Photo of the week: ring nematode damage

Although the ring nematode, Mesocriconema does not usually cause damage to turfgrass, we came across a situation this last week where the nematode was at least partially responsible for weakened, slow growing bentgrass. When the plant was examined under the microscope, we saw the nematodes themselves, as well as the punctures, or holes made in the plant roots by nematode feeding. Probably even more important than the nematodes, however, was the fact that the turf had almost undetectably low levels…