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"NO
WHICH
SIDE
HIS

MAN
HE

WINS
HAS

ISSUE.
HEART'S

THE

HIS G R E A T E S T

GIVEN

MOST

THING

HE

PLAY-SPELL,

OF

DOES

THAT

TALITY."

APRIL
1940

FAME
HIS

IN

TIME;

FOR
GIVES

THAT

TO

IT'S

HIS

RECREATION.
HIM

IMMOR-

This N E W S L E T T E R is published
monthly by the Greenkeepers Club of
New England, and sent f r e e to its members and their Green's Chairmen. Subscription price ten cents a copy, or a
dollar a year.
GUY C. WEST
Editor
C l a r k Rd., B a r r i n g t o n , R . I.

GEORGE J. ROMMELL, JR.
Business Mgr.
54 E d d y St., W e s t N e w t o n ,

April, 1940

Mass.

Vol. 12, No. 4

Contributing

Editors

Homer Darling
R. A. Mitchell
Howard F a r r a n t
Charles Parker
F r a n k Wilson
The ideas and opinions expressed in
the subject
matter
of this
NEWSLETTER
are not necessarily those of
the Editor or the members of the club
as a whole.
APRIL

MEETING

The April meeting was held at the
Waltham Field Station on the afternoon
of the 8th. At the business meeting,
Albert Scott of the Trapelo Golf Club
was elected to Associate Membership.
We were honored to have present
Alex. Bryce of the Wilmington (Del.)
C. C., Robert Pollack of the Llanerch
C. C., Manoa, Pa., and Kent Bradley of
Passaic Co. G. C., Paterson, N. J., all
of whom gave short talks on reasons
why they believed in a National Organization.
Dr. E. E. Evaul of Upper Darby,
Penna., formerly of the N. J. Agri. Ext).
Station gave an interesting talk, mostly
on "Fertilizers". Dr. Evaul discussed
why we should fertilize, what fertilizer,
and how much, f r o m the cost of plant
food basis. He said in p a r t : Do not depend on someone else f o r your thinking. The fertilizer problem f o r the
greens will be different than t h a t of the
fairways, due to removal of clippings
f r o m greens. Before any program is
drawn up, know the conditions which
you are trying to change or create.
Rapid tests by themselves may lead
into trouble; the interpretation of the
tests is more important than the tests
themselves. Use the rapid test as a
guide, using representative samples. The

texture and organic m a t t e r content must
also be considered.
Accomplished by fertilizer: healthy
t u r f , a regular supply of plant nutrients,
vigorous growth to combat weeds, also
to combat drought.
The carriers of the elements are imp o r t a n t in any complete fertilizer.
Goodwill of individual and service rendered by a company may be important,
but the unit of plant food is more important.
Do not use too much potash unless
there is a deficiency, or to encourage
clover.
Soluble salts, such as calcium, potash,
nitrate nitrogen, will leach out of irrigated areas, hence more fertilization
will be needed.
Any greenkeeping organization can
do a lot to educate the public as to
what they should expect on the course.
Another surprise speaker, who was
very welcome, was Dr. John Monteith of
the U. S. G. A. Green Section. Dr. Monteith gave the following table of t h e
percentages of mercury in the compounds listed, which are used f o r disease
control:
92
Oxide of mercury
85
Calomel
74
Corrosive sublimate
33
Fungol
20
Curex
18
Special Semesan
17
Semesan
11
NuGreen
In a discussion of high and low lime
bordeaux, Dr. Monteith advised against
using either on greens f o r brown patch
control, as the evidence has been that
there has been injury f r o m copper
poisoning in many cases. On certain
soils copper i n j u r y does not show up,
why isn't known, until we know why,
bordeaux is dangerous to use on greens.
Even at present high prices of mercury, copper is more expensive, as 'it
takes about a pound of bordeaux f o r
control as much as an ounce of corrosive, it is more easily washed off, and it
controls only large brown patch, while
mercury will control snow mold, dollar
spot and the large brown patch.
Where GK is uncertain, test strips on
green and fairway are advised, using
potash, phosphorus and lime. Keep clean
cut record of where test plots are located. If better turf does not show up
during year, there isn't a deficiency of
the element tested.

a

SERVICE

SECTION

DINNER

The annual dinner meeting of the
Greenkeepers Club of New England and
the Service Section of the M. G. A. was
held at the Charles River Country Club
on the evening of the 8th. Chairman A.
Oram Fulton as toastmaster called on
the following as speakers: Pres. Al.
Mclntire of the Charles River Country
Club, Pres. Campbell-Patterson of the
Mass. Golf Assoc., Pres. Harold Pierce
of the U.S.G.A., Pres. John Counsell of
the Greenkeepers Club, Robert Pollack,
representing the G. S. A., Francis
Ouimet, Dr. John Monteith, Dr. E. E.
Evaul.
Dr. Evaul discussed the relationship
between GK and green chairman. He
said t h a t any proposed changes must
consider the playing membership. He
advised the GK and chairman working
together on analysis of problems and
under long-time plans. The possible use
of aerial photographs was discussed.
The GK's job is to keep chairman advised as to details. The chairman should
make some time available f o r GK to advise him as to details.
Advertising
might have its place; the members might
be more sympathetic if they knew more
about problems.
ROUND

TABLE

(March
Discussion

of

U s e of

21,
Turf

MEETINGS
1940)
Diseases

and

Mercurials

Sam Mitchell, chairman
Letters were read f r o m Prof. L. S.
Dickinson of Massachusetts State College, Dr. De F r a n c e and Dr. Erwin of
Rhode Island State College and Dr.
Longnecker of New Jersey Experiment
Station on the subject.
In these letters it was generally
pointed out t h a t a greenkeeper could
not expect to curtail his spray program
to any great extent. It was suggested
t h a t one might wait f o r weather conditions favorable to an attack of disease
and then spray, rather than to attempt
periodic treatments f o r prevention.
No satisfactory substitute f o r mercurials known at the present time. Other
methods of control suggested were "lime
dusted over greens may keep down
Brown Patch".
Healthy turf should be less susceptible
and should recover better than weak
turf.

