Mississippi Turfgrass - Fall 2020

FALL 2020

The Mississippi Turfgrass Association Magazine

The ResistPoa Project Enters A New Phase PLUS

DSTE 2020 REINVENTED

Tournament, Trade Show and Tailgate

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FALL 2020

CONTENTS • The Mississippi Turfgrass Association Magazine

FEATURES

8 Cover Story —

The ResistPoa Project Enters A New Phase

8

12 Upcoming Event —

DSTE 2020 Reinvented: Tournament, Trade Show and Tailgate DEPARTMENTS

6 From the MTA President

7 Index of Advertisers

14 News From MTA

12 Find this issue, Podcasts, Events and More:

THETURFZONE.COM Mississippi Turfgrass is the Mississippi Turfgrass Association magazine. Subscriptions are complimentary to MTA members. The statements and opinions expressed herein are those of the individual authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the association, its staff, its board of directors, Mississippi Turfgrass, or its editors.

Likewise, the appearance of advertisers, or their identification as MTA members, does not constitute an endorsement of the products or services featured in any issue of Mississippi Turfgrass. Copyright ©2020 by the Mississippi Turfgrass Association.

Mississippi Turfgrass is published quarterly. Subscriptions are complimentary to members of MTA. Presorted standard postage is paid at Jefferson City, MO. Printed in the U.S.A. Reprints and Submissions: MTA allows reprinting of material published here.

Permission requests should be directed to MTA. We are not responsible for unsolicited freelance manuscripts and photographs. Contact the managing editor for contribution information. Advertising: For display and classified advertising rates and insertions, please contact Leading Edge Communications, LLC, 206 Bridge Street, Franklin, TN 37064, (615) 790-3718, Fax (615) 794-4524.

4 • MISSISSIPPI TURFGRASS • FALL 2020

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FROM THE MTA PRESIDENT, Jeremy Tate

SERVING THE TURF COMMUNITY

The

fall is upon us. I love this time of year. The grass slows down. The mornings become cool and crisp again, and football begins. This year has had a tremendous amount of challenges, but it has been an honor to serve as your MTA President.

We are excited to welcome a new colleague — Dr. Hongxu Dong — as Turf Breeder.

This position went unfilled for close to a year and a half. It was filled because the industry and faculty conveyed the importance of the position.

As of current, Field Day will be held virtually on September 17.

MTA website should be up and running by the time this newsletter hits. It’s been long overdue and will help us to continue serving the turf community.

Once again thank you for your membership. I hope everyone has a great fall.

Mississippi Turfgrass Association Box 9555 MS State, MS 39762 Office: (662) 325-0517 Fax: (662) 325-2705 www.msturfassociation.org Published by: Leading Edge Communications, LLC 206 Bridge Street Franklin, TN 37064 Office: (615) 790-3718 Fax: (615) 794-4524 info@leadingedgecommunications.com MISSISSIPPI TURFGRASS EDITOR James D. McCurdy, Ph.D.

MTA OFFICERS PRESIDENT Jeremy Tate Tate’s Turf LLC (662) 209-0023 VICE PRESIDENT Keair Edwards City of Gulfport (228) 861-5641 SECRETARY / TREASURER Dr. Barry Stewart Mississippi State University (662) 325-2725

Jeremy Tate MTA President

PAST PRESIDENT Al Osteen Turf Consultant (601) 214-9907 ADMINISTRATIVE SECRETARY Linda Wells Mississippi State University Box 9555 MS State, MS 39762 Office: (662) 325-0517 Cell: (662) 769-7558 lmw218@pss.msstate.edu

DIRECTORS

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Jay McCurdy, Ph.D. (662) 325-2331

INDEX OF ADVERTISERS

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KWMI / K & W Products, Inc..........................13 www.KWMIequipment.com

Leading Edge Communications......................5

Specialty Distribution

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Progressive Turf Equipment Inc.....................5 www.progressiveturfequip.com

