o E F F E N CONNECTICUT ASSOCIATION OF GOLF COURSE » W SUPERINTENDENTS^^ JUNE 1973 VOL. 6 No. 2 VELVET BENTGRASS THE PUTTER'S DELIGHT by Richard Hurley University of Rhode Island Velvet bentgrass, Agrostis canina, is widely acclaimed as the most exquisite of all sports turfs. Not only does the species have a superb appearance, but professional golfers have rated it the number one putting surface in actual test. Velvet bentgrass is well named, for golf greens of it are so dense and cine-textured as to be indeed like vel­ vet. The new Kingstown variety of velvet bentgrass results from a quarter cen­ tury of breeding and selection at the University of Rhode Island. This stylish, highly uniform cultivar, as true-putting as greens can be, stems from a single seed selected from a selfed plant of the Piper variety. Unlike most of the creeping bent­ grass greens grasses, which must be planted vegetatively from, living stolons, Kingstown velvet bentgrass is avail­ able as conveniently handled seed bred remarkably true-to-type. Top quality seed is free of weeds and from crop. Wider use of velvet bentgrass can be anticipated, now that commercial sup­ plies of Kingstown seed have become available. Seeding is economical, in that only one pound of seed per thou­ sand square feet is needed. Species Adaption Velvet bentgrass has undeservedly had a reputation for being hard-to- manage. We haven’t found this to be so in Rhode Island. At Melody Hill, as on th research .grounds at the Uni­ versity of Rhode Island, Kingstown velvet bent has proven dense, deep­ rooting and reasonably free from af­ flictions without a lot of special care. It’s not a heavy feeder, withstands rea- Confinued on Page 2 THE GRASSCATCHER by Bob Osterman Congratulations to Dick Bater, Su­ perintendent at Pittsfield Country Club, for having successfully passed his National Certification Test. Not only has Dick been busy study­ ing, but been busy on his course as well. He has many projects underway or anticipated in the near future. Fol­ lowing is a list of some of his pro­ jects: A. Complete rebuilding and up-date of present pump house. This will be done in order that he may, hopefully, expand and modern­ ize his present manual system. B. Rebuild and resod, with Penn- cross bent, 5 of his worst tees. He will be on a 3 to 5 year tee program. C. Extending his tree planting pro­ gram to approximately 80 trees a year for the next few years. D. This is his second year of treat­ ment on his elms for dutch elm control, with Benlate. Dick says it is too soon to tell of what benefit this program will be. Good luck, Dick! A really great time was had by all who attended our picnic May 19th in Hamden. Someone wedged a beautiful day in between all the “dirty four letter word” stuff. We did have more people show up then last year, but it was again sad to see how many mem­ bers passed this day up. The food was great, the kids (big and small) had a great time, and although we had no broken legs, ribs cracked, black eyes etc., we did have a good softball game. I am not sure what team won, John Callahan’s or Dick Hoskings, and I am not sure they know either. Continued on Page 2 NATIONAL AFFAIRS FIRST CALL Nominations for GCSAA Officers It is time once again to consider your chapter’s participation in the election of GCSAA officers and direc­ tors. This is the first call to the chapters requesting nominations for the offices of President, Vice-President, and direc­ tor of GCSAA. At its spring meeting the GCSAA Executive Committee confirmed the appointment of Past-President Richard C. Blake as Noominating Committee Chairman for 1974. Other members of the Committee include Mr. Robert Williams, Illinois; Mr. Richard Valen­ tine, Pennsylvania; Mr. Garold Mur­ phy, Minnesota; and Mr. Roger Lar­ son, California. This committee is charged with the responsibility of preparing a slate of candidatees for these officers by Oc­ tober 1, 1973. This slate will be filed by them at the next annual election. In order to accomplish this, the commit­ tee must have your nominations by September 1, 1973. The attachment to this action request delineates the major roles and respon­ sibilities of the Executive Committee and its members. Also, Article VI, Section 1 of the GCSAA Bylaws speci­ fies the qualifications for office. The GCSAA’s success or failure is wholly dependent on its leadership. Let’s seek out those qualified and tal­ ented members within the Association who can lead and contribute to the continued success of GCSAA. Let’s en­ courage them to seriously consider candidacy for these offices. There is always a need for good men at the top. This is your opportunity to really participate in the future of the Asso­ ciation. Make yourself heard! You can be sure that each nomination will be Continued on Page 3 CONNECTICUT ASSOCIATION OF GOLF COURSE SUPERINTENDENTS President ............... Vice President ...... Secretary .............. Treasurer .............. Board of ........ Robert Viera .... Frank Lamphier .... David Stimson . James MacDonald Directors Roger Barrett Fred Bachand Karnig Ovian John Lynch Bob Osterman Robert Tosh Charles Baskin 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 VELVET BENTGRASS THE PUTTER'S DELIGHT Continued from Paige 1 sonable drought and shade. Of course like any top bentgrass, Kingstown is deserving of knowledgeable attention. The species is widely adapted to moist climates, and although tolerant of extremes does best where weather is steady (neither suddenly cold nor hot, and without desiccating winds). Kingstown is rather particular about acid soil, and resents an alkoline pH. Good drainage (aeration) is helpful. Although it is not difficult to ad­ just maintenance to Kingstown’s needs, the cultivar can be expected to per­ form most satisfactorily east of the Appalachians from coastal Virginia northward, along the Pacific coast north from San Francisco, and in si­ milar “maritime” environments around bodies of water such as the Great Lakes. As with any golf green bentgrass, Kingstown should be mowed fre­ quently ,at least every other day at the height of the growing season. Mow­ ing is customarily 3/16-1/4 inch tall for lawns. The grass should receive moderate, steady fertilization such as with slow- release ureaform products. A complete fertilizer containing about a half pound of nitrogen is suggested each few weeks ,totaling three or four pounds of nitrogen annually. Light liming may help with thatch breakdown, but be careful to hold pH well on the acid side. 2 — Management Practices Disease and pest damage is apt to be superficial, but precautionary fun­ gicidal sprayings should be undertaken with Kingston the same as with any high quality golf green turf. Recom­ mended rates should be carefully ob­ served in applying chemicals to con­ trol disease. Thatch is controllable by the usual practices or aerification, moderate fer­ tilization and top dressing (top-dress lightly and work the material into the grass, not always easy with so tight a turf). Irrigation will be required if rain­ fall is not sufficient to supply about an inch of moisture each week dur­ ing the growing season. Melody Hill Golf Course, Harmony, Rhode Island, affords a specific case history of the use of Kingstown velvet bentgrass. Melody Hill greens were seeded to Kingstown six years ago, and have proven eminently satisfactory. When time for Melody Hill expansion ar­ rived, Charles Mandeville, owner and superintendent, insisted that the nine new greens be seeded to Kingstown This was in spite of the more or less automatic inclusion of another bent­ grass in architectural specifications. Melody Hill greens are mowed at one-quarter inch three times weekly. They are aerified annually, in the autumn, and are lightly top-dressed, approximately on a monthly basis. Even in exceptionally dry summers the greens are watered only once per week. Fungicides are applied only when disease is clearly a threat. When visiting the Melody Hill golf course in August the greens were out­ standingly beautiful. Mandeville as- the time. He concludes, “I highly sured us that this is the case most of recommend this greens grass — if you question its performance, ask the golf­ ers — they will tell you how true the greens putt.” SPECIAL MERIT AWARD Each ye;ar, the GCSAA Executive Committee will consider nominations for the GCSAA Special Merit Award at its Fall Meeting. To be accepted for the Special Merit Award, a nominee must meet the fol­ lowing qualifications: 1. Must have made an outstanding contribution to the advancement of the profession of Golf Course Superintendency. 2. The outstanding contribution may be, or have been, regional in nature as long as it can he judged Continued on Page 4 THE GRASSCATCHER Continued from Page I All news concerning members of our association, their successes, their prob­ lems, their new babies, their sicknesses etc., is greatfully accepted by your edi­ tor. Inform him either on your return monthly meeting cards, or by drop­ ping a note in the mail. CAGCS HANDICAP The following are the handicaps 15 6 6 8 13 13 12 8 10 11 15 8 11 8 13 14 14 11 15 7 8 12 12 4 Lowell Manning O’Connor Ovian K. Ovian, Kay Ovian, M. Parsons Perry Polidor Queen Rodgers Roule Ryan Scully, Ray Scully, Bob Thompson Viera Warner Whalen Wiget Wilson Witkowski Zwolic Mierzwa for the start of the 1973 season. Flight “A” Anderson Ajello Barrett, R. Bedus Berry Bianowitz Bonner Caswell Chaney Cook Coste Dinwoodie Dolan Dziedzie Fenn Furgess Goodwin Gorton Grywalski Gutlay Kowalski, B. Kowalski, L. Kristof Kruk Lamphier Flight “B” Bachand Barrett, P. Baskin Bator Bidwell Chalifour Christie Dest Hawkins Kelliher Knoblock Lodzinski Lentine Lesage Loper Lindermuth Associates Arison Bryant Callahan Carson Colt Cubbage Downey Hosking Kennedy Purdy Lynch Meusel McDonald Osterman Pepe Sandin Silva Stimson Suchinski Tosh Whitley Wiacek Wydra, A. Wydra, J. Zinisky Sanson Scully Sherman Somers Terhune Russell Ryiz Wallace Wright 28 17 16 16 22 22 21 20 23 36 20 21 20 16 23 20 20 14 24 16 16 35 12 30 9 30 0 10 15 10 7 12 15 12 15 14 15 9 7 8 10 7 9 8 15 It 15 5 13 14 30 22 24 19 27 35 18 24 16 18 23 21 24 18 31 17 28 16 13 23 3C 10 31 30 NATIONAL AFFAIRS FIRST CALL Continued from Page 