The New England Toro Company
furnished sample packages of various
mercurial products f o r display.
A general discussion took place on the
different materials and the cost per application of each.
Application methods were discussed.
®
(March
Discussion

of

25,

1940)

Individual

Course

Problems

Howard F a r r a n t , chairman
Topics discussed w e r e : —
Elimination of clover f r o m greens.
Use of Tonagreen, sulphate of ammonia,
plugging.
Elimination of low spots in putting
g r e e n — l i f t sod and raise them, filling
with extra topdressing not successful.
Fairy ring—cause and what to do
about it—caused by a f u n g u s disease—
only remedy is to dig it out, remove it
and renew soil.
Elimination of corrugation in fairways.
Cross mowing, cross rolling,
slower mowing if present mowing is a t
g r e a t enough speed to cause the trouble.
Eradication of crab grass. Discussion
of the use of chemical weed killers.
Discussion of irrigation of putting
greens.
Discussion of fertilization of velvet
bent.
Alterations to fairway grade without
putting the hole out of play.
Discussion of methods of lime application.
©
(March
How

To

Establish

On

Your

28,
A
Golf

1940)
Bird

Sanctuary

Course

Homer Darling, chairman
The chairman introduced Mr. C.
Russell Mason of Audubon Bird Society
who spoke on the above subject.
Golf courses are natural bird sanctuaries. They have a variety of country,
open spaces, wooded areas, generally n o
shooting allowed.
Bird life attracted to club house
grounds will interest non-golfers.
Berry bearing shrubs will a t t r a c t both
insect eating and seed eating birds.
These shrubs also add to the landscape.
Even though a golf course is a n a t u r a l
sanctuary it can be improved. Feeding
stations will increase the number of t h e
bird population and the variety.

In clearing woodlands nesting places
are sacrificed. A substitute is needed
f o r bird species t h a t have this type of
nesting. P u t up bird houses.
Birds must also be supplied with
water. If bird baths are put out, have
them in the open so that hawks and cats
will not have opportunities to prey on
the birds.
Some tangle f o r shelter should be
available.
Very interesting movies of the Moose
Hill Bird Sanctuary were shown.
Business

Management
keepers

of

a

Green-

Job

Papers were read by:
John Counsell—Turf Records
F r a n k Wilson—Diary and
Record of Areas
George Rommell—Reports to
Committee
Records are a business like way of
r u n n i n g your job. A way of selling
yourself to your club. Removes a lot
of the guess work. Other records kept
might be of rainfall, temperature,
weather, pH, etc.
Round table meeting committee,
Sam Mitchell, chairman
Homer Darling
Howard F a r r a n t
WHAT

ABOUT

TOP

DRESSING?

N. J. Sperandio
Marlborough C o u n t r y Club
Marlborough, Mass.

The purposes of top dressing are to
keep the turf in a healthy, growing condition, to create a t r u e putting surface,
and to provide sufficient resiliency f o r
holding a pitched ball.
A desirable top dressing mixture is a
sandy, loam soil, rich in organic matter,
and the character of the mixture should
remain constant f o r long periods. Such
a mixture builds up a favorable top soil,
which is beneficial, especially, where the
n a t u r a l soil is poor.
Care should be
taken as to the origin of materials used
in top dressing. They should, be tested
f o r acidity, and, if found to be too acid,
lime should be added. In some cases
where peat, sand, or soil is taken f r o m
locations along the seacoast, the material is apt to contain sufficient salt to
i n j u r e t u r f . The material should not be

taken f r o m areas abounding in weeds.
Many golf clubs introduce sufficient
weeds in top dressing to keep crews of
weeders busy all summer. The production of soil layers, turf mats, overfertilization, smothering, weed infestation, unsuitable top dressing materials,
and improper methods of application are
to blame f o r much damage to t u r f .
Top dressing need not be rich in
fertilizer since plant food can be applied
more economically by direct application
of fertilizer. A top dressing material
often contains a large amount of
fertilizer, such as decomposed manure or other similar materials. This
f a c t is overlooked when preparing a
fertilizing program, and as a result,
over-fertilization may follow.
Changing the type of soil used in
successive applications of top dressing
has often been the cause of i n j u r y .
When the mixture is not of a constant
type, the formation of layers of sand,
ciay. and organic m a t t e r will result.
Layers are also formed by burying
thick mats of turf with heavy top dressings. Soil layers can sometimes be partially corrected by spiking and top
dressing with suitable materials, although frequently it is found necessary
to remove the sod entirely and mix the
layers. In some cases top dressing is
neglected in the summer with the result that, particularly with creeping
bent t u r f , a thick m a t of grass, leaves
and stolons are formed. When this occurs, the m a t should be removed before
top dressing is applied. This can be
accomplished by thoroughly brushing or
raking, followed by close cutting.
In
case there is only a thin m a t of t u r f ,
a light brushing and cutting may suffice.
Brushes on mowers or stdble
brooms are often used f o r this purpose.
Iron rakes, with sharp teeth, may be
necessary f o r the thicker mats which
should be successively raked and cut in
several directions until the mat is removed. It may be necessary to repeat
the process several times before topdressing. To prevent the occurrence of
a thick mat, particularly with creeping
bent, turf should be raked and cut each
time before i t \ i s top dressed; f u r t h e r more, it should be top dressed with
sufficient frequency.
A general recommendation f o r fertilizing putting greens might be as follows :—
Well-prepared and weed-free compost, or mushroom soil to which sand

Velvet B e n t Seed

RARSTAN and EMERALD

vute

These improved strains are the
finest of all turf grasses for golf
greens and other closely cut turf
««

. -r^wst^011
V
ou

OUR SEED TESTS HIGH
Purity—95 %
Germination over 859'c

V\ a ve 9sf o p P

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5

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Inquire of your dealer or write
us directly

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so9?
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SM

GRASS

SEED

Co.

DIVISION

f

h WOODRUFF

NEWTON, N. J.

