when we get into peak periods of play moving into the summer?
Ultimately, the moisture and rainfall along with what temperatures look like will end up having the greatest impact on performance as superintendents head into the summer and remainder of the year. They are calling for maybe a little bit of a cooler spring and above normal rainfall for good parts of the country. If that happens, superintendents better be prepared as far as some challenges with diseases.
Bayer recently released Exteris Stressgard for fairways. What did you observe during trials and what type of potential does it hold for enhancing fairways?
Bayer has done extensive testing with Exteris Stressgard over the years, doing almost 100 different research trials across the U.S. on all different turf species and different turf diseases. And ultimately Exteris Stressgard has delivered excellent preventative as well as curative control of foliar turfgrass diseases such as dollar spot and brown patch, with interval and rate ranges going anywhere from seven up to 28 days. It’s providing the level of control that superintendents need at the different intervals whether it’s seven to 28 days or whatever schedules they prefer to be on.
What’s different about the technology in Exteris Stressgard compared to other fungicides used on cool-season fairways?
Exteris Stressgard is a pretty unique fungicide, especially if we look into the fairway market. It contains two different active ingredients. Our new SDHI active ingredient, fluopyram, along with a QoI, trifloxystrobin. But in addition to those active ingredients, it contains two unique formulation technologies, including proven Stressgard Formulation Technology, which has been incorporated into a large portfolio of Bayer products. The second one is a new Leaf-Cote Technology, which really enhances spray application dynamics for a golf course superintendent, leading to better adhesion and dispersion on the turf leaf surface. What does that mean? It’s resulting in quicker dry times on the turf itself after application, and we have seen nice flexibility with even spray volume. The combination of these different factors really means that the superintendent is going to get outstanding foliar disease control along with improved plant health and turf quality.
What has been the early response and reaction to Exteris Stressgard and what are some things we might see from it this year once it gets out in the field and on golf courses?
Bayer just launched Exteris Stressgard at the Golf Industry Show in February. I have had the fortunate opportunity to do some different webinars and speak out in front of golf course superintendents. They seem to be very excited by the addition of this product coming to the market. We are excited to introduce a product that’s priced competitively for the fairway market. Along with that, they are really excited about the new technology, the inclusion of the Stressgard Formulation Technology and the disease control. The bottom line is disease control is the first thing they focus on. But when they get the extra technologies that enhance the way they conduct business, they seem to be very excited about it.