MINNESOTA IN THE CROSSHAIRS MDA Now Considers Established in Minnesota

By PAUL DIEGNAU, CGCS Keller GolfCourse

A funny thing happened at my golf received responses from Michigan, Iowa, Most JB veterans will tell you to avoid course last year. The occasional adult Toronto, Massachusetts, Virginia, using traps if adults are not visible. The Japanese beetle (Popillia japonica) we Minnesota, and Wisconsin. The informa- pheromones and scents in these traps can would see on a green or in a garden sud- tion I received was very informative, lure beetles onto your property from a denly blossomed into numbers we were insightful, and even somewhat alarming. mile or more away. uncomfortable with. The no-mow buffer This information is being offered in the Once you have identified adult popula- strips around our water features had hope that proactive golf course managers tions on your property, a month of trap- become gathering points for the consump- will be better prepared to deal with JB as ping in July will give you some perspec- tion of wild aster and reproductive orgies. the need arises. tive on the quantity of JB you are dealing We placed pheromone traps in areas of The adult beetle has an iridescent green with. Trapping for more than a year may concentrated activity and were amazed at color to its body with cop- the numbers collected. For close to two per-colored wing covers. weeks, the traps were full in one or two They are easily identified days and had to be emptied. I grabbed a by the six white tufts of hair pair of binoculars and started searching located on each side of their the tops of our lindens and maples. Sure body. The adult beetle has a voracious appetite, feeding on over 300 species of plant mate- rial. Their favorite meal is a sampling of Lindens, Norway maple, members of the rose family and grape vines. They feed between the veins in a leaf, leav- ing a skeleton behind. When populations are sizable, they lead to problems, such as those experi- can defoliate an entire tree in a short enced by David Longville, CGCS, who is period of time. One golf course currently the head superintendent at Mill enough, the metallic, coppery green crit- superintendent from Michigan shared a Run/Wild Ridge Golf Courses in Eau ters could be seen skeletonizing leaves in story of being able to hear the buzz of the Claire, Wisconsin. While previously serv- their feeding frenzy. I could only wonder beetles feeding in the trees above...over ing as superintendent at Hillcrest Golf and what 2005 would bring. the noise of a golf cart engine! Country Club in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, Well, 2005 is here. The David managed to collect eleven Minnesota Department of 55-gallon trash bags full of Agriculture has determined that Japanese beetles! The sheer vol- JB is established in Minnesota and ume of such a catch led to dispos- has dropped its trapping and al issues. He attempted to freeze monitoring program for this them in a freezer but they generat- species. What kind of ride are we ed too much heat and would not in for, both short and long term? freeze. His only recourse was to Is it time to start scouting and burn them in a 55-gallon barrel. monitoring for larvae? How will Needless to say, mass trapping is this beetle affect our maintenance problematic and not an effective budgets and our playing condi- control method. tions? I put these questions to sev- Opinions and situations vary eral local superintendents with JB as to whether adult beetles need experience and out into cyber- to be space on the "Turfnet" forum. I (Continued on Page 11) Japanese Beetle- (Continued from Page 10) controlled or not. Obviously, if you have softball-size balls of horny beetles rolling across your greens, tees and fairways, a treatment may be warranted or even demanded by your golfers. Products con- taining active ingredients such as acephate, trichlorfon, carbaryl and several pyrethroids will provide quick knock- down of adult JB in trees and on turf and ornamentals. The female Japanese beetle prefers to lay her eggs in moist, loamy soil covered by turfgrass or mulch. She prefers grass that is 2" in height and lower. During her 30-45 day lifespan, she can lay as many as watered fairways are the first areas to damage) When the raccoons, skunks and 60 eggs, beginning in late June. In two to show damage due to drought stress. The opossum find these buried delicacies, all three weeks the eggs hatch and the larvae JB veterans who shared their experiences hell can break loose! A family of raccoons immediately begin feeding on turfgrass with me indicated that lush fairways are can destroy acres of turfgrass in a short roots. The white grubs attain a full-grown prime areas along with southern exposed period of time. According to most of my length of approximately one inch and are green, tee and bunker surrounds. contacts, the damage inflicted by these identified by the v-shaped rastral pattern Healthy, irrigated turfgrass is, of course, vertebrate pests is the most serious and located near their anal slit. more resilient and usually able to outgrow (Continued on Page 12) Locations of infestations tended to vary the root damage inflicted by the grubs so from course to course, but most agreed scouting and monitoring is a must. One that unirrigated rough areas adjacent to thing is for certain. (Insert photo of turf