AND
SONS
INC.

•¡HOBIIiaBKHHJ
s i s a a THE
x sSIGN
x nOFw a i aGOOD
i a a5EED5
E H@x3S5SiSEEnHK

Velvet Bent Sod

BENT

250,000 sq. f t .

GRASS

Kernwood

10,000 sq. f t .
at putting

Piper

green

length

SEED

Piper Strain
Velvet

Bent

Native

Grown

R h o d e Island
Bent
ALSO

100%

Weed

Free

FAIRWAY

MIXTURES

M a t u r e d Sod, s t r i p s 1' x 4'
Delivered

prices

upon

request

William Mitchell
T U R F
N e w

London

G A R D E N S
N e w

Purchase
with
confidence,
direct
from
the
grower,
v i a b l e , w i n t e r h a r d y seed,,
at lowest price commensur a t e w i t h highest, quality.

A. N.

PECKHAM

Hampshire
K I N G S T O N ,

R H O D E

I S L A N D

has been added) should be applied liberally to the greens at the beginning of
the growing season. When compost prepared f r o m a mixture of manure and
soil is used, or, when mushroom soil is
used, the top dressing will be of considerable fertilizing value.
One of the most important purposes
of applying top dressing is to fill in
slight depressions in the turf and, thereby, improve the putting surface.
A
sifted soil, preferably sandy loams, may
be used f o r this purpose. If the top
dressing has not been produced by composting the soil with various manures,
it may be of comparatively small fertilizing value.
When a top dressing of natural soil,
or soil mixed with sand or peat is used,
a completely mixed fertilizer should also
be used occasionally to provide the nitrogen and mineral elements such as phosphorus, potassium, calcium, and other
elements, contained in manure.
Although the elements will have to be
applied only occasionally, it will be
necessary to keep up the nitrogen supply—this is best done by making f r e quent light applications of some soluble
nitrogenous fertilizer, such as sulphate
of ammonia.
If the fertilizing is not being done
by means of top dressing with compost
or mushroom soil, only enough top
dressing should be applied to keep the
putting surface true throughout the
playing season. Close cutting', brushing,
raking, and even light rolling of putting
greens, in many instances, tend to make
f r e q u e n t or heavy top dressing unnecessary.
An application of one cubic yard of
top dressing at one time is ordinarily
sufficient to true the surface of a putting green of 5,000 to 6,000 square
feet. Often such a top dressing in the
Spring and Fall is sufficient on some
greens, while on others, several top
dressings may have to be made during
the season.
Top dressing during the playing season should be much lighter than in the
Spring and Fall, in order to interfere as
little as possible with play.
Top dressings should be worked in
with a mat, or some device which will
r u b the material f r o m the high spots
and deposit it in the lower areas.
The amount of top dressing to apply
will depend largely on the needs of the
turf f r o m the playing standpoint, and
to less extent on the needs of the grass

f o r growth. When the putting s u r f a c e
is not true, top dressing should be applied. F r e q u e n t light applications are
better f o r this purpose than i n f r e q u e n t
heavy applications.
The cost of application must also be
considered on many golf courses, and
f r o m the stand-point of cost, it is inadvisable to top dress more f r e q u e n t l y
than necessary. When large quantities
of compost or mushroom soils are used
on greens, they may in themselves add
enough of the fertilizing elements to
provide f o r adequate growth of grass.
Good compost is, however, more costly
than it was many years ago and, therefore, the use of compost is becoming
more and more restricted to the actual
need of providing a t r u e putting surface. Commercial fertlizers, on the other
hand, have been greatly reduced in cost
as compared with compost in recent
years and are, therefore, coming more
and more into general use on golf
courses.
It is, therefore, advisable to supplement the compost with sandy loam f o r
making the putting surface true, and
with fertilizers f o r providing the food
nocessary f o r the growth of the grass.
For other purposes, the greenskeeper
has available a large number of thoroughly tested commercial fertilizers.
There has been, in the past, some prejudice against the use of commercial
fertilizer on the part of many of those
who have clung to the preference f o r
so-called natural fertilizers. These were
practically the only ones available a t the
time of our great-grandfathers. The
modern f a r m e r s and greenskeepers have
learned to recognize that plants are not
influenced by prejudices, and are satisfied to get their food f r o m any source
that is available. The important question
is the matter of availability, which
means, as a rule, whether or not the
plant food can become soluble in the
soil and thus be in the proper condition
f o r the roots to absorb.

"Whenever my wife needs money she
calls me handsome."
"Handsome?*'
"Hand some over!"
—Ex.

"Can she keep a secret?"
"Yes, the mean thing!"

—Ex.

THE

LEWIS

PADDLE-TYPE

WASHER

These washers have proved their worth on well-known
golf courses throughout the world. For an inexpensive washer—they have no equal.
Paddle-Type Washers—1 to 10, ea. $6.00; 11 or more,
ea. $5.50. (Price is washer alone.)
LEWIS Tee Stake of 1" x 2" x Vs" steel channel, 5 f t .
long, with channel cross member at top. Finished
in white weather-resisting paint. Price $1.25.
Weight 8 lbs.
Top of Stake should be 25" to 30" above
ground level.
Standard Ensemble, each, $10.65
PADDLE-TYPE

WASHER

EXTRA

PARTS

Brush with back and end spring
$0.55
Brush without spring
.40
Paddle with Cadmium plated screw
40
Paddle with chain and screw
55
Bottom spring for tank, old style not turned up .15
Thumb screws
05
Chain for paddle
15
Brush end spring
03
Ban—25 lb. pail
4.50

85 State Street—Boston,
—Seedsmen
THE

HIGH

COST

OF

Since

Mass.

