Mike Kenna, Ph.D., recaps a study on preventive snow mold control on fairways

Researchers at the University of Massachusetts evaluated several nontraditional products and fungicide treatments to evaluate snow mold prevention at Val Halla Golf Course in Cumberland, Maine. They completed the study on annual bluegrass (Poa annua) and creeping bentgrass fairways mowed at 0.5 inches.

Individual plots were 3-by-6 feet arranged in a randomized complete block design with three replicates. Researchers applied the fungicides and nontraditional products according to labeled or recommended rates. The team applied individual treatments at a nozzle pressure of 40 psi using a CO2-pressurized boom sprayer equipped with two XR TeeJet 8004 VS nozzles.

They ran the experiment from early November 2022 through the end of March 2023. They applied fungicide treatments only on Nov. 9 or both Nov. 3 and 9. Researchers agitated fungicides by hand and applied the equivalent of two gallons of water per 1000 ft. sq.

Researchers assessed the severity of snow molds caused by Microdochium nivale (pink), Typhula incarnata (gray) and T. ishikariensis (speckled) visually as a percentage of disease symptoms per plot on March 30. They then subjected data to analysis of variance and separated the means using Tukey’s HSD.

Snow cover persisted in the experimental plot from Jan. 5 through March 23. They observed high disease severity (80 percent) in the untreated plots. Pink snow mold caused most of the damage. They observed better control than the untreated plot for 14 of 20 treatments; however, only seven treatments significantly reduced disease severity.

In general, only synthetic fungicide treatments provided significantly better control. Regardless of application date, the eight synthetic fungicide treatments demonstrated the highest disease control (0 to 35 percent). In addition to the synthetic fungicides, Civitas pre-mixed applied on Nov. 4 and 9 provided the best disease control (55 percent) among nontraditional products.

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