"You Customize Your Fleet; We Customize Your Lease"

WELLS FARGO

Davis Sun Turf and Wells Fargo Financial Leasing Offers: Flexible Options: • True Lease • $1 Buyout Lease • Capital Lease -We will lease new or used equipment (no color preference) -Set up repayment schedule that fits your needs

For sales and lease information call Chad, Jay, Jeff, Mark, Tom or Troy at: 800-952-9513 www.davissunturf.cotn stabilize population numbers. Japanese Beetle- On the horizon there are several very (Continued from Page 11) promising bio-control options being stud- ied and tested. Tiphia vernalis (parasitic difficult to control; more so than weak- wasp) hunts down the larvae of the ened turfgrass or tree and ornamental Japanese beetle and deposits eggs that damage. Another interesting fact that will hatch and kill the grub. The Tiphia wasp save you money - the female Japanese cannot eradicate Japanese beetle. It can Beetle avoids laying eggs in tight mowed, keep beetle populations low enough to dense surfaces such as putting greens. So minimize plant damage and can be used don't bother spraying these surfaces. as part of an overall Integrated Pest Management program to suppress popu- Hozv does one avoid such a scenario? lations. USDA researchers consider it to be the most effective parasitoid of JB in There are several preventative pesticide Japanese beetle the U.S. products on the market that are very effec- The Winsome , aldrichi, tive on JB larvae. Imidaclopid (Merit) and parasitizes the adult female Japanese bee- Halofenozide (Mach 2) are the current control of adult beetles. tle by laying eggs on her thorax. The eggs products of choice. Halofenozide is an Both compounds exhibit low toxicity hatch and the maggots bore into her body, growth regulator that essentially on birds and fish and are extremely effec- killing her quickly. In ideal situations, this "grows the grubs to death." It is a slow- tive on first instar larvae. Base your treat- fly can suppress JB populations before the acting product that should be sprayed ment decisions on previous history of beetles can reproduce. when adults are active and beginning to grub infestations. Plan on spending Several parasitic nematodes show lay eggs, usually in June through early approximately $110 / acre for either of promise as components in an IPM pro- August. Imidacloprid is also a slow-acting these products, and they must be watered gram. Steinernema glaseri and systemic product that is absorbed and in to be effective. Heterorhabditis bacteriophora nematodes translocated in plants. The adult and lar- If you are caught by surprise and dis- are particularily effective at finding and val stages feed on root and leaf material cover grub infestations in late summer or destroying JB grubs. S. glaseri tracks the and ingest the poison. This product should be applied anytime between May 15 and August 15. When applied as a drench below the drip line of host specific trees, Imidaclopid will provide excellent "Ifyou are caught by surprise and discovergrub infestations in late summer or thefall ofthe year, Trichloifon (Dylox) will provide an effective rescue treatment/

the fall of the year, Trichlorfon (Dylox) grub in the soil by following the ' will provide an effective rescue treat- carbon dioxide trail released through their ment. This contact insecticide is very fast- breathing vents. Research continues on the Bio^barrier* acting and effective on first and second efficacy of both parasitic nematodes and Root Control System instar larvae. Be aware that this product insects in field applications. is subject to alkaline hydrolysis, so pH adjustment in the spray tank is critical to * * * * T attain maximum effectiveness. (Editor's Note: Paul Diegnau, CGCS, is Many who shared information felt that the MGCSA liaison to the Minnesota Invasive Biobarrier II JB populations were somewhat cyclical in Species Advisory Committee. MISAC is co- PREEMERCENCE WEEO CONTROl SYSTEM the sense that adult populations tended chaired by the MN Dept. of Agriculture and to fluctuate from year to year. The the MN Dept. ofNatural Resources. The amount of acreage treated on an annual council wasformed in response to Presidential basis varied from golf course to golf Executive Order 13112 on invasive species, course. Some superintendents treat wall the National Invasive Species Management Stan Hoglund to wall every year. Others minimize their Plan and Minnesota legislation that encour- treated acreage by scouting populations aged the state to plan and take action on inva- (701)280-3149 and treating hot spots as needed. There sive species.) 1-800-882-8112 was also a consensus that the initial out- www.weeddeath.com break / onslaught will last nine to ten years before predator-prey relationships