The 26th annual Georgia Bermudagrass Forum was held on September 9 at Sea Palms Resort in St. Simons Island, Georgia. This event has become popular in the Southeast and attracts many superintendents and vendors from Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas. This year, attendees heard about various education topics from keynote speaker Dr. William “Billy” Crow and interacted with other superintendents during the event’s forum discussion. Tim Busek, golf course superintendent at St. Ives Country Club, and Justin Collett, the host superintendent at Sea Palms Resort, led the group forum. Topics discussed included difficult spring conditions this year, mowing heights on ultradwarf bermudagrass, topdressing sand selection and application methods, various aeration practices and growth regulation on greens.
Dr. Crow, professor of nematology from the University of Florida, spoke about important updates on nematode control, new products coming to the market and improved nematode testing techniques. He shared his video “How To Sample for Nematodes – New Techniques” with updated nematode sampling guidelines. Detailed below are some of the highlights from Dr. Crow’s presentation.
Sting Nematode Control:
Target applications in fall or spring.
The best-performing products included Curfew (quick-acting, highly effective with no residual), Indemnify (slower-acting but effective, with long-term residual), Nimitz (effective but requires multiple applications), and Abamectin (effective only in the upper soil profile).
Root-Knot Nematode Control:
Target applications in the summer months.
The best-performing products included Abamectin (highly effective but requires multiple sequential applications), Indemnify (best with two half-rate applications), Zelto+Crescendo (effective with repeated applications), and Curfew (effective on exposed eggs and juveniles in the soil).
Lance Nematode Control:
The best-performing products included Nimitz (effective but requires multiple applications), Abamectin (effective only in the upper 1 inch of the soil profile), and Curfew (effective on nematodes in the soil but not in the roots).
New Products To Watch For:
Tymirium technology from Syngenta is a nematicide/fungicide combination that can be used for root-knot, sting and lance nematodes.
Reklemel is a nematicidal active ingredient from Corteva that controls nematodes without disrupting beneficial soil organisms.
For those in the turfgrass management industry, events like the Georgia Bermudagrass Forum are essential for staying up to date with the latest research and best practices. They offer a valuable opportunity to exchange knowledge and experiences with fellow professionals, vendors and educators in the field. If you have access to similar forums in your area, attending when possible is a great way to increase your knowledge. If such forums do not exist in your area, you might consider initiating one to facilitate sharing and collaboration among your local industry professionals and experts.
Southeast Region Agronomists:
Chris Hartwiger, director, Agronomy – chartwiger@usga.org
Jordan Booth, Ph.D., director, USGA Course Consulting Service – jbooth@usga.org
John Rowland, Ph.D., agronomist – jrowland@usga.org
Chris Neff, agronomist – cneff@usga.org