1818—

GOLF

SUPPLIES

There seems to be a feeling on the
part of some Golf Club Committee
Chairmen and Greenkeepers that any
item labelled "GOLF" carries a tariff
higher than normal. This may be true
in many instances, and a study as to
reasons will show justification for these
higher prices.
Golf as we look at it is a short-seasoned game—one that opens with a
bang, carries on at top speed through
some 20 weeks, and then closes like a
trap door. Little activity takes place
during the other 30 dormant weeks—at
least to the eye of the non-committeeman and golfers as players.
It would be useless for me to set down
all the things done by the greenkeeper
in getting things ready for the next season. This is common knowledge among
you, and few if any can get all these
things done before April 19 rolls around
again.
Your supplier of accessories, equipment, seed, fertilizers, and such allied
items also works " f a r into the night"
getting his data together for the coming season. For example, take grass

seed. In many cases, seeds are purchased
in August for the following spring. The
seed is usually paid for and stored until
seeding time. Interest on investment,
storage, insurance, and other contributing costs mount each succeeding month.
Contracts are made for all other kinds
of supplies, and in most cases spring
orders are placed in November and
December. In many instances delivery
must be taken before the turn of the
year in order that higher costs may be
eliminated. Here again we have investment, insurance, storage, and sundry
direct costs mounting with each month.
And so it goes all down the line insofar
as your dealer is concerned.
The manufacturer is also in a similar
position in that he must manufacture
all these specialty items during the fall
and winter months, store and insure
them, and gamble that he has made
enough and yet not too many of each..
The very nature of the items is such
that most of them are wanted on short
notice and at one time by the club trade.
This throws a very heavy stock and delivery problem on the shoulders of the
dealer in a very short span of time. If
the dealer guessed wrong as to his
probable sales and the manufacturer

made the same error, it causes long delays in delivery and exorbitant delivery
or transportation charges.
Any business which must be highly
seasonal will always be forced to pay
higher prices f o r commodities on account
of higher costs of m a n u f a c t u r i n g and
distributing of these necessary ltemsHowever, there does exist a ways and
means of levelling off this extremely
high price peak, but it is a cooperative
step and cannot function with but one
party taking action.
There does exist at the present time
quite, satisfactory cooperation between
the m a n u f a c t u r e r s and dealers in that
dealers buy as f a r ahead as possible, pay
their ' bills promptly, and keep manuf a c t u r e r advised as to the general buying trends. The next step in this cooperative, action is f o r the club officials
and greenkeepers to work more closely
with their dealers.
This can be accomplished by greenkeepers placing their orders f o r spring
and even many summer needs during
those dormant winter months, and by
doing this as soon as convenient a f t e r
budgets have been approved. Doing this
allows the dealer to spread his buying,
storing, and delivery over a longer
stretch of time and also ease his financial
strain. Few dealers if any would object to delivery of supplies in. J a n u a r y
and February on terms allowing the club
to make payments in April or May. This
would mean that the dealer can lower
his stocks on hand, spread out his delivery period, lower his insurance, and
reorder as soon as deliveries lower his
stock below the average minimum. In
t u r n , this plan would allow the manuf a c t u r e r to go through the same steps
with his dealers.
Few if any golf equipment and supply
dealers can finance their entire sales
with their own capital. This means t h a t
all of us must at certain times hire
money to pay our bills. As you know,
m a n u f a c t u r e r s insist on their payment
t e r m s being met right on the due date
or the dealer suffers the penalty of no
f u r t h e r credit nor supplies. Now, under
the "spread" plan, the dealer can use
his accounts receivable as good loan
collateral at any commercial bank which
nugh r e f u s e a loan on a high inventory
of goods in stock. Banks want to loan
money as it means income to them, but
they cannot see the advisability of loaning money to a dealer f o r the purpose of
buying stocks when the dealer is already

heavily stocked, and they fail to understand the high seasonal demands taking
place in March and April. These loans
would then be short-term loans and not
6 or 8 month loans as are now necessary under the present late buying and
slow payment procedure.
The next step is that of closer cooperation between the Club Treasurer
and the supply dealer. Whether this
long space between the invoice date and
payment date is due to low finances a t
the club or slow due payments or whatnot, it works a decided hardship on the
dealer.
Greenkeepers can sell their club officials on the idea that these dealers are
entitled to their money within the terms
of the sale, and by passing invoices
through with payment requests, this can
be speeded up considerably. Where the
dealer makes a sale on a deferred payment plan or spring dating on early deliveries, he has quite a definite payment
date in mind and can easily arrange his
finances to meet these conditions. But,
in cases of 2, 3, and often 6 months'
delay in paying bills sold on a 30 days
basis, the dealer has no idea as to when
he may expect the remittance and cannot therefore arrange f o r the use of
this money due him.
A f t e r all is said and done, your equipment and supply dealer is a legitimate
merchant. He buys his merchandise,
pays his bills, keeps an office, shop, delivery and sales department, all of which
is necessary to properly serve you if,
when, and as you require his services.
This sets up a definite operating "fixed"
cost which he must include in the pricing of his materials to the golf trade.
Under the present "spring peak" loads,
he must either absorb a very high shortperiod operating cost, or he must increase his selling price to cover these
anticipated unusual expenses. This is a
universal problem and not one existing
with any one dealer nor within any one
section of the country.
The opportunity exists f o r the New
England section to see this picture and
to do something about it. Cooperative
buying did not solve this problem as
this plan has ^been tried, and f o r the
reason t h a t it did not lessen the peak
f o r the dealer.
It is my candid opinion that earlier
buying, acceptance of earlier delivery,
and earlier payments of bills on their
due dates will lessen the load on the
part of the dealers. They in turn will

¡ß©n

F O H

§

' m

m

m § T

m n

m

m

^

S M O O T H ,

ACCURATE
CUTTINGi m

PONY IS

G E T T I N G
A

BIG

P L A Y I

For fifteen years we built thousands of Toro Hand Greensmowers and never
woke up to the fact that y o u wanted us to put a motor on it until a few
months ago.
So finally when we got wise to what was wanted and man-oh-man we've
gone to town.
For 1940 we're equipping it with a stronger and better motor and you can
have it with a complete traction drive if you want it—or just to drive the
reel—it does a swell j o b either way and the price is right.

