THE

EDITORIAL

I would like to announce that this
will be my last issue as Editor of
“Conn. Clippings”. Joe Torok, Turf
Manager at the Hop Meadow Country
Club, will be assuming the duty of edi­
tor as of July 1st.
After almost four years as editor,
I seem to be short of new ideas to keep
the newsletter interesting. Being both
, secretary and newsletter editor has been
very time consuming and I have not
i been able in recent months to keep the
same quality newsletter as in previous
years. I am sure Joe will do an out­
standing job.
Putting a newsletter such as our to­
gether is truly a rewarding experience.
The knowledge you gain from the ar­
ticles in the newsletter has helped me
many times here on my course. For when
putting somthing in print, you just
don’t skim over the article, but digest it
► in full.
You also received many other news­
letters from across the country from
I other associations. You read the articles,
get to know some of the people, their
problems and solutions. There have been
many articles that were published in
“Conn. Clippings” that have appeared
in other newsletters. I could go on and
on with the rewards of an editor, but for
the sake of time and space, I will stop
here.
I would like to congratulate Joe on
his new position and wish him a great
i deal of luck and hope he can get as
much out of the position as I did. For
it is because of people like Joe, our asso­
ciation will continue to be productive
and will remain a leader in the contri­
butions to the profession.
CAGCS has been very good to me
and there is only one word I can use
at this time to express my feelings. A
very sincere Thanks!
B ob Osterman

ENGINEERS FACE WAR IF
THEY REQUIRE PERMITS TO
FILL POOL AND PLOW FARM
By JAMES H. PHILLIPS
Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) — Opposi­
tion is developing to a proposal that
could require some homeowners to get
an Army Corps of Engineers permit
before filling a backyard swimming
pool and certain farmers to seek per­
mission to plow.
The proposal by the Army Engineers
would give them ironclad rule over
virtually every natural and artificial
body of water in the nation.
Under the plan some potential homeowners would need a permit before
digging a basement for their home and
certain golf course greenskeepers would
need federal permission to build a new
sandtrap.
Rep. Thomas S. Foley, D-Wash., chair­
man of the House Agriculture Commit
tee, said the panel would “have the
gravest concern” over any action that
could have such a “far reaching im­
pact on agriculture.”
A spokesman for the American Farm
Bureau Federation said the strongest
of the corps’ proposals “smacks of the
sort of federal power grab of which
we’ve seen far too much already.”
A spokesman for the corps said the
key factor in such strange areas as
golf courses, backyard swimming pools
and basements is whether the area has
ever been flooded by a navigable
stream.
If so, it lies on the flood plain and
comes under corps jurisdiction. Per­
mission would be necessary to move
more than one cubic yard of dirt in
these areas, the spokesman said.
The proposal was one of four issued
Tuesday by the Army engineers in re­

sponse to a U.S. District Court de­
cision expanding the corps’ jurisdic­
tion over dredge and fill operations
from “navigable waters” to “waters of
the United States.”
The court ordered the engineers to
define “waters of the United States.”
The corps then published four alterna­
tive definitions.
The four alternatives are:
— Give the corps authority over
every coastal and inland artificial and
natural body of water in the nation,
including wetlands. The corps said this
“would extend federal authority to
regulate dredge and fill operations in
thousands of square miles of land pro­
tected by levees.” It also would require
a rancher to obtain a federal permit to
enlarge a stock pond or deepen an ir­
rigation ditch, the corps said.
— Limit corps authority on coastal
waters to the mean high water mark or
salt water vegetation line, whichever is
greater, and inland waters to navigable
streams and their primary tributaries
up to their headwaters. The corps said
that under this proposal, permits would
not be required for most dredge and
fill operations involving less than 100
cubic yards of material.
— Enlarge corps jurisdiction to wa­
ters defined in proposal No. 1 but follow
current permit procedures only for
navigable waters. For stock ponds,
drainage ditches and other similar
bodies of water, permits would he is­
sued unless an appropriate state agency
objected.
— Limit corps jurisdiction to the
waters defined in alternative No. 2 and
issue permits as in No. 3.
The corps prefers No. 4, but it said
the Environmental Protection Agency,
which could veto any permits, favors
alternative No. 1.

