Examines nematodes as a form of pest control on the course
Entomopathogenic nematodes (EPNs) can control several important turfgrass insect pests, including white grubs, weevils, cutworms and sod webworms. However, most biopesticide research has focused on releasing many EPN strains that may have lost some of their ability to persist effectively over years of lab maintenance and efficient mass production.
Researchers Albrecht Koppenhöfer, Ph. D., and Ana Luiza Sousa, Ph. D., at Rutgers University, examined the potential of fresh field isolate mixes of endemic EPNs to suppress turfgrass insect pests over multiple years.
The experimental plots straddled fairway and rough on two golf courses in central New Jersey. In early June 2020, they applied isolate mixes from golf courses of the EPNs Steinernema carpocapsae, Heterorhabditis bacteriophora and their combination to plots.
Populations of EPNs and insect pests were sampled on the fairway and rough side of the plots from just before EPN application until October 2022.
EPN populations increased initially in plots treated with the respective species. Steinernema carpocapsae densities stayed high for most of the experiment. Heterorhabditis bacteriophora densities decreased after six months and stabilized at lower levels.
They observed a reduction in several insect pests across the entire experimental period. In the fairway, the combination treatment reduced annual bluegrass weevil larvae (59 percent reduction) and adults (74 percent); S. carpocapsae reduced only adults (42 percent).
White grubs were reduced by H. bacteriophora (67 percent) and the combination (63 percent). Black turfgrass ataenius adults were reduced in all EPN treatments (43-62 percent) in rough and fairway.
Sod webworm larvae were reduced by S. carpocapsae in the fairway (75 percent) and the rough (100 percent) and by H. bacteriophora in the rough (75 percent).
Cutworm larvae were reduced in the fairway by S. carpocapsae (88 percent) and the combination (75 percent).
Overall, their observations suggest that inoculative applications of fresh field isolate mixes of endemic EPNs may be a feasible approach to long-term suppression of insect pests in turfgrass, but they may require periodic reapplications.
References
Long-term suppression of turfgrass insect pests with native persistent entomopathogenic nematodes. Journal of Invertebrate Pathology. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jip.2024.108123
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