1010 MANUFACTURING CORPORATION
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA
Established

1914

. . . DOES A BEAUTIFUL JOB
BENT OR BERMUDA
Distributed, b y t h e N e w E n g l a n d Toro C o m p a n y

...

lessen the m a n u f a c t u r e r s ' load, and in
turn a saving will accumulate all down
the line. The result will be that we can
and will sell these very same supplies
and equipment to the golf trade at lower prices than are possible today and
yet leave the dealer a legitimate profit
to which, none will deny, he is entitled.
—One Equipment and Supply Dealer.
WHY

PAY

YOUR

BILLS?

I have never been in China, but I
have heard of an adage in use there to
the effect that "Debtors failing to pay
their bills were jugged."
We of this modern civilization—if we
can t r u t h f u l l y call it modern—take
quite the opposite viewpoint in that we
ostracize and look down on the creditor
rather than the debtor. We seem to
feel that it's the creditor's f a u l t if he
fails to look into credit references and
ignores the signs of unpaid small bills.
We think the businessman who fails up
and fires his employees is one who is
extremely unkind to his employees and
overloads the W.P.A.
It would be a grand
world
if
you, the other fellow, and I could
just keep on buying
and
buying
without ever thinking about paying
our bills.
It is perhaps f o r t u n a t e
f o r us t h a t we do not have a Treasurer
already burdened down with his own
personal or business problems to whom
we can r e f e r our creditors. We have to
face our own creditors, make our own
excuses, or sign the checks. Perhaps it
is this intimate knowledge of the size
of the exchequer that holds our appetite
down on a level with the pocketbook.
It has been my observation, based on
many years in this golf industry, that
the average Club Treasurer has accomplished almost miracles in meeting the
hundreds of bills thrown at him just
as he sits down f o r his weekly luncheon
prior to the regular Saturday foursome.
It seems t h a t the average Club Treasurer is t h a t species of man who "gives
and gives" without much taking. Just
imagine how the end of the month would
look at your home desk if every member
of the family could and did buy whatever he or she desired without consultation with you. Can you imagine yourself in that predicament? Well, that's
the Club Treasurer. If you don't believe
me, just take the time out to ask him.
Every well-managed club today has
some f o r m of budget. According to

Funk & Wagnalls, "budget" is supposed
to be, "Formerly, a small sack or its contents; a collection of news;
financial
estimate." I have never been sure if
the Treasurer is the "sack" or the "contents in the bag." At any rate, t h e
Treasurer should be present to make
sure that all allotted appropriations a r e
well within the normal expectant income. I believe his power should go
f u r t h e r in that he be permitted f r o m
time to time to advise the various Committee Chairmen when income has fallen below the expectant figure in order
that purchases may be deferred or curtailed. This simple process means no
expenditures would be made of greater
value than could be met with current
income.
To suggest that the House, Tennis,
Golf, Bridge, Swimming, Greens, or
some other committee should have
preference in budget allotment or expenditures would of course depend on
the club and its trend. We can be sure
though of one f a c t which is t h a t the
Greens Committee or Grounds Committee dealing with the actual maintenance of the golf course as a playing
area should be somewhere near the top,
f o r without Golf there might be no club.
This committee must make certain definite committments in the winter to
make sure that materials are on hand
f o r the opening of the course. These
comprise a very large percentage of the
expenditures authorized by that committee, exclusive of the daily labor
which follows. The Treasurer should be
notified of the necessity of these materials and be authorized to meet all
bills properly approved by the Greenkeeper or the Greens Chairman within
the agreed sales dates shown on these
invoices.
Contrast the above suggestion with
the more or less current procedure of
paying the merchant who squawks the
loudest, and letting the maintenance materials suppliers wait until the season
is half or nearly over before coming to
their t u r n on the list.
If neither of these two methods is
followed, then it seems only good business that each'Committee Chairman or
other authorized buyer be notified as
to the approximate date his contracts
will be paid and allow him in t u r n to
notify the supplier with whom he expects to deal. The dealer can then ref u s e to accept the contract or a d j u s t
his finances to meet it.

^

MOWERS
T h e s u r e w a y t o k e e p y o u r m o v i n g c o s t s a t a m i n i m u m i n 1940 a n d a t t h e s a m e
t i m e m a i n t a i n t h e f i n e s t p o s s i b l e f a i r w a y s a n d g r e e n s , is t o s t a r t t h e s e a s o n w i t h
the right equipment.
Look over your m o w e r s carefully.
If t h e y a r e o l d
and
w o r n , f r e q u e n t r e p a i r s w i l l w a s t e t i m e a n d m o n e y d u r i n g t h e y e a r , a n d t h e y c a n n o t be e x p e c t e d t o do s a t i s f a c t o r y w o r k .
If y o u d e c i d e t o i n v e s t i n N E W
m o w e r s , choose t h e m
with
g r e a t c a r e , n o t a l o n e f o r t h e i r a b i l i t y t o do a g o o d j o b T H I S y e a r b u t w i t h a n eye o n t h e i r
P R O V E D R E C O R D of d e p e n d a b l e p e r f o r m a n c e f o r M A N Y Y E A R S .
W e believe t h a t the t w o
P e n n s y l v a n i a s d e s c r i b e d b e l o w w i l l s t a n d o u t in a n y c a r e f u l c o m p a r i s o n as t h e m o s t e f f i c i e n t
and economical mowers you can buy.

PENNSYLVANIA
SUPER-ROLLER
GREENSMOWER

-J^lk

PENNSYLVANIA DE LUXE

Ball bearing, high speed 8-blade c y l i n d e r provides a smooth, ribless cut t h a t insures a
perfect putting surface.
Blades are of t h e
finest crucible
analysis steel—oil
hardened
a n d t e m p e r e d . T r a i n of 3 c u t gears, r u n n i n g
in grease in d u s t - t i g h t case, assures an easypushing, fast-cutting mower.
Castor wheels
a r e m o u n t e d in h a r d e n e d steel b u s h i n g w i t h
alemite lubrication.
Extra castor wheel for
c u t t i n g sharply undulating greens. The light
weight
aluminum
r o l l e r s , 7 i n c h e s in
diameter, are interchangeable right or left.

