•MANY

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ACCOMPLISHMENT,"

JANUARY
1 Si 1 0

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.
G U Y C. W E S T

Editor

Clark RcL, Barring-ton, R. I.

GEORGE J. R O M M E L L , JR.
Business Mgr.
54 Eddy St., W e s t Newton, Mass.

January, 1940

Vol. 12, No. 1

Contributing Editors
Homer Darling
R. A. Mitchell
Howard Farrant
Charles Parker
Frank 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.

A V E R Y H A P P Y N E W Y E A R TO
Y O U . . . . How's the Winter work coming? . . . There's plenty to do if the
budget will allow it
Get your
equipment in shape now before the season starts. . . . Now is the time f o r the
Short Courses. . . . The T w e l f t h Annual
One-Week Course in Turf Management
will be held at Rutgers on Feb. 19 - 23.
. . . . These Short Courses do not make
greenkeepers, but they do make good
greenkeepers much better, how much
better will depend on the individual.
. . . . Congratulations to Pres. Jack
Counsell on his re-election. . . . Headquarters of the newly organized Connecticut Toro Company, with Philip K y lander as manager, are 77 Wellington
St., Hartford, Conn. . . . It was too bad
if you missed the fellowship and fine
entertainment, not to mention the reports of officers and committees at the
annual meeting. . . . Bouquets to Sam
Mitchell and his hard working Entertainment Committee. . . . A r e you going
to the N e w York Convention and Conference next month?
The dates are
Feb. 6, 7, 8 and 9, and it is to be held
-at the Hotel New Yorker. . . . Congratulations indeed to Mr. Harold Pierce of
The Country Club, recently
elected
President of the United States Golf Association. Mr. Pierce is well known to
most of us as not only a vice president
and treasurer of the U. S. G. A. the past

f e w years, but also as green committee
chairman at the Country Club f o r the
past several years, and a frequent
visitor and speaker at our meetings
Winter sports are now in f u l l swing at
most of the country clubs of this area.
. . . . W e are hoping f o r big things f o r
the N E W S L E T T E R in 1940. A r e you
planning to do your part?

W e have been greatly inconvenienced
in editing this issue by the f a c t that
copy f o r one advertisement and two
main articles were lost in the mail enroute to the printer. W e hope to secure
copies of the articles f o r the next issue.
So, please blame Uncle Sam f o r the
f e w days delay!

ANNUAL

MEETING

The regular annual meeting was held
at the Hotel Bradford, Boston, on January 8th. Dinner was followed by the
regular business meeting, at which officers and committees reported on their
activities f o r the year. Officers elected
f o r 1940 are:
President:
John L. Counsell
1st Vice President:
Homer C. Darling
2nd Vice President:
Arthur Anderson
3rd Vice President:
Samuel S. Mitchell
Secretary :
Philip I. Cassidy
Treasurer :
Frank H. Wilson
Trustee 3 years:
Howard D. Farrant
Trustee 2 years:
Lloyd G. Stott
Entertainment Committee Chairman :
N. J. Sperandio
Golf Committee Chairman:
Paul F. Hayden
Auditing Committee :
Joseph Oldfield
Edward Hanson
Following the business meeting, a fine
entertainment was presented under the
direction of Cleon B. White, formerly
of Keith Circuit.

v

PRESIDENT'S

REPORT

January 8, 1940.
T o the Members of the Greenkeepers'
Club of New England:
It is customary at this time f o r your
President to review the events and activities of our Club during the past year.
A year ago most of us were busy
cleaning up the damage caused by the
hurricane and there are still a large
number of golf courses where this work
is not completed.
On February 25th the 15th Anniversary of the Greenkeepers' Club of New
England was celebrated with a Ladies'
Night Program at the Ashmont Country
Club.- The Past Presidents of the Club
were presented with suitably engraved
gavels in appreciation of their services
while in office.
A t the Annual Recreational Conference held at Amherst last March the
Club was represented by three of our
members taking part in the speaking
program.
During the latter part of March our
Club with the cooperation of the Waltham Field Station presented a series of
evening classes in greenkeeping that was
a decided success.
Our Constitution and By-Laws were
discussed quite thoroughly at several of
our meetings and a number of amendments were voted.
The annual dinner meeting of the
Service Section of the Massachusetts
Golf Association and the Greenkeepers'
Club of New England was held at the
Brae Burn Country Club in April.
A t our outdoor meetings we had the
privilege of playing some very fine golf
courses and we appreciate the courtesies
extended to us by the officials of those
clubs.
I would like to see our organization
receive more of the right kind of publicity in the future. W e should make ail
earnest and sincere effort to sell ourselves and our club so that the golfing
public will become conscious of the fact
that we are organized to educate the
greenkeeper, advance greenkeeping and
provide improved playing conditions on
the golf course. L e t us be cooperative
and progressive and discharge our duties
to the best of our ability. W e should
equip ourselves f r o m every angle to deal
with our employer's requirements—golf