—

CONNECTICUT ASSOCIATION
OF GOLF COURSE
SUPERINTENDENTS
President ................... Frank Lamphier
Vice President ............... Robert Tosh
Secretary ..................... Bob Osterman
Treasurer ............... James MacDonald
Board of Directors
Robert Silva
Ronald Holcomb
Alfred Bachand
Karnig Ovian
Robert Chalifour
Edward Anderson
Richard Hoskings, Associate Director
Robert Viera, Immediate Past President
The object of this association is to
promote research, education and an ex­
change of practical experiences in the
field of turf grass culture so that the
increased knowledge will lead to more
economic and efficient management of
golf courses and related turf areas.
The CONN. CLIPPINGS is an offi­
cial publication of the Connecticut As­
sociation of Golf Course Superinten­
dents.
Robert W. Osterman, Editor
937 Black Rock Turnpike
Easton, Conn. 06612

NEWS OF SCIENCE
NEW HAVEN — The Connecticut
Agricultural Experiment Station has
used pharmaceutical wastes formerly
dumped into Long Island Sound to
grow several kinds of plants.
H. C. DeRoo, of the Station’s De­
partment of Soil and Water, has suc­
cessfully grown corn, chrysanthemums
and junipers using the spent biological
material known as mycelium which is
a by-product of pharmaceutical produc­
tion.
The wastes are produced by the
Charles Pfizer Company in Groton at
the rate of about 1,000 tons per week.
Mycelium applied at the rate of 100
tons per acre of silage corn produced
up to 15 percent better yield than was
obtained using conventional fertilizers.
One quarter to one third mycelium
mixed with wood fiber waste in con­
tainers eventually produced chrysanthe­
mum plants of good to excellent quality
although early growth showed some
yellowing and stunting.
DeRoo found no harmful effects from
using mycelium wastes as fertilizer for
container-grown junipers. The slow re­
lease of nitrogen from the wastes kept
the test junipers greener during the
winter than plants grown in the stand­
ard container mixes.
Zinc in mycelium did not appear to
be harmful to the plants but DeRoo said
salinity and slowness to nitrify may in­
hibit use of the waste on salt intolerant
species.

2

—

LEGISLATIVE AWARENESS A MUST TODAY
In recent months, various govern­
mental instrumentalities have attempted
to enact legislation which could have
had an adverse effect upon the opera­
tion of golf courses and their resultant
quality. In several instances, attempts
have been initiated which could have
limited or banned the use of fertilizer on
golf courses. Additionally, we have seen
trial balloons flown concerning ration­
ing of fuel, real estate taxation methods
and increasingly harsh regulations of
necessary pesticides.
Government, be it local, state, or fe­
deral, continues to be felt more and
more on the golf course. The time when
golf courses were seldom affected by
such matters has long since passed, and
now the superintendent and all other
supervisors at a golf course must con­
sider these laws with almost every ac­
tion they take.
We may be an industry guilty of
complacency and not mindful of seri­
ous inroads which have been made and
others which some contemplate that
could easily alter this picture if allowed
to continue unaltered. Consider for ex­
ample that most decisions made con­
cerning golf are based upon the prem­
ise that golf courses as they have be­
come known, will continue. Recent gov­
ernmental attempts in some areas cast
a dark shadow across all golf courses,
and in some instances, endanger their
very existence.
When professional associations of
“greenskeepers” were established some
fifty years ago, the primary reason for
their formation was to assist the mem­
bers in scientific areas of turfgrass man­
agement through the dissemination of
new information. While this reason still
exists today, an important new area is
that of being in a position to react to
poential governmental actions.
Graphic examples of cooperation be­
tween professional associations and gov­
ernmental bodies can be found daily.
Within the golf course superintendent’s
profession, there are several excellent
examples of how a united group can
insure that its interests are represented
and considered prior to final action.
First at the federal level and more re­
cently at the state level. Massachustts
and Michigan for example, some legis­
lators proposed the banning of non-farm
fertilizer usage. While individual or lo­
cal interest was first aroused, this was
closely followed by organizational ef­
forts to present information to legisla­
tors which was vital to a complete and
thorough understanding of the prolems which would follow such a ban.
Fortunately, we can say today that these

