It seems like many places south of Pennsylvania are a buzz with annual bluegrass weevil (ABW) activity this week. It does seems like we are rocketing out of the slow start to spring. So, what has the recent warm weather done for ABW migration from overwintering sites in central and western PA?
As of April 8th, State College has accumulated 27 Growing Degree Days (GDD) since March 1 (Base 50 F). I have not seen any movement on Forsythia development. Today I traveled to the Pittsburgh area to catch up with Eric Wygant at Shannopin CC, one of our research cooperators, to gauge ABW activity in the western part of the state. Shannopin had accumulated quite a few more GDDs than State College (47). However, I did not notice any Forsythia bloom on and around the course or the city.
The weather was ideal for ABW vacuum sampling (65 degrees and partly cloudy). Vacuum sampling at regular intervals from overwintering sites (tree line, leaf litter) to fairways showed that the majority of adults (75%) were within 5′ of the tree line (rough), and that less than 10% had traveled all the way to the fairway (in this case 20-25′).
So, my best recommendations at this point is to remain calm, watch for Forsythia development, and check back here for more updates and happenings in the Turf Entomology lab at PSU.