Pesticide update

Pesticides are an integral part of a golf course superintendent’s turf management program. Application rates, tank mixing, regulations and disease resistance are a few of the issues superintendents deal with when it comes to

Endorse urf fungicide from Cleary Chemical Corp. provides control of anthracnose, brown patch, gray snow mold and yellow patch. Endorse obstructs the production of chitin found in fungal cell walls while inhibiting spore germination and mycelium growth in the turf plant. It attacks turf disease through foliar and translaminar systemic activity and can be used in a preventative or curative management program.
With its multisite activity and broad-spectrum control, Protect DF works for warm- and cool-weather diseases such as rapid blight, Bermua decline and summer stress syndrome. It also handles diseases such as leaf spot and brown patch.

Mach 2 insecticide from Dow AgroScience offers a wide application window when applied as a preventative treatment prior to egg hatch through the second instar. It doesn’t require immediate irrigation after application. Its granular and on-fertilizer formulations are labeled for use on golf courses, as are its liquid formulations. It controls grubs at the labeled rate of two pounds active ingredient per acre.

Confront is a non-phenoxy, post-emergence herbicide with low odor that controls as many as 35 species of broadleaf weeds. It provides broad-spectrum weed control with one application, saving the product and labor costs of repeat treatments. It’s labeled for use on most established cool- and warm-season turfgrasses, including bahiagrass, bentgrass, Bermudagrass, Kentucky bluegrass, Kentucky centipedegrass, creeping red fescue, chewing fescue, fescue, ryegrass and zoysiagrass.

Eagle 20EW specialty fungicide provides control of dollar spot and brown patch and is labeled for use on major turf varieties and landscape ornamentals. Its liquid formulation prevents and treats dollar spot, anthracnose, summer patch, brown patch, powdery mildew, rust and scab. Intended for use on fairways, roughs, tees, greens and other landscape ornamentals. Its best control of labeled diseases is when it’s applied on a seven- to 10-day application schedule.

A line of insecticides in micro-injection treatments by Mauget is an environmentally friendly way to apply pesticides. The patented closed system means the chemical is completely contained within the tree, eliminating fears of drift. Only pests feeding on the tree are directly affected. This allows one to treat trees in diverse weather conditions such as wind or rain or in locations near pools, busy streets or schoolyards. A few of the products are Imcide, which contains imidacloprid; Abacide, which contains abamectin; Inject-a-Cide, which contains Metasystox-R; and Inject-a-Cide “B,” which contains Bidrin.

Certainty Turf herbicide from Monsanto selectively controls weeds in golf courses, commercial and residential turf. It’s been registered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. State approvals for Certainty are pending. The herbicide provides control of purple and yellow nutsedge, as well as control of green kyllinga. It can be used in most warm-season turfgrasses, and unlike many other herbicides, it’s labeled for post-directed sprays around woody ornamentals. It also solves nutsedge and other weed problems in golf course fairways and roughs.

Magellan is a systemic fungicide from Nufarm Turf and Specialty that’s used against pythium and yellow tuft diseases. It’s labeled for use on golf courses, lawns, municipal turf areas and sod farms. The clear liquid, with a neutral pH formulation, can be combined with other fungicides such as chlorothalonil for broad-spectrum programs. There’s no known resistance to the active ingredient. It provides as many as 21 days of pythium protection at 8.20 pints per acre.

Bionx is an EPA-registered fungicide and insecticide from Parkway Research and functions best when used as a component of a disease- and pest-control plan. As a fungicide, Bionx wets the protective membrane of the fungal mycelia, sporangia and spores, breaking them down and exposing them to the drying effect of the atmosphere. Drying of the fungal mycelia and the surrounding leaf tissue will prevent further infection. Bionx has stand-alone activity on turf fungal diseases such as anthracnose, dollar spot and fairy ring. It’s approved for control of downey mildew and powdery mildew on many outdoor plants and has activity on insects such as whiteflies, aphids, mealy bugs and leafhoppers, as well as various type of mites.

Pegasus and Pegasus DF from Phoenix Environmental Care are formulations of chlorothalonil and are labeled for a broad spectrum of fungal diseases in turf and ornamentals. Both products offer control of dollar spot, brown patch, leaf spot and stem rust. Pegasus has a flowable formulation that provides foliage coverage and tenacity under adverse conditions. Pegasus DF is a dry flowable with dispersion and suspension characteristics.

SysStar from Regal Chemical Co. is a systemic combination fungicide for prevention and control of many diseases including fairy ring, anthracnose, brown patch, patch diseases and dollar spot.
Regal DeltaGard with fertilizer is a pyrethoid insecticide for controlling worms, fire ants, mole crickets, mites and other surface-feeding insects. It’s available as a spray, granular and in combination with Regal fertilizer.
RegalStar II is a pre-emergent herbicide for turfgrass with season-long pre-emergent control of crowfoot, goosegrass, crabgrass and most other annual weeds from single application.

Junction, a combination of two chemistries combined to create a broad-spectrum fungicide/bactericide, is a high-quality, dry, flowable formulation from SePro Turf and Ornamental that provides solution to disease control in a wide array of turf diseases. It’s formulated to control algae, rhizoctonia brown patch and dollar spot.
Pentathlon is a broad-spectrum fungicide for effective control of fungal diseases on turfgrasses. It controls brown patch, dollar spot, melting out and leaf spot.

Best herbicide combinations from Simplot Turf and Horticulture offer fertilization and weed control in one pass. Best 12-8-16 Mini with 0.4 percent Barricade is a selective pre-emergent herbicide, which will control crabgrass, common annual grasses and selected broadleaf weeds in established turf. Barricade provides season-long control of crabgrass with one application.
Best 12-8-16 with 0.20 percent Dimension, a mini-pellet N-P-K fertilizer/herbicide combination, is offered in three different formulations to best meet the needs of different soil. Dimension prevents crabgrass, goosegrass, annual bluegrass, spurge, purslane, oxalis and other annual grasses and broadleaf weeds found in turf and landscape ornamentals. Dimension also controls crabgrass postemergence up to the four-leaf stage.

Echo Ultimate is a fungicide from Sipcam Agro USA for the turf and ornamental fungicide market. It’s the newest in the Echo brand series of chlorothalonil products. This 82.5-percent, spray-dried, water-dispersible granule product readily suspends in water, even under difficult conditions. It also resuspends in water easily after moderate settling.

The smaller, microemulsion-sized particles of Heritage TL from Syngenta Professional Products provide quick foliar intake and root uptake, resulting in faster protection against disease. The liquid formulation of Heritage fungicide offers long-lasting, broad-spectrum control and a negligible odor. Results of university studies show that Heritage TL delivers a potential increase in efficacy of as much as 15 percent against selected diseases like anthracnose. It also is effective against root-borne diseases such as summer patch and take-all patch due to its ability to be taken up by the roots and translocated up the inside of the plant.

Orthene Turf, Tree & Ornamental Spray 97 from Valent U.S.A. has a patented 97 percent pellet formulation and zipper-lock resealable plastic bag that means no dust, lower odor and more accurate measuring. It offers control of mole crickets, fire ants, chinch bugs and worms with no special equipment required.
Orthene Turf, Tree & Ornamental Spray delivers economical, broad-spectrum control of mole crickets, fire ants, chinch bugs, worms and other turf pests without special equipment. Water soluble packets make handling and measuring easy. Both products allow golfers to resume play as soon as the spray dries.GCN