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K-State Turf and Landscape Blog

Month: March 2015

This year we will honor Jim Heinze as the Alumni Fellow for Agriculture

cm1947_jim_heinze_03This year we will honor Jim Heinze as the Alumni Fellow for Agriculture.  The goal of the Alumni Fellows program is to create opportunities for successful alumni to interact with our students.

Jim Heinze is the Director of Sales, North America for the Commercial Division of The Toro Company. He serves on the management team contributing to business strategies for revenue growth, new products, and market development. He directs a team of sales professionals delivering innovative product solutions and exceptional customer service through the industries’ leading distribution channel.

 Upon graduating from K-State, Heinze managed a landscape business and Toro distributor in the K.C. area. An accomplished sales professional and industry contributor, Heinze served on the Heart of America GCSA and the Kansas Turfgrass Foundation board.  He joined Toro in 1993, achieved positions of increasing responsibility, promotion to Director of Commercial Sales in 1999, and responsibility for North America in 2012.

 Heinze is from Lincoln, Kansas, earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Horticulture in 1977 and Certified Sales Executive certification in 2007. He is a contributing member to the K-State College of Agriculture Dean’s Advisory Council.  Heinze and his wife D. Lynn (Wiedenmann) Heinze ’77 have three children and reside in Apple Valley, Mn.

Congratulations Jim and “Thank You!” for everything you have done to give back to the KSU Turfgrass Program!

Weed Control For Turfgrass Professionals 2015 Edition

(By Jared Hoyle, KSU Turfgrass Research and Extension)

AY-336-2015There is a great resource to all the turfgrass professionals out there.  It is called “Turfgrass Weed Control for Professionals – 2015 Edition”.  It was developed from Purdue University from some great turfgrass scientists.

It is only 12 dollars for a print copy and you can download it in a PDF file for only 10.  I highly suggest getting one for reference.

 https://mdc.itap.purdue.edu/item.asp?item_number=ay-336#.VQsaut4aj8s

Always remember to READ THE LABEL for the correct rate, turfgrass tolerance, and specific instructions before application!!!

***Mention of trade names or commercial products in this article is solely for identification purposes and does not imply recommendation or endorsement, nor is criticism implied of similar products not mentioned by Kansas State University.***

Don’t forget to follow me on twitter @KSUTurf.

Also, visit our facebook page www.facebook.com/KSUTurf

Evan Alderman Explains What His Research Is All About! (Video)

(By Jared Hoyle and Evan Alderman, KSU Turfgrass Research and Extension)

Back in October I wrote a blog post about some of the research that KSU Turfgrass Graduate Student, Evan Alderman, was conducting this past winter on dormant buffalograss.

https://blogs.k-state.edu/turf/dormant-buffalograss-research-update/

Now it is getting warmer and we are awaiting to see the effect of winter golf cart traffic on a buffalograss fairway and turfgrass colorant longevity.  Evan recorded a short video of what he did this winter.  As soon as we get some results we will be able to share with you what golf cart traffic is doing to your buffalograss fairways in the winter time.  Enjoy!

Always remember to READ THE LABEL for the correct rate, turfgrass tolerance, and specific instructions before application!!!

***Mention of trade names or commercial products in this article is solely for identification purposes and does not imply recommendation or endorsement, nor is criticism implied of similar products not mentioned by Kansas State University.***

Don’t forget to follow me on twitter @KSUTurf.

Also, visit our facebook page www.facebook.com/KSUTurf

Congratulations to Christy Dipman!

Hello everyone,

I’m so happy to share this great news. Our own Christy Dipman was selected as a recipient of the 2015 K-State University Support Staff Award of Excellence! The eligibility included:

Outstanding Achievement and Performance: (Consistently and substantially exceeds the expectations of the position, performing at a level above and beyond normal job requirements; has made important and significant contributions in their area; has furthered the mission of the unit, college, and/or university.)

