The annual bluegrass weevil (ABW) (Listronotus maculicollis) has been a major pest of short-mown turf in the northeastern U.S., and it has recently spread to most areas in Ohio. This pest has been difficult to control due to the development of insecticide resistance and the occurrence of 2-3 generations per year with increasing asynchrony of stages during the growing season. Historically, ABW was only considered to be a threat to the annual bluegrass (Poa annua), but recently it has also been reported to cause significant damage to the creeping bentgrass (Agrostis stolonifera) in various regions, although ABW previously showed preference of the annual bluegrass. The question arises that whether the scenario of ABW problems in annual bluegrass would occur in creeping bentgrass, or to say, whether ABW damage levels in creeping bentgrass would be parallel to those in annual bluegrass, and if reducing annual bluegrass coverage would alleviate the problem.

To address these questions, we plan to test the ABW damage and populations in different creeping bentgrass/annual bluegrass mixture ratios, starting at annual bluegrass% of approximately 15%, 50% and 85%. ABW adults will be caged in the center of each plot to lay eggs and develop. The number of ABWs at different growing stages will be assessed to determine ABW densities and the developmental rate. Meanwhile, grass damage levels and mixture ratios will be monitored over time. There will be four blocks for each treatment, arranged in a randomized complete block design. Each plot measures 4 ft width by 4 ft length, with 4 ft buffer between adjacent plots.2023 Turf field day presentation plot map