Pondering Poa

There's a plant that stands up well to low heights of cut, high traffic and shade on golf courses. The plant is Poa annua, and superintendents put much effort into eliminating it after it shows up uninvited at their courses.

"No one plants Poa, but everyone ends up with it," says Ron Calhoun, an environmental turfgrass specialist for crop and soil sciences at Michigan State University, who recently spoke about the weed at the Ohio Turfgrass Conference in Columbus.

While it can work for some courses, there are several reasons why superintendents would want to remove Poa, or annual bluegrass. First, the name "annual bluegrass" is a misnomer, Calhoun says. For the most part, the plant is a perennial, sprouting up on cue each year. It's also different from other types of weeds in terms of seed production. Poa establishes quicker than most other types of weeds found on the golf course.

See the rest of the article on :- Golf Course Industry Website