The growing availability of safer products has made plant growth regulators (PGRs) a key part of many turfgrass management programs today. Now, a new presentation available from the Crop Science Society of America takes turf managers through the current applications of PGRs, with a focus on high-quality turf environments.
Turf managers who understand these regulators, which influence plant growth by affecting natural levels of plant hormones such as auxins, can use them to slow vertical growth and seed formation in turfgrasses, improve turf quality, and achieve economic savings by reducing mowing and labor costs, say the authors. Their 122-slide PowerPoint presentation—available either as a download or on CD—covers the latest PGR products for high-quality turf and the most recent scientific and management information on their use.
PGRs are small, organic compounds that when applied in small amounts induce a change in plant growth and development. Their first major uses were to slow vertical growth and suppress seedheads on low-quality turf areas, where they’ve been used for more than 50 years. But until recently, PGRs were not commonly applied to golf courses and other high-quality environments because early PGR products could be phytotoxic to the turf.
To help managers in the golf course and sports turf communities understand today’s uses of PGRs, the authors have assembled information from scientific, trade, and industry publications, as well as insights gained from interacting with turfgrass managers both in person and online. After taking readers through the latest PGR products, the presentation covers a wide range of topics, including how to apply PGRs; their ability to achieve important objectives, such as reducing clippings and mowing, and suppressing Poa annua seedheads; and how PGRs interact with factors like drought, low mowing heights, turf diseases, and putting speeds. The authors end the presentation with a set of frequently asked questions about PGRs.
Although PGR research is on-going, and new uses and new PGR products are continually being developed, the presentation offers a state-of-the-art look at PGRs today. The material is particularly valuable, say the authors, because no comprehensive textbook on PGRs exists at the present time.
The authors are: T.L. Watschke, professor emeritus, Pennsylvania State University; J.M. DiPaola, Syngenta Crop Protection, Inc. and adjunct professor, Ohio State University; and D.P. Shepard, Syngenta Crop Protection, Inc. The material was edited by Keith Karnok, University of Georgia.
Turf Growth Regulation (2012) is available on CD (item number: B30478) or as a download (item number: B30479) or from www.societystore.org for $20.