1 given every consideration. Remember! All nominations must be , eceived by Past-President Rlake by September 1, 1973. His address is: Mr. Richard C. Blake 21 Seawall Street Boylston, Maine 01505 Duties and Responsibilities Required of a Member of the GCSAA Executive Committee The Executive Committee is respon­ sible for mobilizing the resources of the Association to achieve Association objectives. It is the function of the Committee to see that the talents and energies of members are enlisted in as­ sociation committes, that program ob­ jectives are assigned to committees and that the responsibility and au­ thority of committees are clearly de­ fined. The Executive Committee is the policy-forming portion of the Asso­ ciation. It authorizes the organization’s program of work, approves its budget, receives and passes on Committee recommendations, and directs the gen­ eral operations of the Association. Members of the Executive Commit­ tee must not only recognize the demo­ cratic character of the organization it also believe strongly in voluntary cooperative effort in solving Associa­ tion problems. They must respect the collective judgment of interested mem­ bers on Association problems. They must recognize the unique problem­ solving power that is created when the time and talents of the members are mobilized to action through their Association. Members of the Executive Commit­ tee are delegated the very real rspon- sibility for representing the entire As­ sociation’s membership in advancing the cause of the golf course superinten­ dent. While the Executive Committee is expected to be cognizant of regional problems or special interest groups within the Association, its prime re­ sponsibility is to the membership as a whole. Members of the Executive Commit­ tee are not expected to “do all the thinking” for the organization, of course. It is their responsibility to maintain close contact with members and with other leaders in the indus­ try. Such contacts provide a sound basis for identifying the most import­ ant needs of the golf turf maintenance rofession, for determining the speci- ric objectives toward which the Asso­ ciation should work and for develop­ ing a program of activities that will develop maximum progress in attain­ — 3 — ing the established goals of the mem­ bership. The GCSAA Bylaws charge the As­ sociation President with the responsi­ bility of appointing the various com­ mittees necessary to carry on the work of the Association with such appoint­ ments subject to the approval of the Executive Committee. Wherever pos­ sible, the President will appoiont a member of the Executive Committee as chairman of an Association com­ mittee in order that close liaison be­ tween the committee and the Execu­ tive Committee be maintained. By the same token, this liaison works in the other direction, serving to stimulate and maintain the drive necessary to accomplish committee objectives. Many occasions arise when a mem­ ber of the Executive Committee must serve as official or unofficial spokes­ man. This responsibility requires the exercise of careful judgment for a di­ rector’s own personal views sometimes differ from policies or official posi­ tions adopted by the Association. In such cases, of course, the director must use great care not to express his per­ sonal views as representing the views of the Association or in a manner in which his views might be misinterpre­ ted as representing the views of the Association. During his term of office, each Ex­ ecutive Committee member may ex­ pect. to encounter criticism of the Ex­ ecutive Committee or the Association. He has an obligation to the Associa­ tion, of course, to defend it against such criticism or, if the criticism is justified, to initiate action that may eliminate the cause of the criticism. An Executive Committee member can frequently make a distinct contribu­ tion to the well-being of his Associa­ tion by bringing to the attention of the Executive Committee both the cri­ tical and constructive suggestions he receives from members in local chap­ ters. By doing so, he enables his As­ sociation to become an even more use­ ful and effective organization in mak­ ing his profession a more attractive and more meaningful function in golf. Members of the Executive Commit­ tee serve their Association without pay although expenses incurred while en­ gaged in Executive Committee activi­ ties are fully reimbursed. They also are required to attend four Executive Committee meetings and the annual GCSAA Turfgrass Conference and Show each year. This will necessitate being absent from their place of em­ ployment an average of eighteen days. Other Executive Committee involve- Continued on Page 4 MULCHING WITH GARBAGE Research at Auburn University Ag­ ricultural Experiment Station has re­ vealed that processed garbage is a suitable material for mulching, orna­ mental plants. These experiments, un­ der a, grant from the U. S. Public Health Service, found processed gar­ bage mulches to be as effective as many other commonly used mulching materials. There are several points favoring processed garbage