FAIRWAY

A v a i l a b l e i n b o t h 30 i n c h a n d 35 i n c h s i z e s .
Unbreakable malleable iron construction.
6
h e a v y c r u c i b l e analysis steel blades p r o v i d e
a smooth cut.
T i m ken roller
bearings
on
cylinder
are a d j u s t a b l e , to t a k e up
wear.
T h e r a i s e d e d g e l o w e r b l a d e is
reversible.
Train
of m a c h i n e - c u t
hardened
gears
on
B O T H sides, p r o t e c t e d by d u s t - p r o o f , greaser e t a i n i n g cases.
Steel roller w i t h
hardened
steel bearings.
Pneumatic tires optional.
30-INCH MODEL
K F A I R W A Y is m a d e o f
cast iron and offered at a lower price.

PENNSYLVANIA LAWN MOWER WORKS
PRIMOS,

DELAWARE

COUNTY,

T

Í

N

PENNSYLVANIA

N

S

V

I

V

A

,
QUALITY
L ¿4 WN M&WEHS

J O H N J. N Y H A N
WOODWORTH BRADLEY,

INC.

120 Cypress
131 Dorrance

N

M

À

Street, Brookline, Mass.
S t r e e t , P r o v i d e n c e , R . I.

Every year we see more clubs turning to The Chandler ACE or 77B. None
will deny that this step is not proper as
many clubs are overloaded with taxes,
interest, and other fixed obligations farout of proportion to their current income. The day of reckoning is just
around the corner f o r many, but might
be eliminated by operating on a strict
economy plan.
Golf is passing out of that early "flyby-night" stage and is settling down into a permanent business. As such it
must be organized and operated as a
going business. Club officials will of
course change and committees will
shift, but one good member on the previous committee usually makes an excellent Chairman. This permits a continuity between the club officials and
the suppliers of commodities, thereby
promoting a smoother working combination with less headaches as to what
actually transpired during the previous
year. It means a continuation of the
employee-employer relationship harmony
and assures a satisfactory employee a
continuation of his job. Thus the employer is freed of t h a t difficult task and
.problem of "breaking in" new men in
the various' departments.
No one man, in my opinion, is a
better pivotman in a Club than the
Treasurer. He should and usually stays
on f o r several seasons, and as a tried
and proved official, his experience
should be well heeded.
He collects
your dues and acts as custodian and
chief disbursement officer. If any man
knows where the club is headed, it is
the Treasurer.
If any man knows
whether you can afford this or that,
it is the Treasurer. He is the man who
will pay the bills contracted and. believe it or not, whether it be in China
or the good old U. S. A., the man with
the money bag should be a big factor.
— J u s t a Creditor.
THE

FOUR

PILLARS

OF

FERTILITY

(A Winter School f o r Greenkeepers,
Paper)
Due to different soil environments
under which the greenkeeper works, his
problem is more or less an individual
one. There are, however, some general
things he must consider. In this paper,
I am outlining what I know to be the
f o u r pillars of soil fertility.

1. Presence in the soil of adequate
amounts of available nitrogen, phosphorus, and potash.
2. Suitable physical soil conditions
permitting drainage, soil aeration, root
penetration and an even water supply.
3. A suitable soil reaction conveyed
by a sufficiency of lime in the soil.
4. Presence of the indispensable soil
micro-organisms, which f e r m e n t the
humus or organic matter, cause nitrification, fixation of atmospheric nitrogen,
etc.
These cardinal factors in soil fertility
are intimately related. If one is deficient or lacking, the crop will suffer, no
m a t t e r how favorably the remainder
prevail.
First

Pillar

Nitrogen.
Other conditions being
satisfactory,
crop
yields
(except
legumes) are closely proportioned to
the amount of combined nitrogen they
receive. It encourages leaf and stem
growth. For this reason it is valuable
as a topdressing to force early grass
growth, but requires correct supplementing with phosphorus and potash to
produce a balanced plant development.
Phosphorous has a remarkable effect
in the development of root growth, and
also establishes a good root growth in
seedlings.
Potash is important in the formation
of sugars and starches. It gives tone
and vigor to the whole plant, making it
less susceptible to diseases.
Second

Pillar

Drainage, permitting suitable physical
soil conditions, soil aeration, root penetration and an even water supply. This
is the f u n d a m e n t a l basis of sound agricultural practice.
Optimum physical
environment is determined by adequate
drainage.
It influences every single
factor and operation concerned in grass
production.
In the cases of poor drainage, expenditures on labor and seed and fertilizers are in most cases practically lost.
Drained soils increase the quantity and
quality of good grass crops, prevent
water logging, winter killing, and render
the f u n g u s diseases so well known in
the turf world practically harmless.
Good drainage also provides a much
longer and more pleasant playing period.
Third

Pillar

A suitable soil reaction conveyed by
a sufficiency of lime in the soil. Lime
neutralizes acidity and sweetens the soil.
It is an essential element without which

MEW E 1 G L A N D
IOTOTILLER SALES

H.
Dalton

ENGELMANN

Avenue

Pittsfield,

Mass.

Osterville,

P h o n e — 4382
C.

D.

Center,

R.
Holden

J.

ALLEN,

Street

Stafford

Mass.

Phone— Huntington
200

ALTON

BLANCHARD

Chester

East

Jr.

RAY
St.

149 S m i t h

Center,

140 S c h o o l

N.

Street

A.

STARKWEATHER
Dover,

Exeter,

Mass.

P h o n e — 309
LET

US

GIVE

YOU

R.

Conn.

Conn.

Phone

Conn.

ELFGREN
Conn.
103-4

ANDERSON
Providence,

R.

I.

M.
St.

BELDEN
Manchester,

N.

H.

P h o n e — 2318- M

Mass.

P h o n e — 1988
ALLAN

Phone
BRAUN

Street

11 N o . A d a m s

BANKS
Waltham,

Phone

Phone — M A-9707

Mass.

P h o n e — 61
E.

