It has been a long winter and delayed spring this year but yesterday’s rain and that of two weekends ago has “primed the pump” and initiated new growth of many turfgrasses and other plants. Thus, there is no more time to put off yard clean-up. Any leaves, branches and other debris dropped and blown around during the winter should be removed from turfs and other lowing growing landscape plantings. Otherwise early spring growth of plants will be impeded by any debris smothering those plants.
SFMANJ Spring Field Day Apr 22, 2014
The Sports Field Managers of New Jersey (SFMANJ) Spring Field Day covers topics such as the fertilizer law, weed control, irrigation, grasses, and field maintenance.
Date: Tuesday, April 22, 2014
Location: South Delsea Park
152 South Delsea Drive, Glassboro, NJ
Registration Flyer
Frosty Finally Melted!
Last week, the cats from John Deere had me up to the northern tier of NY for John Deere University and we had a blizzard! This week I was in Lake Placid with my friends at NYSTA and the morning temperature was something like -7°F. All I could think of was “How do I get winter speaking gigs in Florida instead of upstate NY?!”
Spring Fever?
Hold your horses, the Spring Equinox is not until March 20th and if the 10-day forecasts hold true, then we are in for another visit from old man winter before the seasons change.
Drought Ends in New Jersey
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.
Abnormally Dry to Moderate Drought Condition
in Much of NJ
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.
- 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).
- 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.
- 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!