RD Murphy, LLC...............................................7

Butch Pugh PO Box 9168 Searcy, AR 72145

Cell: 662-545-5664

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Riebeling Farms, Inc.......................................7 Simplot Partners.............................................3 www.simplotpartners.com

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sales@leadingedgecommunications.com www.LeadingEdgeCommunications.com THE MISSISSIPPI TURFGRASS ASSOCIATION MAGAZINE • 7

COVER STORY

THE

ResistPoa Project ENTERS A NEW PHASE

By Jay McCurdy, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Mississippi State University

PHOTO 1: The ResistPoa team includes researchers from Texas A&M, University of Tennessee, Mississippi State, University of Georgia, North Carolina State, Clemson, University of Florida, Rutgers, Purdue, Virginia Tech, Penn State, University of Arizona, Portland State, Oregon State and Auburn.

8 • MISSISSIPPI TURFGRASS • FALL 2020

The

ResistPoa project seeks new and innovative strategies that help practitioners make informed decisions regarding annual bluegrass (Poa annua) control. The project is funded by a $5.6 million United States Department of Agriculture – Specialty Crop Research Initiative (USDA-SCRI) grant and involves 16 universities as well as their research laboratories and lab members. This is one of only a few federally funded turfgrass projects in the nation, and we’re grateful to reviewers and stakeholders who were involved in its selection (Photo 1).

Our objectives are to characterize nationwide distribution of herbicide resistant annual bluegrass, seek out new and novel means of control, and identify socio-economic constraints that affect practitioner behavior.

The project is now in its second year. We are proud to have teamed up with Leading Edge Communications to bring our stakeholders an update through a series of podcasts and written communications.

A LONG-ROOTED HISTORY: Poa Annua Through the Years Annual bluegrass (Poa annua) is a troublesome weed in managed landscapes and crops alike. It is one of the most widespread in the world. In fact, it has been reported on every continent, including Antarctica (Olech, 1996). Annual bluegrass is thought to have resulted from a cross between weak bluegrass (Poa infirma) and creeping meadow-grass (Poa supina) perhaps 2.5 million years ago during the interglacial ice age periods on the European continent. More recently, these two parent species have been shown to cross quite readily (Tutin, 1957).

Annual bluegrass is an annual comprised of numerous biotypes or “populations” – many of which are capable of perennating, meaning that they may exist in a vegetative state throughout the year, all along reproducing through aggressive tillering and seed production. Though perennial biotypes are much less common than annual biotypes, they tend to occur in frequently mown or grazed scenarios in temperate climates with adequate year-round soil moisture.

Poa in ancient Greek means ‘fodder’; therefore, it should come as no surprise that temperate, cool-season pastures of the old-world have historically been comprised of at least some Poa species, including annual bluegrass and Kentucky bluegrass (Poa pratensis). In the temperate environments of England, Poa annua is in fact referred to as annual meadow-grass, while Kentucky bluegrass is called smooth meadow-grass.

Annual bluegrass has been a research interest since the early 1900’s. An oftencited early publication concerning annual bluegrass control was published by the USGA Green Section in 1922 – “How we controlled Poa annua at Old Elm.” This introspective piece is part self-congratulatory, part admission of defeat. It’s easy to find and well worth the read.

In our interviews with co-authors, one thing is clear: annual bluegrass isn’t going anywhere. We’re just trying to keep up. The ResistPoa project has a unique role to play. John Kaminski, a Penn State investigator, summed this up well: “This has been a long battle that people have dealt with, and I don’t think we’re going to solve all those battles, but by consolidating all the people from various geographic regions that really have different management styles and practices based on where they’re located, I think we’re going to be able to come up with concentrated information for people managing turf in specific regions. I think that hasn’t been done before.”

Our Challenge As a turfgrass weed, annual bluegrass’s color and texture are an aesthetic problem. It disrupts athletic performance as well as ball roll. It can survive and reproduce at almost any mowing height.

It results in thinned and vulnerable turfgrass stands. Practitioners and researchers alike find that controlling and managing it seems to be more art than it is science.