Route 20
Palmer, Mass.

ALLEN

Killingly,

GEORGE

PEARSON

Lynnfield

Distributor

P h o n e — Danielson

Mass.

P h o n e — 5-6370
Summer

Springs,
ERNEST

2618

Worcester,

M . B.
Mass.

R. R. RIDDLE

A

CHARLES
N. H.

G.

HAYES
Phone

G E O R G E J. C O O P E R
Kennebunkport, Maine
Phone
DEMONSTRATION

Conn.
Conn.

plants cannot grow. In some soils a
sufficiency of calcium exists for the actual nutrient requirements of the plant,
but in other soils, lime must be added
for good plant growth. With the application of lime, heavy soils are made
more open and friable. Drainage is increased, the land is drier and warmer
and a good tilth more readily secured.
Baking and cracking in summer is much
reduced.
Fourth

Pillar

Micro-organisms—the teeming population of the soil.
Fermentation and decay, those profound scavenging operations in nature,
which keep the earth sanitary and concurrently provide indispensable soluble
plant food for crop nutrition are the resultant activity of the soil micro-organisms. Not all of the soil organisms are
beneficial. Many are distinctly injurious
to plant growth, and some are parasitic,
causing disease.
The practical problem of the greenkeeper is to maintain soil conditions
which are most favorable to the growth
of the desirable types and to bear in
mind the importance of soil organisms
as an influence on soil fertility. All his
cultural operations remarkably influence
the number and kind of bacteria in the
soil. Bad conditions upset the bacterial
balance, encouraging injurious forms
and siippressing desirable types.
The influence of moisture, air and
soil acidity determine whether the bacteria will be beneficial or detrimental
to good plant growth.
William Mitchell,
Onondaga Golf and Country Club,
Fayetteville, N. Y.
OUR ADVERTISERS SAY
"Several years back, the McClain line
of golf course products was sponsored
and brought to our attention by the New
England Toro Company up at West
OFFICERS'
President
Secretary
Treasurer
Chairman,
Chairman,
Chairman,
Chairman,
Chairman,

Newton. The place for a McClain Sprayer (sometimes more than 1) was easily
demonstrated and is attested to by the
f a c t that several hundred of our New
England courses use this sprayer. It
certainly comes in handy during the
Brown Patch season, being so easy to
use and so readily transported f r o m
green to green.
Veg-E-Tonic is now in widespread use
as a fertilizer; also, Fungol prepared by
McClain Brothers Company as a fungicide for Brown Patch has been improved
for this season. Not only has it been
improved, but the price has dropped considerably, which, as we all know, is quite
an achievement. By the way, have you
ever tried out McClain's Shower Nozzle?
If you haven't, you're missing a slick
article.
New England Toro Company reports
that they are receiving many calls this
season for their Pony Power Putting
Green Mower which is the regular old
standby hand outfit plus the conversion
unit. Next time you're up West Newton
way, drop in and take a look at this neat
little outfit for the greens. This season,
you can get the Pony Green Mower with
the complete traction drive if you wish
it this way.
We hear that the New 1940 TORO
Super Fairway Mower is going over in a
big way—they've really got something
there.
If you need anything in the way of
equipment or supplies for your course,
the TORO outfit has it right ready for
you."
The improved strains of velvet bent
grass are f a r superior to ordinary seed
of this species. Both RARITAN and
EMERALD are more resistant to disease
and capable of producing healthy, durable turf on a wide range of soils. None
of the velvet bent strains thrive on soggy
soils that are poorly aerated. Because
of the large number of seeds per pound,
two (2) pounds per 1000 square feet is
ample in seeding new greens. Very
shallow planting is essential.
DIRECTORY

John Corniseli, 5 Ellsworth Rd., Peabody,
Philip Cassidy, Needham Golf Club, Needham,
Frank Wilson, Charles River C. C., Newton Centre,
Enter. Comm
N. Sperandio, 90 Brinsmead St., Marlboro,
Golf Comm
Paul Hayden, 81 Orange St., Waltham,
Welfare Comm
Lloyd Stott, Meadowbrook G. C., Reading,
Employ. Comm. . . Arthur Anderson, 358 Fuller St., West Newton,
Trustees
Paul C. Wanberg, 17 Eddy St., Waltham,

Mass.
Mass.
Mass.
Mass.
Mass.
Mass.
Mass.
Mass.

jh

N o r t h , South, East or West, W o r t h i n g t o i i
Mowing and Maintenance Equipment
gives you a better golf course at less cost

Worthington
Go!f
Chief,
with
Gang-Mowers
detached, in action at t h e
new golf course, Capilano
Estates, West Vancouver,
B. C.

A Worthington
G o l f
C h
Worthington
Gang
Mowers
your
problems
of
mowing
r o u g h a n d f a c e s of b u n k e r s
Worthington
Cutting
Units
smoother
operation,
longer
greater economy.

i e f
with
solves
all
fairways,
and traps.
give
you
life
and

F r o m t h e g r e e n k e e p e r s ' andl o p e r a t o r s '
v i e w p o i n t s , t h e r e is l e s s
fussing
and
trouble with Worthington Cutting Units
and Gang Mowers.
The general
design
is
simplicity
itself,
its
construction
s t r o n g a n d s t u r d y to give y e a r s of service, a n d a b e a u t i f u l c u t u n d e r all c o n ditions with a cutting range up to
4
i n c h e s . T h e g r o u n d w e i g h t of e a c h u n i t
is 2 2 3 p o u n d s .
T h e n e w W o r t h i n g t o n Sickle B a r has
a r a n g e of c u t 9 0 ° a b o v e t o 5 0 ° b e l o w
horizontal
(it can be altered
at
the
factory to cut 90° below horizontal for
unusual service).
This flexibility saves

