- Author: Chris M. Webb
Due to their low-maintenance, low-input, environmentally friendly features fineleaf fescue species are becoming increasingly popular choices in urban landscapes.
All species of fineleaf fescues are perennial, cool-season grasses. Potential sites for these grasses include: slopes, median strips, golf course roughs, cemeteries, untrafficked areas of parks, and industrial, commercial and home landscapes.
UC’s No-Mow Fineleaf Fescue Grasses for California Urban Landscapes provides information beneficial to those who have fineleaf fescue on their property and those considering doing so.
Topics include:
- What is fineleaf fescue
- Performance evaluation
- Sodding research,
- Selecting species and cultivars
- Establishment
- Irrigation
- Fertilization
- Weed control
- Disease management
- And more
- Author: Chris M. Webb
The February 2011 issue of UC IPM’s Green Bulletin has many practical and relevant articles for pest management professionals and pesticide applicators.
The featured article is titled, Ways to calibrate spray application equipment. Illustrations, conversions, and formulas needed to apply the proper amount of pesticide for any given area are included. Applying only the recommended amount of chemicals may reduce the amount of pesticides that runoff or leach into groundwater. Precision can also save applicators time and money.
Other articles in this addition may also appeal to home gardeners. Common turfgrass species provides text, photos and illustrations to help identify turfgrass species. Guide to common weeds in lawns in California features photos and text of the eight most common lawn weeds found in California. Brief general management instructions are also included along with a link for more detailed information.
The Ask the Expert! section provides an assortment of information including why people should never wear cloth hats or caps while spraying pesticides. Do you know why? The cloth hats can absorb pesticides and keep them on your skin. If you wear a hat while spraying be sure it is made of plastic or another material which does not absorb water.
Common turfgrass species and Guide to common weeds in lawns in California are available in Spanish.
- Author: Chris M. Webb
As budgets in most sectors continue to shrink, UC Davis Extension’s upcoming Managing Low-Budget Sports Fields workshop will give turf managers solid, science-based information to effectively manage high-traffic turf facilities on a limited budget.
Topics include:
- Designing an effective sports turf maintenance program
- Grasses for sports turf: species, mixtures and blends
- Sports field seeding: sodding, overseeding and renovation
- Sports field irrigation management
- Sports field fertilization, mowing, compaction and thatch management
- Managing weeds and pests for sports fields
In addition to sports turf managers, knowledge from this course can benefit: school grounds managers, municipal parks and recreation site managers, cemetery turf managers, horticultural consultants, pest control advisors, turf seed and sod suppliers.
PCA and CCA credit hours are available. Further information about this educational opportunity can be found here.
- Author: Chris M. Webb
Weed management in landscapes can be challenging. However, with proper planning and by using a combination of management procedures weeds can become much less of a problem.
UC ANR’s free downloadable publication Weed Management in Landscapes is easy to read and full of great suggestions for controlling weeds in a variety of settings.
Links to weed identification is included in the publication. In addition the Ventura County Cooperative Extension website has a Weed and Invasive Plants of Ventura County page that you may find helpful.
For related information, please see our previous weed management blog posts.
- Author: Chris M. Webb
Curious about mushrooms and other fungal growths in your lawn? UC ANR has a free downloadable publication called Mushrooms and other Nuisance Fungi in Lawns. This publication has a lot of interesting facts and practical suggestions for management.
Subjects include:
- Life cycle of a fungus
- Mushrooms in lawns
- Other fungal reproductive structures in lawns
Links for related information and many photos are included, please click here to download .
Newly emerged mushrooms of the inky cap fungus
in turf. Photo by R. Michael Davis.
Fairy ring fungus brown and white mushroom close
up side view. Photo by Jack Kelly Clark.