federal and state proposals were per­
mitted to die without moving beyond
the committee level. However, this is not
to say that further attempts by these
or other governmental bodies will not
be forthcoming, nor can we afford to
become relaxed on the issue. Unfortu­
nately, the golf superintendent’s in­
terests may not always receive the mind­
ful considerations they deserve by the
law makers.
The Golf Course Superintendents As­
sociation of America (GCSAA) made
determined efforts on the Massachusetts
and Michigan fertilizer bills and on a
Wisconsin pesticide bill by advising the
chapters in those states of the proposals,
followed by suggested actions and/or
GCSAA position information. Super­
intendents in those states acted in unison through a letter writing campaign
and in offering testimony to support
their concerns.
This is not a totally new area of action for GCSAA, with it having given
testimony concerning pension reform
legislation, as well as in dealing with
the Environmental Protection Agency;
however, involvement in the state-level
legislation is relatively new and caution
must be taken to insure that counterproductive measures are not permitted
through a conflict of actions by the state
and national organizations. Neither
should GCSAA attempt to supercede
the chapter’s prerogatives in the statelevel actions, because the impetus must
remain at the local level where those who
will be most directly affected will have
the greatest input. GCSAA’s intended
posture is that of acting as a hot-line to
disperse information and to serve as a
reservoir of resource information and
prepare nation-wide position papers.
Because more and more legislation is
of concern to golf courses and historically it has been demonstrated that
legislative actions are duplicated from
the local and state levels to the national
level and vice versa, a seemingly minor
item of legislation may soon become so
significant that it is affecting the profession nation-wide. Additionally, a
piece of legislation may appear to be
insignificant at the time of passage and
later, through interpretations and en­
forcement policies, become of tremendous import to the profession and the
superintendent’s ability to perform his
required tasks.
Based upon these trends and histori­
cally documented cases, each member
(Continued on Page 4)

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—

THE GRASS CATCHER
by BOB OSTERMAN

LETTER
From: Don Pakkala
Publicity Chairman
Phila. Assoc, of GCS
1626 Lafayette Rd.
Gladwyne, Pa. 19035
TO: Chapter Newsletter Editors
RE: 1975 U.S.G.A. Women’s Open
The 1975 U.S.G.A. Women’s Open
will be held July 17 to July 20, 1975,
at the Atlantic City C.C., Northfield,
N. J. The USGA, the Atlantic City C.C.
and host superintendent. Doug Fraser,
wish to invite any and all class A mem­
bers of GCSAA to attend. By presenting
their membership cards at the proper
gate, members will be admitted free of
charge to view the tournament action.
Request your assistance in dissemi­
nating the above information by publi­
cation in your chapter newsletter. Thank
you for your cooperation and the best
of luck in 1975.
Sincerely,
Don Pakkala

IMPROVEMENTS AT
BLACK HALL CLUB
Black Hall Club is in better than
ever shape this year. Over the past win­
ter and spring Dick Cook, Supt. has
been making a number of improvements
at the Club which should add a great
1 deal to an already excellent golf course.
Cart paths have been improved or
1 relocated on the 2nd, 12th and 13th
holes.
Rocks have been removed and
“rough areas” improved, most noteably
on the left of the 13th hole and be­
tween the 13th and 15th fairways.
Small, permanent, embedded cement
i markers on all the tees to show the spot
j of measurement for the Ladies, Regular
and Championship tees. These will cor­
respond with the measurement shown
on the score card.
Another improvement that should
be a great benefit to the golfer is the
planting of trees and shrubs as 150 yard
markers. Beauty and variety were con> sidered as well.
Hole 1, Sugar Maple; hole 3, Holly
(2); Hole 4, Juniper; Hole 5, Laurel;
Hole 7, Rhododendron; Hole 8, Red
Maple; Hole 9, Dogwood; Hole 10,
• Scotch Pine; Hole 11, Linden; Hole 12,
Laurel; Hole 13, Austrian Pine; Hole
15, Burning Bush; Hole 17, Dogwood,
and Hole 18, Sugar Maple.