mulches: (1) they are effective for more than 1 year; (2) they influence soil moisture, tem­ perature, pH, and nutrition; (3) while being resistant to erosion, pro­ cessed garbage mulches do not pack or mat; and (4) weed growth is reduced and plant response greatly improved by using it. Each year the average American dis­ poses of 1,600 lb. of solid wastes, pri­ marily cloth, rubber, paper, metal, glass, and wood. Few cities attempt to reclaim any of these materials. In some cities the resuable materials, such as paper, rags, and metals, are being salvaged. The remaining refuse is ground and composted for use as a soil amendment, fertilizer, or mulch. Auburn’s research has used a com­ post produced by the City of Mobile. This processed garbage has a dark brown color, with large amounts of flexible and rigid plastic apparent. All glass is ground to a size that does not present a problem in handling. Over­ all texture of the product is somewhat granular. It is difficult to ignite with a match. Chemical analysis (Spurway I of processed garbage shows nitrates of 2-5 p.p.m., phosphorus of 0-1 p.p.m., potassium of 20-40 p.p.m., and cal­ cium of 150-300 p.p.m. The pH is 8.6 and highly resistant to change. It has a high salt content (solubridge reading — 1:5 dilution — has ave­ raged 70 mhos), but the salts are easily leached. Interest that generated experiments with processed garbage mulch was be­ cause of the large quantities of the material available that could be used in park and highway plantings. And these mulches have proved successful on numerous plant species. No apparent differences were ob­ served in the growth of petunias and garden chrysanthemums mulched with either processed garbage, sawdust, or pine straw. Leaf and flower color and plant size were comparable in al! the mulches. SPECIAL MERIT AWARD Continued from Page 2 to have significantly advanced the profession nationally or in­ ternationally. 3. The nominee must not have been a recipient of this award during the preceding ten (10) years. An individual(s) may be nominated by: A Chapter of GCSAA, and indi­ vidual Class A or B member of this Association, the Association Planning Committee, or the Executive Commit­ tee. This is an exceptional opportunity for you to participate in honoring a fellow Superintendent or others who have contributed significantly to the profession. Very serious consideration will be given each nominee by your Executive Committee. You are encouraged to provide them with a comprehensive package of supportive data. Please submit your nominations to this office by September 15, 1973. We will collect all nominations received at that time and forward them to the Chairman of the Public Relations and Awards Committee. CAGCS WINNERS Following is a list of tournament winners for the May meeting held at the Clinton Country Club in Clinton. Class A Gross — E. Bedus Net — R. Parsons Class B Gross — B. Tosh Net — A. Hawkins Assoc. Gross — F. Downey Net — D. Hosking CONN. CLIPPINGS Robert Osterman, editor 937 Black Rock Turnpike Easton Conn. 06612 30 — 4 — For the Day Low Gross — F. Famphier Low Net — D. Hosking Kickers F. Downey P. Casswell T. Grywalski F. Lamphier R. Viera A. Hawkins D. Hosking E. Anderson A. Wydra The June tournament will be for the McLoughlin Trophy and will be held at New London Country Club. The July meeting will be at Shuttle Mea­ dow Country Club and the Association Championship will be the tournament. NATIONAL AFFAIRS FIRST CALL Continued from Page 3 ment which would require travel is largely voluntary and can be tailorer to suit the member. In summary, the function of the Executive Committee and its mem­ bers is to represent the interest of As­ sociation members as well as the. in­ terest of golf in general in a positive program of professional development. They must determine basic policy, set the general course of organization pro­ cedure, utilize the Association’s man­ power, make best use of all Associa­ tion resources, appraise results of all actions, and inspire continuing action. THE FOLLOWING COMPANIES ARE CONTRIBUTING TO THE SUPPORT OF* THE CONN, CLIPPINGS: ALFCO ROKEBY CO., INC. 1211 Stony Hill Road Wilbraham, Mass. Frank Downey, CAGCS member (413) 596-3009 OLD FOX CHEMICAL COMPANY P. 0. Box 62 Pleasant Valley, Conn. John Grant, CAGCS member 749-8339 WILLIAM DEST JFiUiam Dest, CAGCS member Stolens - C-l, Arlington C-19, Congressional 246-6279 0. M. SCOTT & SONS Proturf. Div. Marysville. Ohio Al Arison, CAGCS member 336-9890 VALLEY FARMS TURF NURSERY Box 81 Avon, Conn. Joe Bidwell, CAGCS member 658-6886 TOM IRWIN CO. 113 A Street Burlington, Mass. John P. Callahan, CAGCS member 677-7054 THE CHAS. C. HART COMPANY 304 Main Street Wethersfield, Conn. Robert Kennedy, CAGCS member 529-2537 IRRIGATION AND EQUIPMENT SUPPLY CO. Milford, Conn. Richard Hosking, CAGCS member 874-1096 SOMERS TURF SUPPLIES Orange, Conn. Bill Somers, CAGCS member 795-4320 CLORO-SPRAY CORPORATION 475 Beaver Street Bristol, Penn. 19007 Edward J. Sanson, CAGCS member Frank Paladino, LIAGCS 'member 215-426-7723 FIRST CLASS MR® We.R, SOMERS 208 NAN DR, ORANGE, CONN, 0647?