Last autumn I was blogging about the drought conditions that we were experiencing. Thankfully, this winter’s precipitation, albeit lots of snow, has changed our water status in the region. The U.S. Drought Monitor no longer lists New Jersey as having abnormally dry or moderate drought. You can view more details at http://www.nrcc.cornell.edu/page_drought.html

Expect I will have to post about snow mold disease and flooding, once we get a thaw.

By Jim Murphy

I mentioned in my previous post that dormancy has been apparent in many non-irrigated turfs. These conditions still persist throughout the central and northern NJ.

You can view the distribution and severity of the dry conditions throughout the northeastern U.S. at http://www.nrcc.cornell.edu/page_drought.html This map shows that southern NJ is not experiencing drought conditions; whereas, central NJ is experiencing abnormally dry conditions, and northern NJ is experiencing moderate drought. This dryness typically doesn’t last through winter but it is something to watch. Moreover, you should assess your landscapes for any potential susceptibility to winter desiccation.

I want to share a some observations and ideas that have come up while discussing this topic with turf managers.

1. In those areas experiencing limited rain this fall, there has been very little recovery from summer stresses on non-irrigated turfs (and other plantings). These turfs may benefit from an application of a slow release N source to ensure recovery starts when water levels improve in late winter and early spring. Recall that NJ prohibits N applications to turf by professionals after December 1st (except on golf courses).
2. While dry soil conditions this fall may have induced dormancy of the grass, the grass may be vulnerable to extended dryness through the winter especially in localized areas of turf that are sloped (water runs off) and exposed. These dry areas could experience desiccation damage if there are cold harsh winds combined with little to no snow or rain. If feasible, some irrigation of these areas before winter sets-in may be helpful in avoiding winter damage.
3. Localized dry areas may have developed water repellency (become hydrophobic). These areas could benefit from an application of wetting agents to improve infiltration of rain and snow melt into the soil. Even if the soil is not hydrophobic, wetting agents will improve water infiltration of irrigation or winter precipitation.

Let’s hope that precipitation becomes more typical where it is currently dry.
Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

Source: Read More on the Rutgers Turf Blog

By Jim Murphy

I spent a couple days this past week teaching in a turf care training program at Central Park in NYC.

Many lawn areas in Central Park that are not irrigated were entering dormancy because of the dry soil conditions. And as you look around there is an increasing acreage of turf as well as shrubs and trees in our area that are being challenged by drying soil conditions. Fortunately, it is cool and many plants are tolerating the drying by entering dormant.

However, managers should think about their end of the season programs related to irrigation shut down on high value turfs and other plantings. Make sure that you fully evaluate soil wetness/dryness before blowing out and shutting down the irrigation system. If the soil is very dry, it would be wise to irrigate to restore some soil wetness under your high value areas before shutting down the irrigation.  Allowing soil dryness to extend into winter, should it continue to stay dry (little to no rain or snow cover), could set up those plants for desiccation injury during winter. Desiccation injury is relatively rare in our climate but the current conditions are a precursor for that possibility. Obvious high risk scenarios include sand-based putting greens and plantings grown on the very sandy soils of the coastal plains of NJ that have been allowed to dry down during October.

Below: Central Park provides some beautiful landscapes within the very urban setting of Manhattan. The Conservatory Garden is one of the formal gardens at Central Park.

Source: Read More on the Rutgers Turf Blog

By Jim Murphy

Many people are aware that tree root competition is part of the challenge of maintaining turf within the drip line of trees. But the canopy of trees also contributes to the challenge by capturing and retaining much, and in some cases all, of a rain.

Rain shadows have been evident for some time now but the damage from the soil dryness has reached moderate to severe levels over the last couple weeks. Many of the lighter rainfalls over the last month haven’t wet the grass let alone the soil under large trees at Hort Farm No. 2 in North Brunswick.

Source: Read More on the Rutgers Turf Blog