A Pre and Post Christmas Chemistry Plan For High Value Turf

Managing high-value turf through the Christmas and New Year period is one of the most challenging tasks for turf managers. Warmer temperatures, rising humidity, reduced onsite monitoring, and holiday staffing gaps all increase disease pressure. To stay ahead of this, a strategic two-step chemistry plan using Azoxystrobin before Christmas and Lexicon Intrinsic after Christmas provides broad, long-lasting and complementary protection that keeps turf stable and resilient during this vulnerable period.

Why a Two-Step Approach Strengthens Holiday Turf Protection

Azoxystrobin stands out from other strobilurins because of its acropetal systemic movement (upward through the xylem). When applied to the soil, it enters the roots, protects root tissues internally and externally, and continues upward into crowns and foliage.
This creates a whole-plant preventative shield critical in the days leading into the Christmas break when disease monitoring often decreases.

Lexicon Intrinsic, applied after Christmas, builds on this foundation. It adds a dual-active defence (SDHI + strobilurin) that targets foliar and crown pathogens during early January when humidity and stress surges.

Together, these tools provide:

• Whole-plant coverage

• Multiple modes of action

• Strong pre-holiday root protection

• Prolonged foliar and crown protection during peak disease pressure

Pre-Christmas Application: Establishing Whole-Plant Protection

Applying Azoxystrobin 4–7 days before Christmas gives enough time for the chemistry to move through the plant and establish deep, even protection before monitoring becomes less frequent.

Azoxystrobin is especially valuable because:

• It delivers very broad-spectrum protection, covering most foliar and crown diseases (dollar spot excluded).

• Unlike many fungicides, it is also active on oomycetes such as Pythium.

• It reaches ERI fungi whose pressure increases as summer heat intensifies.

By applying through a soil-based root uptake pathway, the product forms a reservoir that sustains protection even during prolonged periods of wetness or humidity conditions seen frequently during La Niña-style summers.

Post-Christmas Application: Reinforcing Foliar and Crown Defence

Post-Christmas, the priority shifts toward foliar and crown protection as humidity rises and afternoon storms become more common. Lexicon Intrinsic is uniquely suited to this period because the product combines:

• Pyraclostrobin (a powerful contact-oriented strobilurin)

• Fluxapyroxad (a high-performing SDHI that moves into developing tissue)

The pairing provides wide coverage and extended longevity. Pyraclostrobin protects the tissues it directly contacts, while Fluxapyroxad continues to move into new leaf growth, ensuring even the foliage that emerges after application receives protection.

This combination is especially effective against:

• Brown patch

• Anthracnose

• A wide range of foliar pathogens that surge in early January

With La Niña-driven humidity creating prolonged leaf wetness and damp rootzones, this second step becomes essential for preventing setbacks in growth, colour or resilience.

How Nuturf Can Help

Nuturf can help you design a Christmas–New Year disease management plan that fits your site conditions and turf needs. We provide guidance on the best use of Azoxystrobin before Christmas and Lexicon Intrinsic after, ensuring strong root, crown and foliar protection during this high-pressure period. With access to trusted products and practical technical support, we can help you keep your surface healthy and stable through the summer holiday window.