I don't think height of cut has anything to do with greens being more susceptible to it because they are mowed lower. The perfect disease trifecta is presence of pathogen, moisture and the correct environmental conditions. Height of cut is not included in that. Although one exception is with anthracnose. A grass plant could be innoculated with bacterial wilt, wet wilt or pythium if it were at 6". It's just the perfect storm with the disease triangle and if a certain grassplant is susceptible to whatever pathogen is lurking around.
Ian,
firstly a plant can't be innoculated with wet wilt....
Secondly you're correct that height of cut is not specifically spelled out as part of the disease triangle, but isn't it an envirnomantal factor? and you admit yourself it is a factor in anthracnose however it is a factor in all diseases; Maybe hoc is not a direct cause but a plant at 6" (to use your example) is going to be way more capable of fighting/warding off a disease than one at .1" or less.
You're right it can't get innoculated with wet wilt it just gets waterlogged and choked off. And no, height of cut is by no means an environmental factor. HOC is a man made factor. Environmental obviously refers to the surrounding environmental conditions such as humidity, temp and sunlight. That's not to say that man can't gain some control over over environmental factors through fans, subairs and growing lights.
One of my biggest points to support why I believe HOC has not much to do with disease in general is because during a grow-in while HOC is always higher during establishment, there is never a shortage of disease. Greens being cut at 1/2" during establishment have more tha enough leaf tissue and shoots. Which according to you guys is the main reason why HOC matters, but they still get attacked by disease just as they do when they are at 1/8". So going back to my anology, what is it exactly about a 6" plant being more immune to disease than a 1" plant? If a 1/2" inch plant isn't any more immune to disease than a 1/8" plant?
Even in college when doing research on different plugs grown at different heights. When innoculated by a pathogen the longer plants had no problem whatsoever being innoculated.
My point with anthracnose is that it's a disease that has gone outside of the triangle with stress being it's major factor. And HOC is a direct reason for stress.
Bentgrass in the summertime is going on all cylinders with it's plant synthesis. But it's not, however, going on all cylinders in carbohydrate production and storage. The time for carb storage is in the fall, winter and spring when temps are where bentgrass thrive. So this season in the northeast with extraordinary conditions, supers better have been on their game starting last fall with their programs leading up to this summer. Because as soon as this summer arrived and temps and rains went nuts, all they can do is sit back and pray and supplement the ingredients in a spray that promotes more carb production, photosynthesis and root growth. Which to me is not only a good fert program but also products that deliver simple sugars, auxins, cytokinins, gyberillyns and primo. Some supers don't believe in that stuff and call it snake oil or sunshine in a bottle. That's naiveté to me.
I'm close friends with several guys in the northeast who dealt with these conditions and they are getting through just fine. There are just as many guys who are getting through the summer excellently while a guy literally across the street is not. And the difference is in the growing medium (sand or soil) and the programs the super has been implementing in the months leading up to this. I think it's crap to say or think all supers can do no wrong. And the ones who have gotten through successfully have just gotten lucky. It's bullshit and flatout insulting. Give credit where credit is due.