GUEST LECTURERS
Two members of our association par­
ticipated as guest lecturers in the turf
course being taught in the Radcliffe

3

—

Hicks School of Agriculture at the Uni­
versity of Connecticut. Gary Byrant, of
the TPC Corporation, lectured on and
demonstrated the proper use of reel
and rotary mowing equipment used in
the maintenance of fine turf. Fred Bachand, Golf Course Superintendent of
the Wethersfield C.C., spent the day on
campus lecturing on Golf rourse main­
tenance and instructed the class in turf
renovation techniques by the use of
chemicals and turf equipment. Both
men teamed up to show the correct use
of spray equipment and fertilizer spread­
ers with their calabration. The associa­
tion should be proud of the excellent
job these men did and a word of thanks
comes from the University for their
participation.

PUBLICATIONS
As a service to its membership, and
other interested individuals, the Golf
Course Superintendents Association of
America has a wide variety of publi­
cations available, most of which are
cost-free. Some of these publications
are available to non GCSAA members
for a nominal charge, some are not
available to non-GCSAA members.
The following is a listing of publi­
cations which are currently available
from the headquarters office:
A Meaningful Combination . . . You
and GCSA A, (no charge, available to all
persons). This newly designed booklet
fully describes the Association, listing
the many benefits of membership and
contains all membership application ma­
terials.
The Golf Course Superintendent. His
Qualifications, His Responsibilities, His
Requirements, (no charge, available to
all persons). Originally written for su­
perintendents to give their green chair­
man, it has been re-written so that any­
one interested in golf can better appre­
ciate the professionalism of the golf
course superintendent’s position.
Golf Course Superintendent Career,
(no charge, available to all persons).
This new flyer replaces GCSAA’s “Ca­
reers In Turf,” and is designed to pro­
vide information about the profession
to potential students and those con­
sidering becoming superintendents.
Your Next Step . . . GCSAA Certi­
fication Program, (no charge, available
to all persons). A brochure describing
the Association’s Certification Program,
its benefits to the individual and the
profession, it contains a wealth of in­
formation about the program and an
application request form is included.
GCSAA’s 1975 Conference and Show
Brochure, (no charge, available to all
persons). Two versions of the 1975

Conference and Show brochures are
available. One version is designed for
those interested in exhibiting, while the
second is for those interested in attend­
ing the Conference and Show. The sec­
ond version, termed the member bro­
chure, provides complete information
about the annual event and includes all
necessary registration materials.
The exhibitor’s brochure contains a
description of the show, a floor plan,
rules and regulations, a space contract
and other pertinent information.
The Golf Superintendent magazine,
(personal subscription and two mem­
ber complimentary copies are included
with GCSAA membership, normal sub­
scription rate is $5.00 annually). The
official journal of the Association and
the profession, the ten-times a year mag­
azine offers information of both a tech­
nical and practical nature as well as
profession and fraternal news.
L imited D istribution

P ublications

GCSAA Pesticide Usage Reference
Manual, (available only to GCSAA Pes­
ticide Seminar I participants until
March 1, 1975 at which time it will be
available on a cost basis). This 150page publication offers information to
prepare the superintendent for the statelevel pesticide applicator’s licensing and/
or GCSAA Crtification Program.
The Golf Course Superintendents Pu­
blic Relations Handbook, (available
only to recognized chapter secretaries,
no charge). The 16-page booklet de­
tails methods to utilize in organizing
a chapter oriented public relations pro­
gram. In addition to considerable in­
formation, samples of news releases
are included.
Golf Course Superintendent’s Guide
to OSHA Regulations, (available only
to GCSAA members, no charge). This
General guide to the OSHA regulations
which most concern golf course opera­
tions, offers valuable information with­
out the legal jargon and volume of the
original regulation. It is however recom­
mended that the complete regulation
document and updating material be re­
ferred to when technical questions arise.
All About OSHA, a US Department
of Labor publication, is also sent with
the Superintendent’s Guide. This sec­
ond publication provides background in­
formation about the internal workings
of OSHA.
R equesting P ublications

Anyone interested in receiving any
of the publications which are available
to them should make their requests di­
rectly to the GCSAA Headquarters, 1617
St. Ondrews Drive, Lawrence, Kansas
66044.