Inspirations of Excellence in Others: (Consistently and substantially demonstrates an ability and willingness to work positively, respectfully, and effectively with others; has significantly improved customer service or has increased student satisfaction in their area; demonstrates ability and willingness to manage changes in work priorities, procedures, and organization.)

Initiative and Creativity: (Has significantly improved a work process or system, or has significantly increased the efficiency of an operation or department/unit; consistently seeks to improve the quality of work assigned; demonstrates efforts to expand work responsibilities.)

Anyone who knows Christy knows that she shines in all of these areas. Most of you who read this blog know Christy primarily from the turf world, but she is an excellent colleague for those of us who also work with other commodities as well.

I was the nominator and three colleagues were more than willing to write additional support letters. Here are some of the things I wrote in my nomination statement, and I could (and did) go on and on:

“With Christy, there’s no worry about checking in to see if something is getting done. By the time you think to ask, she’s ALREADY done it!”

“At the annual turfgrass conference in Topeka, Christy works the registration desk. She greets everyone with a smile and knows many of them by name. They all know her! The participants are very comfortable with her, and her presence, attitude, and respectful nature help set the tone for the entire conference.”

“She does all this with a very positive attitude. I don’t recall her ever speaking negatively of anyone within KSRE extension or out among the stakeholders. This positivity radiates out into the whole extension team. Christy is one of the most positive individuals I have ever worked with.”

Congrats Christy! (I’m sure if you are reading this, you are blushing and feeling modest, but you are the BEST!”

 

Breaking the pine wilt cycle

 

 

Now you see it:

call-hall-2012-10-09_17-20-05_109

Now you don’t:

Call-Hall-now-gone-2012-10-25_17-20-32_596

This tree had pine wilt disease, and it was cut down and burned to reduce the risk of spread to other trees.

Pines have several disease and insect problems. One of them is pine wilt disease. It kills the entire tree quickly.

Pine wilt is caused by the pinewood nematode, a microscopic worm. The nematode is spread by the pine sawyer beetle. The nematode feeds and multiplies in the tree’s resin canals, causing wilting and death in several weeks to several months. The nematode and beetles spend the winter in the infected tree. In spring, the beetles emerge starting around May 1, carrying nematodes to new trees and continuing the cycle of infection.

The disease is common in the eastern half of the state, and it is spreading west around 10 miles per year. There have been pockets of infection in the western part of the state.

 In Kansas, new pine wilt infections are most visible from August to December. Trees wilt and die in a short period of time, from several weeks to a few months. In the first stages, the needles turn grey or green, then yellow and brown. The discoloration sometimes occurs branch by branch, sometimes all at once. With pine wilt, eventually the whole tree dies, within a few months. The brown needles stay on the tree for up to a year after the tree has died. Another key symptom is reduced resin. On a healthy tree, sticky resin bleeds from the site of a wound. In contrast, if a tree has pine wilt the resin is often reduced or absent, and branches become dry or brittle.

There is a website with color photos and descriptions at the following link:

http://muextension.missouri.edu/explorepdf/miscpubs/mx0858.pdf

There are images to compare and contrast pine wilt with other pine diseases here:

http://www.ksre.ksu.edu/bookstore/pubs/l722.pdf

With the other diseases (tip blight, needle blight) only parts of the tree turn brown. With pine wilt, the whole tree is brown and dead.

If you aren’t sure if your tree has pine wilt or something else, contact your local K-State Research and Extension Office or the K-State Diagnostic Lab (clinic@ksu.edu).

If a tree has pine wilt,  the tree should be cut down by  April 1  to make sure there is time to destroy the wood by May 1, when the beetles start to some out. Cut the tree to the ground—don’t leave a stump. Chip or burn the wood immediately to destroy the beetles and nematodes. Don’t keep pine wood around for firewood.

I’ll post information about some of the other pine problems soon. Are you pining for healthy pines?