C. M . S A W T E L L E
New England Distributor
2 Walker Terrace
Cambridge,
T e l e p h o n e : T r o w b r i d g e 7491

Special

Worthington
Mower Company,
STROUDSBURG o PENNSYLVANIA
Sales Agencies: All Printipaf Cities

ents,

ycu hours of hand scythe work.
The
a u t o m a t i c s a f e t y slip
clutch
prevents
b r e a k a g e of knives or guards on driving
mechanism,
should
the
knife
become
clogged by any obstacle.
The
safety
s w i n g - b a c k f e a t u r e is e n t i r e l y a u t o m a t i c .
T h e cutting bar swings back f r e e l y on
e n c o u n t e r i n g an o b s t r u c t i o n and r e t u r n s
t o n o r m a l p o s i t i o n w h e n t h e t r a c t o r is
backed away. Thousands of golf course
superintendents here and abroad
rely
cn W o r t h i n g t o n e q u i p m e n t to g i v e their
members better playing conditions. Send
f o r the n e w and f u l l y illustrated W o r t h ington Golf Course Catalogue showing
h o w you, too, can do a b e t t e r m o w i n g
and m a i n t e n a n c e j o b at t r e m e n d o u s savings in t i m e , m o n e y and m a n - p o w e r .

notice

to

chairmen

of

southern
greens

golf

course

committees

Mass.

superintendand

park

superintendents:

There will be a complete demonstration of Worthington equipment at the Druid Hills Country Club,
Atlanta, Georgia—on April 15—Rain or Shine—
come and learn f o r yourself how Worthington can
help you and save money a t the same time.

W e A r e Distributors for

ALL M c C L A I N C H E M I C A L S A N D E Q U I P M E N T
Fungol
SAFE, POWERFUL TURF FUNGICIDE A N D VERMICIDE
F u n g o l is a g r e a t p r e v e n t a t i v e a n d c o n t r o l o f b o t h L a r g e a n d
Small Browri Patch.
W o r k s f a s t a n d h a s e x c e p t i o n a l soil r e t e n t i o n
properties.
G r e a t c o v e r i n g c a p a c i t y of F u n g o l m a k e s it t h e m o s t e c o n o m i c a l
f u n g i c i d e y o u c a n b u y — 2 0 0 0 t o 3000 s q . f t . o f G r e e n t o t h e p o u n d .
By using F u n g o l u n d e r r e g u l a r scheduled a p p l i c a t i o n s y o u need
not purchase e x t r a c h e m i c a l s f o r e r a d i c a t i o n of Soil
Vermin—earthw o r m s , sod w e b w o r m s , c u t w o r m s , grubs, beetles, snails, etc.
Ask f o r free testing sample a n d iiterature.

Veg-E-Tonic
N i t r o g e n 21% — P h o s p h o r i c A c i d 13% — P o t a s h 10%
T H E COOL FOOD FOR PUTTING
GREENS
More Golf Courses a r e using V e g - E - T o n i c every
y e a r because i t is w h o l l y soluble, c l e a n ,
odorless
?nd leaves no residue on Greens.
V e g - E - T c n i c c o n t a i n s no useless f i l l e r s a n d e v e r y p o u n d is f u l l
15 o u n c e s o f t o p r a t e d c h e m i c a l g r a s s f o o d .
__
T h e r e is no w a s t e of a n y k i n d i n V e g - E - T o n i c .
This cuts
down
handling, drayage, storage, and makes application easier.
P a c k e d in 100-pound sealed, a i r t i g h t d r u m s . W r i t e f o r free sample.

KlenZip
REMARKABLE
GOLF BALL
CLEANER
K l e n Z i p is t h e n e w e s t d e v e l o p m e n t in Golf B a l l w a s h i n g c o m pounds.
C o n t a i n s no soap, acids or alkali to i n j u r e p a i n t on balls.
J u s t m i x a s m a l l q u a n t i t y of p o w d e r e d K l e n Z i p in w a t e r a n d fill
Ball W a s h e r s regularly as needed.
K l e n Z i p is c l e a n a n d odorless a n d does n o t c u r d l e n o r b e c o m e
rancid f r o m c o n t i n u e d usage.
K l e n Z i p leaves no f i l m o n balls t o soil hands o r c l o t h i n g .
H i g h c l e a n i n g properties of K l e n Z i p m a k e it t h e most e c o n o m i cal ball w a s h i n g c o m p o u n d n o w on t h e m a r k e t .
Free samples a n d special literature upon request.

McCIain
Spiker and Perforator
CULTIVATE A N D AERATE
YOUR
PUTTING
GREENS
B e t t e r f e r t i l i z a t i o n a n d less f u n g i — cides a r e t w o of t h e m o r e i m p o r t a n t
results.
Opening
u p t h e soil
with
m i l l i o n s of holes by t h e long, s m o o t h , r o u n d spikes p r o duces aeration
of t h e t u r f , a n d better
application
of
water a n d top dressings.
Oxygen around
roots
gives
healthier a n d stronger grass.
U n b r e a k a b l e steel spikes, bronze a n d roller bearings, a l e m i t e oiling a n d pressures p r i n g g r e a s e r e t a i n e r s . W e i g h t 220 p o u n d s .
E x t r a weights supplied w i t h each machine.
Make your P u t t i n g Green equipment more complete w i t h a McCIain Spiker.

McCIain H y d r o - M i x e r s
FOR RAPID
P o p u l a r i t y of t h e
constantly increasing.

TREATING A N D FERTILIZING
Hydro-Mixer
Outfit for applying

PUTTING
Fungicides

GREENS
and Fertilizers

is

H u n d r e d s of O u t f i t s n o w i n use.
Successful e v e r y w h e r e because of
its s i m p l i c i t y , l o w cost a n d opera t i n g speed.
Nothing
approaches
this
equipment
for rapid, uniform
a n d efficient
spraying
of
P u t t i n g Greens.
When
attached
to h y d r a n t of
your w a t e r system, Greens m a y
l*e t r e a t e d o r f e r t i l i z e d i n 10 t o
15 m i n u t e s .
W o r k s on a n y w a t e r
pressure.
M a y be h a d f o r e i t h e r h a n d o r
power operation.

N E W E N G L A N D TOMO CO.
WEST NEWTON,

MASS.