As an industry, we too quickly start our conversations regarding annual bluegrass by discussing chemical control options, but any astute turfgrass manager knows that we can’t keep doing the same things if they’re not working. We must also acknowledge societal and economic variables that influence our decision making. David Ervin at Portland State University and George Frisvold at University of Arizona are doing just that. Socio-economic investigations are collecting data through the use of focus groups and surveys. This approach challenges us to look beyond chemical control as a single dimension solution. Jim Brosnan from the University of Tennessee says: “This is the first time that I’ve been involved in an effort that is really trying to get at the sociological piece, the human element or decision-making piece of what we do. And my hope is that by trying to understand those dynamics, it’s going to make the solutions that come from the research easier to adapt.”

Beyond chemical control strategies, a critical objective of the ResistPoa project is to develop sound best management practices (BMPs) based upon a better understanding of the ecology and biology of annual bluegrass. “[W]hat it’s going to do is expand our knowledge a little bit better on those aspects of Poa annua control that are now solely dependent on which synthetic herbicide to spray today or tomorrow or next week,” says Shawn Askew from Virginia Tech. “We’re looking more at the biology of the weed and trying to exploit its weaknesses.”

Controlling annual bluegrass requires a diversified approach, incorporating proper cultural practices that favor the desired turfgrass species, appropriate herbicide application timings and combinations that account for known resistance issues.

Another objective is to understand seed production and seedling germination. Given adequate soil temperature and moisture, annual bluegrass seed germinate and establish relatively quickly. The project seeks to understand this through a series of experiments.

In ongoing studies, investigators at Georgia, Mississippi, Penn State, Purdue, and Tennessee have been studying the effects of growing degree day (GDD) accumulation on annual bluegrass seed formation and subsequent germination. In 2019 and 2020, we tracked GDD accumulation from January 1 through flowering and eventual seed ripening. Across sites, it appears that seed germination rates rise rapidly after 1,250 GDD (base 32°F) accumulation and that the highest germination rates occur for seed retained longest on the plant. Ongoing experiments at Texas A&M, Auburn, Clemson, Tennessee, Oregon State, Purdue, and Rutgers also seek to determine the effects of seed burial and persistence as well as seedling emergence patterns. Those efforts are complemented by studies investigating seedling emergence (led by researchers at Penn State) and other studies evaluating fraze-mowing as a mechanical means of depleting the soil seed bank (at Tennessee and Florida).

THE MISSISSIPPI TURFGRASS ASSOCIATION MAGAZINE • 9

COVER STORY • Continued

Herbicide resistance One of the most comprehensive objectives of the ResistPoa project is a national survey of herbicide resistant annual bluegrass. This has proven to be a challenging objective.

With more than 30 researchers involved, we

have standardized procedures for population collection and developed workflows that keep whole greenhouses of plants alive at more than a dozen locations. We have developed techniques for rapid screening of an unprecedented number of annual bluegrass populations. Our findings will be

made relevant through the development of a user-friendly decision-support tool that helps facilitate herbicide mode of action rotation, as well as the incorporation of effective cultural practices.

To date, we have screened more than 1,500 annual bluegrass samples for postemergence resistance to the following herbicide modes/sites of action (and respective herbicides): • 4-hydroxyphenylpyruvatedioxygenase or HPPD (mesotrione) • 5-enolpyruvylshikimate-3-phosphate synthase or ESPS (glyphosate) • acetolactate-synthase or ALS (trifloxysulfuron, foramsulfuron, and others) • glutamine synthetase (glufosinate) • microtubule assembly (pronamide) • photosystem I (diquat) • photosystem II (simazine) And preemergence resistance to the following herbicide modes/sites of action: • inhibition of cell wall biosynthesis (indaziflam) • microtubule assembly (prodiamine and pronamide) In year 1 of our study, we identified suspected resistance to many sites of action studied. Most of the resistant populations were from southern states. Of 776 samples collected in winter of 2018/2019 from Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia, 13% were suspected resistant to ALS-inhibiting herbicides, 8% to glyphosate, 5% to simazine applied postemergence, 3% to pronamide applied postemergence, and 5% to microtubule synthesis inhibitors applied preemergence.

