Green Management Policies for Corporate Success

The concept arising from the relationship between organization, society, and environment is green management. Ensuring sustainability by redesigning business processes is a fundamental activity based on constantly and rapidly changing environmental conditions in an open system with the effect of globalization. Thus, designing future organizations will strengthen by applying environmental policies. One of the conditions to achieve corporate success is green management policies. Putting green management policies into practice is essential and valuable for the future vision of an organization. The organization will set its corporate goals and subgoals in line with this vision. Moreover, the organization will be able to increase competitive capacity by standing out amongst the competitors in favor of performance arising from these policy implementations. This study, for this purpose, scrutinized the contributions of green management policies to the success of organizations.

Investigating Chemical and Biological Control Applications for Pythium Root Rot Prevention and Impacts on Creeping Bentgrass Putting Green Rhizosphere Bacterial Communities

Pythium root rot (PRR) is a disease that can rapidly devastate large swaths of golf course putting greens, with little recourse once symptoms appear. Golf courses routinely apply preventative fungicides for root diseases, which may be altering the rhizosphere microbiome leading to unintended impacts to plant health. A multi-year field trial was initiated on a ‘T-1’ creeping bentgrass (Agrostis stolonifera L. cv. ‘T-1’) putting green in College Park, Maryland to evaluate preventative PRR management for disease suppression and impacts to rhizosphere bacterial communities. Fungicides commonly used to prevent PRR and a biological fungicide were repeatedly applied to experimental plots throughout the growing season. Rhizosphere samples were collected twice annually from each plot to evaluate rhizosphere bacterial communities through amplicon sequencing and monitor biological control organism populations via qPCR. Cyazofamid was the only treatment to suppress PRR in both years compared to the control. Fosetyl-Al on a 14 d interval and Bacillus subtilis QST713 also reduced PRR severity in 2019 compared to the non-treated control. Treatments did not significantly alter bacterial communities, however seasonal environmental changes did. Repeated rhizosphere targeted applications of B. subtilis QST713 appear to have established the bacterium into the rhizosphere, as populations increased between samples, even after applications stopped. These findings suggest that QST713 may reduce pathogen pressure when repeatedly applied and can reduce fungicide usage during periods of low PRR pressure.

Exploring Natural Alternatives for Annual Bluegrass Control

A field experiment was conducted to identify and examine the effectiveness of potential non-traditional chemical products and alternatives for controlling annual bluegrass (Poa annua L.), a plant with increasing herbicide resistant problems. In managed turf systems annual bluegrass can be a difficult winter annual weed to control having negative impacts on turfgrass quality. This study included 12 different treatments [untreated check, baking soda, white vinegar + lemon juice, Suppress herbicide, superphosphate (0-20-0), clove oil, Weed Zap, Avenger Weed Killer, Fiesta Turf Weed Killer, Ecologic Weed & Grass Killer, Alcohol (43% ethanol), and Pool Time Algicide] applied to a TifEagle bermudagrass (Cynodon dactylon × C. traansvalensis) putting green where a natural infestation of annual bluegrass was present. Treatments were assessed visually for annual bluegrass control and turf phytotoxicity 1, 2, and 4 weeks after application. Overall, no treatment provided long-term control which was non-selective. Control was short-lived with annual bluegrass recovery beginning approximately two weeks after applying treatments. Greatest Poa burndown (~85%) was temporarily (1 to 2 weeks after application) with a combination of caprylic and capric acids (Suppress Herbicide) and a combination of clove oil and dishwashing detergent but plants fully recovered by three weeks after application. These products also produced similar temporary turf phytotoxicity. Bermudagrass turf phytotoxicity from selective treatments was most evident one week after applying treatments and turf had mostly fully recovered by four weeks after treatment. Suitable alternatives were not identified from products tested.

