Filed under: Turf Management
Richard H. Eichner, Certified Golf Course Superintendent states that there is a corolation between quality playing conditions and proper equipment. In his article written and posted on, he believes that as a superintendent one should keep in mind these basic elements; correct equipment selction: making sure you have the right tool for the job. Greens cut witha triplex mower may not be as memorable as greens cut with a pedestrian mower. Adequate operator training; operators must be trained properly and take on some responsibilities such as greasing rollers, oil checks, leak inspections and just general maintenance of the equipment that each individual operator is using. Regular equipment service; golf course mechanics are one of the highest paid employees in golf course maintenance operations, and rightfully so, they must repair damage, perform regular equipment service and keep up with the ever growing technology. Rgular service such as oil changes, filter changes etc. can vastly improve the life span of any piece of equipment. Extra attention to detail; as an operator one should report any irregularities with a peice of equipment before it turns into an extensive and possible an expensive job.
Superintendents, assistant superintendents, general managers, owners and all golf course affiliates should take this information to heart. Proper running equipment can save operation costs and also affect capital revenue. By having the proper equipment for the task allows for better results in the overall healht and aesthetivs of turf. Properly sharpened reels for instance creates a better cut grass blade which not only plays a more consistant ball roll but can also make turf less susceptible to disease. So maybe next time you see dollar spot or anthracnose, you can say to your superintendent, “maybe its time to sharpen those reels”.
Filed under: Turf Management
University of Guelph, DTM students to put on turfgrass symposiom. Entitled doing more with less, turf in tough times, the symposiom is to be held Nov 27th at the Cuuten Club in Guelph. Students have been split into groups to tackle every aspect of running a symposiom. Sponsorship, speakers, and fascillity arrangements just to name a few.
With an estimated cost of $3,800 excluding the fascillity, the students have accomplished their goals. Key speakers will include Ron Shiedel of Green Horizons sod farm, Keith Bartlett of St George’s G.C and Dr. Tom Tshaing professor of plant pathologyat the University of Guelph. Four studentsselected through a class speeh competion will be providing attendees with a 2 minute speechon a topic of their choice. Student speakers will include Annie Valliancourt, Dave Powley, Matt Nixon and Brad Anderson.
Myself being a speaker is an honour, having the opportunity to speak in front of more than 120 of my peers and industry leaders. This is not an opportunity that I may ever have again. Though I feel that it will allow myself to grow in the industry and hopefully establish myself as an industry leader in the future.
Filed under: Turf Management
Dr. Eric Lyons, a plant nutrionist with the University of Guelph, examined the key differences between the two fertilizer types uring an address he made in January at the at the Ontario Golf superintendentsAssociation sponsored golf course management conference.
A key consideration to be made is that” nitrogen is king” in turfgrass, Lyons said ” Dont ever forget that. Nitroge n drives turf growth rates. Nitrogen drives turf recovery rates” Most organics he said, are low in nitrogen yet are high in phosphorous, particularly with hog and poultry manures. ” If your putting down as nitrogen fertilizer you need with an organic, you are probably over applying phosphorous”
One could argue with Lyons, though nitrogen fed through organics is not as easily leached through the soil. Organics help stabalize soil structure, improve texture and aeration of the soil via aggregation of soil particles. If root density aswell as lenght needs improved, larger quantaties of phosphorous can be beneficial. When all is said and done, superintendents must determine on their own which fertilizer is rite for their situation.
Filed under: Turf Management
The Guelph, Ont based Turf Association has beome the first recognized international affiliate of the Sports Turf Managers Association of Lawrence, Kan. To be an internatinal affiliate, the organization must be recognized as a busiess entity in their country. STMA is a non profit, professional association for the men and women who manage sports fields. Its more than 2,800 members oversee sports fields and fascilities at schools, colleges and universities, parks and recreation facilities, and professional stadiums.
The memberships goal is to manage natural turf and syntheic surfaces to produce safe and aesthetically pleasing playing surface. The Sports Turf Association was formed in 1987 by representatives from a broad segment of the turf industry. They recognized the ned for a central resource for better education and information for those involved in maintaining sports turf. In addition to sharing informaion and resources, STMA will list the STA on its website as an international affiliate organization and will offer to the membership of the STA conference registration and education and traing resources at STMA member rates.
It seems the trend of helping the turf industry has become more and more “in fashion”. As more and more education orientated associations affiliate turf managers will have more and broader oppertunities to receive new information and leading research advancements.
Is it dollar spot? Superintendent Brad Anderson says no. On putting green turf, dollar spot appears as small spots, approximately the size of a dollar coin, that are bleached-white or light tan in colour. On turf mow heights greater than half an inch, the spots may expand in size up to 6 inches or more in diameter. The infected leaves typically remain upright and are characterized by having white or light tan lesions with light reddish-brown margins. As the lesions expand, the leaves are girdled and the upper part of the leaves die slowly. Distinct lesions are sometimes not evident on close-cut turf grasses; instead, the leaves die back from the tip and turn white or light tan in colour. Short, fuzzy white mycelium is often observed on infected turf the morning when dew is present.
Dollar spot(sclerotinia homoeocarpa) is somewhat of an easy disease to diagnose. Pros and general managers almost paranoid of any type of disease, waste no time in diagnosing dollar spot. Its aggressiveness and ability to destroy a once perfect putting surface one can understand their paranoia.
If you take a step back, really take a look, you will notice all is not what it seems. Poa annual seed heads though light in colour on a mixed green ( creeping bent+ annual blue) are not signs of dollar spot. Take the time and properly diagnose diseases. If uneducated it is far to easy to waste money on unecessary spray applications, not to mention the effects on the enviroment.
Filed under: Turf Management
Th 2009 golf season brought more than just precipitation, along side the rain was the weekend warrior. On my Saturday morning inspection of the grounds at Oak Gables G.C.C I found myself looking at a familiar site, tire tracks of rolled and damaged turf on 3 of my 27 greens cased by a golf cart front tire. It seems every Saturday and Sunday morning someone decides to practice stunt driving on the greens and hills.
Sharp turns coupled with the straight edge of a golf cart tire creates a slicing action into the turf, lifting the turf and damaging the green. Damage caused by carts can take up to 2 weeks to heal, and makes for an unattractive and uneven playing surface. Tournament players and members are forced to play through less than perfect conditions, members have paid considerable amounts of there hard earned money to play the game they love.
When has it become acceptable to treat a golf course green like a nascar speedway? Seriously! Working an average of 70 hours a week the last thing a superintendent needs to do is repair damage done by golfers who just dont care, this primitive type golfer is more of a pest than ants or cutworm. If only a pesticide existed to eradicate this problem. The next time you see someone mistreating your local course dont be shy, voice your opinion and maybe we can start playing the gentlemens sport that once was.