Our work analyzing for herbicide resistance has only just begun. Suspected resistant populations that escaped preliminary screens of labelled rates are now moving though secondary rate-response screens to confirm and quantify resistance. Confirmed resistant populations will then move through target-site resistance screens at Auburn, where researchers will analyze for mutations within the genetic sequence for targeted enzymes. Unique cases (for instance, populations with multiple-herbicide-resistance) will then be screened for non-target site resistance by researchers at North Carolina and Georgia.

10 • MISSISSIPPI TURFGRASS • FALL 2020

PHOTO 2: Poa annua survives where few others can.

Find out more

PHOTO 3: ResistPoa.org offers resources for turf managers.

The best way to keep track of our results is by monitoring our @ResistPoa Twitter handle. We’re posting updates and retweeting relevant information there. The website ResistPoa.org is a handy tool for stakeholders. We have included a search function that allows folks to look for published information by State, Turf Type, and Control Method. There are educational videos and a repository of webinar recordings. We’ll be adding a decision support tool over time. This tool should account for herbicide application history, site/mode of action, and much more.

We look forward to sharing knowledge and best management strategies with you in the future.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, please visit ResistPoa.org, follow us on Twitter (@ResistPoa), and listen to podcasts at the TheTurfZone.com.

3A (ABOVE): The tools tab provides links to support best management practices for controlling annual bluegrass.

3B (BELOW): The search feature allows visitors to find targeted information using filters for turf type, control method and state.

References: Alexander, W. A. 1922. How we controlled Poa annua at Old Elm. Bulletin of the Green Section of the USGA 2(7): 213-214.

Olech, M. 1996. Human impact on terrestrial ecosystems in west Antarctica. In Proceedings of the NIPR Symposium on Polar Biology (pp. 299-306). National Institute of Polar Research. •

THE MISSISSIPPI TURFGRASS ASSOCIATION MAGAZINE • 11

COVER STORY

The Preserve provides a beautiful backdrop for the reimagined Deep South Turf Expo.

Tournament

DSTE 2020

REINVENTED

TOURNAMENT, TRADE SHOW AND TAILGATE

By Melanie Bonds

Break-Out Schedule 8 – 10 am Exhibitor Move-In to their assigned hole 10 – 12 pm Registration 12 – 4 pm Golf Tournament & Trade Show 4 – 7 pm Tailgate & Trade Show

It

is with regret that we notify you that our 2020 Deep South Turf Expo, originally scheduled for November 4–5, 2020, at the Mississippi Coast Convention Center has been cancelled. After careful consideration, our Board of Directors made this decision since we cannot guarantee the positive and rewarding experience that our attendees and exhibitors have come to enjoy each year in Biloxi. A successful Conference and Trade Show relies on in-person networking, face-to-face business meetings and hands-on instruction that will simply not be possible, given the continued social distancing measures that we anticipate will still be in place throughout the remainder of this year. With so much uncertainty, the board feels it prudent to forgo our education program and trade show and focus on making the 2021 Deep South Turf Expo the best ever!

12 • MISSISSIPPI TURFGRASS • FALL 2020

Rather than completely miss an opportunity to have our group come together this year, the DSTE is going to host DSTE 2020 Reinvented: Tournament, Trade Show and Tailgate! Tournament will be hosted by The Preserve Golf Course on Monday, October 26th. This will allow us ample space to socially distance and gather, while keeping the spirit of the DSTE alive for next year.

October will be a great time to play this Certified Silver Audubon International Signature Sanctuary Golf Course. One of the only 21 golf courses in the world to receive this prestigious designation, the Preserve is committed to helping preserve the natural environment, while maintaining pristine playing conditions. Judging from the popularity of past DSTE Tournaments at this course they have succeeded! Many thanks to Jeremy Stevens and Stephen Miles, CGCS for hosting the tournament, and their dedication to the Deep South Turf Expo since its inception!

