Golfdom, December 2016

RESEARCH FOR REAL SUPERINTENDENTS Hosted by Clark Throssell Ph D clarkthrossell@ bresnan net Super Science AT YOUR FINGERTIPS ET PHONE HOME TO HELP WITH IRRIGATION By Clark Throssell Ph D W ouldnt it be nice to know the forecast ET evapotranspiration when making decisions about irrigation And wouldnt it be even better if that information were available for free and at your fingertips The forecast reference ET FRET is available nationwide free of charge on your computer at digital weather gov from the National Weather Service NWS At the web address you will reach the NWS Graphical Forecasts page Above and to the left of the displayed U S map are two drop down boxes One is to select the geographic location of interest and the second drop down box is for the weather data of your choice To find the FRET data scroll down to Water Resources and select Daily FRET in After you make the selection the map will populate with predicted daily FRET So when making irrigation decisions superintendents now have data that forecasts the ET for the following day and for up to the next seven days With this data at a superintendents fingertips it will be easier to provide the amount of water needed to meet the needs of the turf without overwatering Forecast of Reference Crop Evapotranspiration FRET is the expected depth of water that would evaporate and transpire from a reference crop under the forecast weather conditions on a daily and weekly basis over the next seven days The FRET is for short crops with an approximate height of 47 inches similar to full cover grasses Research has shown that mowed cool season turfgrasses on an annual basis use approximately 80 percent 08 and mowed warm season grasses use approximately 60 percent to 70 percent 06 to 07 of reference ET so the forecast reference ET value presented will need to be adjusted based on the grass species on the golf course Its hoped that checking daily forecast reference ET on the computer and adjusting irrigation run times accordingly will become part of the routine used when making irrigation decisions Clark Throssell Ph D is a turfgrass scientist working for Turfgrass R D Inc You can reach Clark at clarkthrossell@ bresnan net for more information NEWS UPDATES ANUVIA PLANT NUTRIENTS RAISES 23 MILLION IN EQUITY Anuvia Plant Nutrients the Florida based plant nutrient company secured an additional 23 million in equity capital from current investors This new funding will allow Anuvia to further accelerate its growth opportunities including utilization of food waste the development of a liquid product and expansion into international markets The funding also will support project development for construction of a second plant which will further enable growth in the agricultural professional turf and consumer lawn care markets Anuvias products are based on an innovative technology in which organic waste materials are consumed and processed into a homogenous multi nutrient enhanced efficiency fertilizer Their sustainable products contribute to a healthier environment improved soil health and plant growth according to the company Anuvia Plant Nutrients recently opened its first state of the art specialty fertilizer production facility in Zellwood Fla The plant is expected to produce 80000 tons of product annually GROWTH SUPPRESSION WITH PGRS OF GRASSES PRIOR TO SEEDHEAD DEVELOPMENT DELAYS INFLORESCENCE MORE EFFECTIVELY THAN APPLICATIONS AFTER EMERGENCE Patrick McCullough Ph D see story on page 34 December 2016 Golfdom 33 Golfdom com PHOTO COURTESY ANUVIA PLANT NUTRIENTS The National Weather Service now offers evapotranspiration ET measurements