Amicarbazone has potential for selective annual bluegrass control in cool-season turfgrasses, but seasonal application timings may influence efficacy. To test this hypothesis, field experiments in New Jersey and Indiana investigated amicarbazone efficacy from fall or spring applications and growth chamber experiments investigated the influence of temperature on efficacy. Fall treatments were more injurious to creeping bentgrass and Kentucky bluegrass than spring applications, but fall applications were also more efficacious for annual bluegrass control. In growth chamber experiments, injury and clipping weight reductions were exacerbated by increased temperatures from 10 to 30 C on annual bluegrass, creeping bentgrass, Kentucky bluegrass, and perennial ryegrass. Results suggest that amicarbazone use for annual bluegrass control in cool-season turf may be limited to spring applications, but increased temperature enhances activity on all grasses.

Bispyribac-sodium effectively controls annual bluegrass in creeping bentgrass fairways but efficacy on putting greens may be affected by management differences and thus, application regimes may need to be modified for effective annual bluegrass control. To test this hypothesis, field experiments investigated various bispyribac-sodium application regimens for annual bluegrass control on creeping bentgrass putting greens. Bispyribac-sodium regimes totaling 148, 222, and 296 g ha−1 controlled annual bluegrass 81, 83, and 91%, respectively, over 2 yr. Pooled over herbicide rates, bispyribac-sodium applied two, three, and six times controlled annual bluegrass 78, 83, and 94%, respectively. The most effective bispyribac-sodium regime was 24.6 g ha−1 applied weekly, which controlled annual bluegrass 90% after 8 wk with acceptable levels of creeping bentgrass discoloration. After 8 wk, all regimes reduced turf quality as a result of voids in turf following annual bluegrass control; regimes with six applications reduced turf quality the most.