—

LEGISLATIVE AWARENESS
(Continued from Page 2)

of the chapter must be on the alert for
legislative developments within his geo­
graphic area and report to the chapter.
Next, the chapter must determine if the
proposal could be harmful or helpful
and what would be the best approach
to the matter. If the chapter feels this
development is of a considerable mag­
nitude or if possible assistance is de­
sired, they could report the item to the
GCSAA officers or headquarters per­
sonnel. In some instances, GCSAA may
advise chapters of impending legisla­
tion or seek the assistance of persons
within the chapters to represent the na­
tional organization at the local level.
Individual superintendents may not
be able to be aware of all legislation
which could affect them, nor would they
always be able to bring to bear the im­
pact an organized effort would. How­
ever, it is the individual superintendent
who must bring these matters to the at­
tention of the organization so that the
appropriate actions can be taken. This
effect could become even more broad
based if a course’s golfers could be en­
couraged to become involved to the ex­
tent or reporting items of interest to
their superintendent.
We can ill afford to be legislated out
of existence and fortunately through our
professional association, we can position
ourselves to insure that our interests are
represented on all items of legislation
which could negatively or positively ef­
fect our ability to provide the type of
conditions that today’s golfers have
learned and appreciate.

4

—

THE FOLLOWING COMPANIES ARE CONTRIBUTING TO THE
SUPPORT OF THE CONN. CLIPPINGS:
OLD FOX CHEMICAL CO.
Hazardville, Conn. 06082
John Grant, CAGCS member
P.O. Box 62
Pleasant Valley, Conn. 06063
(203) 379-3579

ALFCO, INC.
P.0. Box 267
Marietta, Ohio 45750
Frank Downey, CAGCS member
John Murphy
(413) 596-3009
(203) 325-0967

O. M. SCOTT & SONS
ProTurf Division
Marysville, Ohio
Al Arison, CAGS member
(203) 336-9890

ANDERSON-WARNER
ENGINEERING CO., INC.
Turf Irrigation
164 Nod Road
Avon, Conn. 06001

THE POWERHOUSE
Rte. 6 & Dingle Ridge Road
Brewster, New York 10509
Russ LeClair, CAGCS member

CHAS. C. HART COMPANY
304 Main Street
Wethersfield, Conn.
Robert Kennedy, CAGCS member
(203) 529-2537

SOMERS TURF SUPPLIES
P. O. Box 294
Devon, Conn. 06460
Bill Somers, CAGCS member

CLORO-SPRAY
Div. Henry E. Sanson & Sons, Inc.
475 Beaver Street
Bristol, Penn. 19007
E. /. Sanson, CAGCS member
Frank Paladino, LIGCS member
(212) 338-2153

TOM IRWIN, INC.
11 B A Street
Burlington, Mass.
John Callahan, CAGCS member
VALLEY FARMS TURF NURSERY
Box 81
Avon, Conn. 06001
Joe Bidwell, CAGCS member
(203 ) 658-6886

TURF PRODUCTS CORP.
1496 John Fitch Blvd.
South Windsor, Conn. 06074
Roy Sibley
(203) 289-3471

THE MAGOVERN CO.
Windsor Locks, Conn.
Lloyd Russell, CAGCS member
Curtis Stimson, CAGCS member
(203) 623-2508
(203) 255-2817

LARCHMONT ENGINEERING &
IRRIGATION, INC.
Lexington, Mass 02173
Steve Butler, CAGCS member
(617) 862-2550

I & E SUPPLY, INC.
66 Erna Avenue
P. O. Box 9
Milford, Conn. 06460
Richard W. Smith, CAGCS member
Richard W. Hosking CAGCS member

METRO MILOGRANITE, INC.
P. O. Box 267
Hawthorne, New York 10532
John Wistrand, CAGCS member
(914) 769-7600

FIRST CLASS

CONN. CLIPPINGS
Robert Osterman, editor

937 B lack R ock Turnpike
Easton Conn. 06612
30

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