Syngenta continues WeevilTrak scouting to assist with annual bluegrass weevil control

Photo: Syngenta

For the 2020 annual bluegrass weevil (ABW) season, Syngenta is continuing its work with independent researchers to provide golf course superintendents with tools for monitoring and control through its annual WeevilTrak program.

“This is a challenging time golf courses across the country. Syngenta is committed to helping our customers manage ABW on their courses,” said Stephanie Schwenke, turf market manager for Syngenta. “We continue to work with researchers on monitoring sites responsibly and safely. As some of the courses have already started progressing through stages, following the WeevilTak blogs will become more important than ever as the researchers give updates on their experiences and what they are seeing at their courses.”

New for 2020, Ference insecticide is now approved to control ABW on golf course turf in Kings, Queens and Suffolk counties in New York under a Section 24(c) Special Local Need label. Golf course superintendents on Long Island must make applications in accordance with the Special Local Need Label and must have a printed copy of the Section 24(c) label in their possession at the time of application.

Syngenta has also added new courses that will serve as ABW research stations, including:

• Hendersonville Country Club in Hendersonville, N.C.
• York Golf and Tennis Club in York, Maine
• Elk River Club in Banner Elk, N.C.
• Old Westbury Golf and Country Club in Old Westbury, N.Y.

Other tools available for 2020 include:

• The Syngenta Optimum Control Strategy outlining a proven ABW treatment protocol that can help manage resistance as ABW control applications are planned;
• 94 percent of surveyed WeevilTrak users said resistance management is an important consideration as they choose what to spray;
• WeevilTrak text alerts, which provide timely updates on local ABW progression;
• The WeevilTrak blog, updated by 11 industry-leading ABW researchers and featuring 189 blog posts from the past five seasons;
• Secondary course monitoring for additional localized stage-progression information; and
• A growing degree day model designed specifically for ABW.

Results from the latest survey of WeevilTrak subscribers1 showed that: 98 percent of users found WeevilTrak email alerts valuable and that 88 percent of users said WeevilTrak was their top tool for monitoring ABW followed by plant phenology and soap flushes.

Valuable information through WeevilTrak is only available for subscribers. Register now and sign up for text alerts by visiting WeevilTrak.com. Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter with @SyngentaTurf by using #WeevilTrak.

Survey distributed by Syngenta to WeevilTrak subscribers in December 2019 with 251 total responses.