2/19/2016. You. Insects. Pesticides must be green to be defensible. Controlling Golf Course Insect Pests. It s not easy bein green.

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1 Controlling Golf Course Insect Pests It s Getting Easier to be Green Daniel A. Potter Professor, University of Kentucky You Insects It s not easy bein green. Pesticides must be green to be defensible Turf manager Nasty insects Demand for quality turf Reduce chemical inputs Golf is the Green Industry Leader in Environmental Stewardship It s gettin easier to be green! Insecticides: then versus now 1

2 LD 50 = Amount of a substance needed to kill 50% of test population (expressed in mg/kg body wt) Acute oral toxicity of some turf insecticides to ducks. Which is most toxic? Insecticide Oral LD50 (mg/kg) Arena 5200 Merit 5000 Dylox 37 Talstar 2150 The lower the LD 50, the more toxic the pesticide!! Insecticide Toxicity: Then and Now Target Pest Product Bird LD 50 (mg/kg) White Grubs 1990 Diazinon Acelepryn >5000 Cutworms 1990 Chlorpyrifos Provaunt >5000 Insecticide Rates: Then and Now Target Pest Product Rate (lbs AI/acre) White Grubs 1990 Carbaryl Acelepryn 0.1 (80x less) Cutworms 1990 Dursban Tempo 0.05 (40x less) Modern Insecticides are Target Selective! Green Chemistry Example: Very low toxicity to people, birds, bees, earthworms, & fish Many everyday substances have higher intrinsic toxicity than modern turf insecticides > 5000 mg/kg (spray mix) Top Golf Course Insect Pests and How to Deal with Them What s the most likely culprit in New York State? Sodium Fluoride: 135 mg/kg White Grubs! 1700 mg/kg Caffeine: 200 mg/kg How can we tell for sure? 2

3 What s digging for the grubs? White Grub Mandibles D Potter Yikes! Could it be? More Grub Eating Critters Mmm... Land Shrimp!!? Potter back yard, October 2015 To Discourage More Digging by Critters Controlling grubs usually wont eliminate mole problems Hello! I m outta here!! Try spreading Milorganite! What is a mole s favorite food? 3

4 What do white grubs grow up to be? White grubs are larvae of beetles Chafers are active at night Japanese beetles are active by day Masked chafer 1. Moths 2. Wasps Japanese beetle Oooh! How Embarassing! Mate on lawn in spring 3. Beetles Asiatic garden beetle Oriental beetle European chafer European chafer adults swarming to tree for mating Mating on plants in summer The Most Damaging White Grubs in NYS How can we tell them apart? Identifying Grub Species European chafer has two rows of spines resembling an opening zipper Japanese beetle European chafer Location of spines on the grub s raster Images from D. Shetlar, OSU Japanese beetle has spines forming a tiny V Images from D. Shetlar, OSU Y shaped anus with two rows of spines Eggs are laid in soil from mid June to mid August Beetles of most grub species prefer to lay eggs in moist, irrigated turf So.irrigated turf is at higher risk! European Chafer is an exception It prefers drier soils European chafer damage, Queensbury, NY Photo: A. Morales, NYSAES 4

5 Grub damage worst in late summer and fall Grubs move deeper for over wintering about the time of first frost Nice and cozy in here! Approaches to Grub Control: Preventive control Rescue treatments Preventive Grub Insecticides Nicotinoids Anthranilic diamide All of the preventive insecticides work well if applied at the right time Treated Combo Products Not Treated For good grub control: Water it in! Broad application window Best application window 5

6 What About Rescue Treatments? Most effective: Organic Grub Control: What are the Options?? Yikes!! Entomopathogenic Nematodes A. Koppenhofer Nematode Products Nemasys G (from Becker Underwood) NemaSeek (from Arbico Organics) Our research and other modern University trials showed NO BENEFIT from applying milky spore products D. Shetlar New beetle active strain of bacteria: Bacillus thuringiensis galleriae 70 80% control of most grub species Apply in late July to early August (early curative treatment) Downsides: Costs a lot more Activity on European chafer still uncertain Cost per 1,000 sq ft GrubGONE $17.18 Acelepryn G $8.54 Merit 75WP $3.52 Prime Source Imidacloprid $0.53 Dylox 6.2 $6.80 Black Turfgrass Ataenius grubs on golf courses 6