Mitotic-Inhibiting Herbicide Response Variation in Goosegrass (Eleusine indica) with a Leu136-Phe Substitution in α-Tubulin

Dithiopyr and dinitroanilines are preemergence-applied, mitotic-inhibiting herbicides used to control goosegrass [Eleusine indica (L.) Gaertn.]) in turfgrass. A suspected resistant E. indica population was collected from a golf course putting green and was evaluated for possible resistance to dithiopyr and prodiamine. After dose-response evaluation, the α-tubulin gene was sequenced for known target-site mutations that have been reported to confer resistance to mitotic-inhibiting herbicides. A mutation was discovered that resulted in an amino acid substitution at position 136 from leucine to phenylalanine (Leu136-Phe). Previous research has indicated that Leu136-Phe does confer resistance to dinitroaniline herbicides. The level of resistance indicated by regression models and I50 values indicates that there is a 54.1-, 4.7-, >100-, and >100-fold resistance to dithiopyr, prodiamine, pendimethalin, and oryzalin, respectively when compared to the susceptible population based on seedling emergence response and 88.4-, 7.8-, >100-, and >100-fold resistance to dithiopyr, prodiamine, pendimethalin, and oryzalin, respectively when compared to the susceptible population based on biomass reduction response. This is the first report of less resistance to prodiamine compared to pendimethalin or oryzalin due to a target-site α-tubulin mutation and the first report of a target-site α-tubulin mutation associated with dithiopyr resistance.

Investigating low-dose herbicide programs for goosegrass (Eleusine indica) and smooth crabgrass (Digitaria ischaemum) control on creeping bentgrass greens

Only four herbicides are registered for smooth crabgrass or goosegrass control on creeping bentgrass golf putting greens. None of the four herbicides control weedy grasses for the entire season or control weeds postemergence when applied once at labeled rates. Three of these have product labels that prohibit repeated use or application during stressful summer conditions. We hypothesized frequently applying herbicides at low doses could provide season-long control of summer grasses while minimizing turf injury. Seven field experiments were conducted on creeping bentgrass putting greens to evaluate various herbicides applied monthly, biweekly, or weekly for postemergence and residual control of goosegrass and smooth crabgrass as well as creeping bentgrass putting green tolerance. Metamifop applied twice monthly at 200 g ai ha−1, topramezone applied eight times weekly at 1.5 g ae ha−1, and siduron applied weekly at 5.6 kg ai ha−1 or four times biweekly at 11 kg ha−1 did not injure creeping bentgrass greater than 10% and maintained creeping bentgrass quality and cover equivalent to nontreated turf. Weekly or biweekly programs of fenoxaprop or quinclorac caused unacceptable injury and quality decline. Metamifop applied monthly and either fenoxaprop program controlled both smooth crabgrass and goosegrass 97 to 99% throughout the growing season. Programs containing either quinclorac or siduron controlled smooth crabgrass 99 to 100% but did not control goosegrass greater than 39%. All topramezone programs controlled smooth crabgrass 69 to 77% and goosegrass 93 to 98%. In additional studies, siduron applied five times biweekly did not injure creeping bentgrass putting greens and controlled smooth crabgrass greater than 90% at seasonal, cumulative rates between 17 and 65 kg ai ha−1. This method of frequent, low-dose herbicide treatment to control smooth crabgrass and goosegrass on golf putting greens is novel and could be legally implemented currently with siduron.

Quantifying Freeze Tolerance of Hybrid Bermudagrasses Adapted for Golf Course Putting Greens

The susceptibility of warm-season turfgrasses such as bermudagrass (Cynodon spp.) to winter injury in the transition zone is a major concern. Therefore, the objective of the study was to evaluate five golf course putting green-type experimental genotypes (OKC6318, OKC0805, OKC1609, OKC0920, and OKC3920) and three commercially available bermudagrasses (‘Champion Dwarf’, ‘TifEagle’, and ‘Tahoma 31’) for freeze tolerance by subjecting them to 11 freezing temperatures (–4 to –14 °C) under controlled environment conditions. The experiment was conducted in batches, with four genotypes per batch, and each batch was replicated in time. The mean lethal temperature to kill 50% of the population (LT50) for each genotype was determined. There were significant differences in LT50 values among the bermudagrass genotypes. ‘Champion Dwarf’ had an LT50 value ranging from –5.2 to –5.9 °C across all three batches. The experimental genotypes tested in this study had LT50 values ranging from –7.0 to –8.1 °C and were each lower than that of ‘Champion Dwarf’. ‘Tahoma 31’, the top performing genotype, had an LT50 value ranging from –7.8 to –9.0 °C across all three batches. OKC 3920 was the only experimental genotype with an LT50 value in the same statistical group as ‘Tahoma 31’. The information gained from this research would be useful for breeders to gauge the genetic gain in freeze tolerance in breeding golf course putting green-type bermudagrass.