Yellow sugarcane aphid on kikuyugrass

Aphids are generally not a problem on golf course turf, but we've seen an unusual infestation of the yellow sugarcane aphid, Sipha flava, on out of play, no-mow kikuyugrass and bunker edges. The infestation, which was located on a Southern California golf course, occurred on the un-mown and higher cut turf, probably because the aphids seem to prefer the leaf tips, which are removed by frequent mowing in most other areas of the golf course. Damaged turf was yellowed as…