Trade Show In addition to the golf tournament we are offering opportunities for our vendors to showcase their products during the tournament by displaying on a hole during the golf tournament. Players and attendees (aka customers) will come by on their golf carts, or people carriers, and visit with you. Registration includes exhibit location and entrance to the tailgate celebration. Since we will have limited space, we suggest you register ASAP.

Tailgate The Tailgate Picnic, which was so popular last year, is being reprised. Whether you golf or not, we encourage everyone to come by for the Tailgate, sample some great food, listen to some great music, and gather with their peers. Please SAVE THE DATE! There will be rooms available at the Beau Rivage for special rates on Sunday and Monday nights.

While it is of primary importance to the Deep South Turf Expo mission to offer an outstanding education conference each year, there were many factors that determined that we would be unable to host the wonderful program that had been planned.

Even a scaled-down live version of this conference would be difficult. Our host hotel, the Beau Rivage, has been mandated to reduce occupancy and many universities have eliminated travel of their faculty during this time. In addition, many of our exhibitors have had travel budgets frozen and could not confirm that they would be able to exhibit until this fall. Our committee is still working on making some offerings that would enable our attendees to get points on a digital platform. As soon as confirmation can be made, we will promote and share this information.

The Deep South Turf Expo Board and staff wish you and your family a safe summer. Whether you play in the golf tournament or not, we hope you will come to the tournament and tailgate.

We miss you all and would love to see you there! •

NEWS FROM MTA

WELCOME

DR. HONGXU DONG!

Dr.

Dong joins Drs. Stewart, Tomaso-Peterson, and McCurdy in the Golf and Sports Turf Management Program at Mississippi State University. Dr. Dong’s expertise is turf breeding. Dr. Dong says the turf team at MSU consists of great people with diverse backgrounds and that he looks forward to being a part of it.

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14 • MISSISSIPPI TURFGRASS • FALL 2020

Dr. Dong studied Seed Science and Engineering at Shandong Agricultural University (China) from 2008–2012. He graduated with a Master of Science degree in Plant and Soil Sciences from Oklahoma State University in 2014 and went on to complete his Ph.D. in Crop Sciences at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2017.

Dr. Dong became involved in the turfgrass breeding program at Oklahoma State University, where he worked as a Master’s student under the direction of Professor, Dr. Yanqi Wu. Dr. Dong says “studying genetics of turfgrass and breeding for improved plant materials has great scientific, economic and societal benefits. I joined Mississippi State University as a turfgrass breeder to continue this exciting journey.”

Mentors, such as Dr. Yanqi Wu at Oklahoma State University, Dr. Erik Sacks at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, and Dr. Andrews Patterson at the University of Georgia, encouraged him to pursue his career.

Dr. Dong acknowledges his Ph.D. advisor, Dr. Erik Sacks, with this advice: “Be meticulous about everything in your breeding program.” He will remember this as he strives to develop and evaluate a large number of experimental lines per breeding cycle.

When asked “Where would you like to be in your career 10 years from now,” he said, “commercialize several elite selections from my predecessor Mr. Wayne Philley’s work and identify several superior turfgrass selections from my own breeding program for potential commercialization. Also, to train multiple undergraduates, graduate students, and postdocs.” He would also like to have scientific publications published and do presentations and seminars to inform people about turf breeding.

When not working, Hongxu enjoys running outdoors and likes basketball and golf.

But he is a novice at golf, so go easy on him!

He also likes to travel and enjoyed a trip to Universal Studios at Orlando. He says that the “Wizarding World of Harry Potter” theme park is mind-blowing.

Dr. Dong is single (but attached), and his girlfriend works in Atlanta.

Dr. Dong is a member of Crop Science Society of America and the American Society of Agronomy. He has already achieved many awards and honors. Some of his most recent are: 2017 Dermot P. Coyne Leadership Award from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln; 2017 Nebraska Plant Breeding Symposium Student Oral Presentation Award, and the 2016 M. B. Russell Memorial Award from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

The Mississippi Turfgrass Association looks forward to working with Dr. Dong. •

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