ABSTRACT
Weather extremes can damage creeping bentgrass (Agrostis stolonifera; synonym = Agrostis palustris) and annual bluegrass (Poa annua) turf at almost any time of year. Except for crown hydration, desiccation, and direct ice kill in winter (i.e., anoxia), summer stresses are among the most challenging problems for golf course superintendents. Golf greens in particular face many potential problems during the summer. Golf greens may be simultaneously injured by a combination of biotic (i.e., living stress agents such as fungal pathogens) and abiotic (i.e., nonliving stresses such as heat, shade, watersaturated soil, drought, and mechanical injury) stresses that produce similar symptoms. This combination of factors (i.e., summer bentgrass decline complex) is what makes diagnosing problems of creeping bentgrass greens, tees, and fairways so difœcult.
