Addressing the Inevitable: Summer Heat Stress
As the weather starts to get warmer and the smell of freshly cut grass fills the air, it’s no surprise summer is right around the corner.
While many people are itching with anticipation to enjoy the summer heat, golf course superintendents start to prepare their greens for the stressful situations heat and humidity bring during the summer months in the Midwest.
We gathered some of the best advice from our Sales Reps on how to promote healthy greens during summer heat. Incorporating some of the following tips in your routine will help you beat the heat and survive summer.
Be Proactive – Focus on Plant Health
After spotting an issue, do not wait to make an application. Every moment you wait lowers your chances for a speedy recovery. Pay attention to your playing surfaces and make applications before problems arise. Eliminate as many known stressors as possible. Then manage those that can’t be eliminated. Put more emphasis on air movement, both over the turf canopy and within the root zone. Do not hide from using higher rates of fungicides and shorter intervals. Tighter frequencies of plant growth regulator applications can make a big difference in your plant health as well. Do things that make your job easier! Tools like the Spectrum TDR 350 soil moisture meter will make quick work of monitoring your soil’s moisture. Of course, high-quality products such as Foliar-Pak’s Foundation 40, Gold Standard, and Colonise Bio will be essential to let you sleep easier at night.
Matt Welch
Brecksville, OH Sales Rep
Balance Tee Traffic
A number of golf courses try and dissipate the traffic in certain areas by moving tee markers around. Specifically moving the white or blue markers to the forward tees on Par 3’s & Par 4’s, and then adding back that yardage by moving Par 4 tees further back to the Championship tees where applicable. This approach greatly helps control traffic without affecting the slope, par, or yardage of the overall golf round.
Craig Shepherd
Wheeling, IL Sales Rep
Maintain Adequate Soil Moisture
Applying wetting agents such as Precision Laboratories Vivax and Foliar-Pak Matador prior to the onset of heat during the summer months will assist in maintaining adequate soil moisture and reduce the amount of hand watering that is needed to address hydrophobic areas. These products should be used until the need to maintain adequate soil moisture levels lessen, which is usually around mid-September to the beginning of October.
Mike Susshine
Nashville, TN Sales Rep
Aerification is Key
Venting or solid tine aerification is essential. Customers that are able to vent usually experience less summer stress. Take note of the areas that struggled last year and keep an eye on those areas for turf damage. Use preventative solid tine aerification on your high traffic areas caused by increased play. In times of stress, use Foliar-Pak Bio Sea S and Foundation Forty. They are great for recovery!
Jason Bennett
Brecksville, OH Sales Rep
With all of the tips our Sales Reps told us, the most important – and the one they were most adamant about – was not waiting until your turf shows signs of stress to react. If you notice anything unusual or are having a hard time with any certain issues with your turf, reach out to your local ATS Sales Rep to help get your greens thriving.