7 Adult length = about 3/16 Damage: Mostly June to early July Full sized 3 rd instars about the size of Lincoln s hair! Grub densities may reach 200 or more grubs per square foot Managing Black Turf Ataenius Option 1: Target the adults Watch for beetles on putting greens or in mowing in May Intercept females with a pyrethroid spray (Tempo, Scimitar, Talstar) before they lay eggs Managing Black Turf Ataenius Option 2: Preventive Control Apply preventive grub treatment in May to control grubs as they hatch Use highest label rate Managing Black Turf Ataenius Option 3: Rescue Treatment Nuke grubs with Dylox, Arena, or Aloft as needed Haircut for Potter s bug lectures What Caused This? Annual bluegrass weevil Adults over winter in border areas Walk to low cut turf when Forsythia blooms Close cut Poa annua Annual Bluegrass Weevil! Adult AB weevils 7

8 Young larva feeds inside stem... Photos: Dan Peck, Ben McGraw & Steve McDonald Diagnosing Annual Bluegrass Weevil Photos from Dan Peck Adults lay eggs between leaf sheath & stem Older larvae eat grass crowns Each may injure 20 tillers! Damage appears in late spring and early summer Encroaches from edges Early symptoms resemble anthracnose Also: Spring adulticide ABW Suggested Control Strategy (Thanks to Ben McGraw at Penn State) Early larval control 3 rd application, if necessary Black Cutworms in greens Where do cutworms come from? Managing Cutworms Black cutworm moth Eggs laid on tips of grass blades Mowing removes most eggs from greens, but. Eggs survive on clippings so discard them away from greens & tees! 8

9 Insecticides for Cutworms One application controls grubs, weevils, & cutworms for whole summer What are these?? One application give seasonlong control European Crane fly adults and maggots! Turf Damage from Crane Flies Crane fly signs (Sept. to Oct.) Adult emerging from pupal skin Search: European crane fly on golf course Pupal shed skin protruding from turf Adults making more Managing Crane Flies Managing crane flies. Preventive control of young larvae in late fall (Acelepryn, Merit) Curative control of larger larvae in May (Dylox) Allow chronically infested areas to dry in the fall From Peck et al

10 Nuisance Pests What caused this? Turfgrass ant Lasius neoniger 1 Queen Ants!! 1000 s of workers Eggs & larvae As the colony grows, worker ants excavate new chambers, bring soil or sand to surface Mounds encroach into greens from the perimeter Why? Nest 2 m Nest Controlling ants on golf courses Treat soon after mounds appear in spring Treat collar and 1 boom width into the surrounds These baits work well for spot treating ants 2 m Advion fire ant bait Maxforce Complete granular ant bait 10

11 What caused this? Cicada Killer Wasps! Yikes! Victim: a Cicada A bad way to go. Small larva Dealing with Cicada Killers Educate clients Leave them alone (best!) Whack with tennis racket Dust or spray individual burrows Dust applicator Dusts for wasps: Drione Tempo Sevin (5%) Big larva Earthworms are beneficial to healthy lawns Why? Earthworms: Alleviate compaction Enhance air and water infiltration Enrich the soil with their casts No Earthworms? Have Fun with Thatch 11

12 But: Earthworm casts can be a big problem on low mowed playing surfaces No pesticides are labeled for earthworm control in the USA These will suppress earthworms and casting as a side effect Early Bird Organic Fertilizer Contains natural detergents from tea seed that irritate and expel earthworms and reduce casting Treated Untreated Wormageddon following Early Bird application! Early Bird Organic Fertilizer Casts reduced for 5 or more weeks after application Green Stinkworms Treated Sandy casts Untreated Casting on sand greens in late spring & summer Sandy casts Muddy green worms Combo products will control Green Stinkworms Is anyone seeing Green Stinkworms in New York State? You can access EntFacts through the University of Kentucky Entomology web site Not treated Treated Regular earthworm Green stinkworm Turf & Landscape Entomology 12

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