clubs are interested in a greenkeeper
only in proportion to what he can produce or contribute to their work.
I would like to see more of our members take an active interest in the affairs
of our club. Let us cooperate with the
Editor of the Newsletter and provide
him with some interesting articles.
W e suffered a great loss this past
year in the death of Dennis Crowley.
Mr. Crowley, one of our old members,
was known and respected as a capable
greenkeeper and a gentleman.
In conclusion I wish to thank the directors, all committees and fellow members f o r their cooperation and support
during the past year.
Please accept my thanks f o r the honor
and the privilege of serving as your
president.
Respectfully submitted,
J O H N L. C O U N S E L L ,
President.

We appreciate greatly having the f o l lowing statement f r o m President Harold
W. Pierce of the United States Golf
Association. Believing as we do that all
golf clubs in the United States should
belong to the U. S. G. A., we are glad
to be of what service we can in passing
the good word along, in any endeavor
to boost the U. S. G. A. membership.
" T h e r e are approximately 2400 regularly organized golf clubs in this country, of which only 822 belong to our
Association which at the rate of $30
per year returns us $24,660. W e are
this year allotting our Green Section
work $27,300, f r o m which figure you
can see if it were not f o r the income
f r o m our tournaments we would not be
able to do it, especially as it costs us
about $18,000 to run our N e w Y o r k
Office.
" I do not know how many regularly
organized clubs there are in N e w England, but in these states we have the
following membership:
Maine
'
N e w Hampshire
Vermont
Massachusetts
Rhode Island
Connecticut

5
7
2
73
9
22

"Last year thirteen
Massachusetts
clubs resigned f r o m our Association due
to the fact that the Massachusetts Golf
Association removed the requirement
that a club to be a member of their
Association must also be a member of
the U. S. G. A .
" I f on the basis of 100 members per
club the cost per member would be only
30 cents or the price of two packages of
cigarettes or one cocktail. I think the
reason that most clubs do not belong to
our Association is because they do not
realize the tremendous amount of work
we do f o r them; that our entire Executive Committee is unpaid and that it
costs each individual a great deal of
money each year to serve.
Furthermore, if there was not a governing body
what would happen in the Tri-State
matches between Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island if the balls, clubs
and the rules were not regulated. Of
course it would be a chaotic condition.
" N o w , I think what your organization
can do is to take this data and the data
in the memorandum which I am having
sent to you f r o m New York and get it
across to each one of your members
and try to get him to get more member
clubs f o r our Association.
In other
words, if we can not get more member
clubs, and if our income f r o m tournaments should fall off materially, the
Green Section appropriation certainly
will have to be cut down.
" I feel strongly that the U. S. G. A .
alone can not sell itself to non-member
clubs and to the public without the help
of everybody which includes organizations similar to yours and the Press."

THE UNITED STATES
ASSOCIATION

GOLF

In 1894 there were two
so-called
"Amateur Golf Championships of the
United States," one conducted by the
Newport Golf Club of Newport, R. I.,
at stroke play, the other by the St.
Andrew's Golf Club of Yonkers, N. Y.,
at
match
play.
Different
winners
emerged.
To avoid similar confusion in future,
and to make the game of golf uniform
and regulate it in all aspects so as to
promote better the spirit it represents,
five clubs with mutual interests united
in December of 1894 to f o r m a national
association.

Although more than forty-five years
have wrought growth and amazing outward change in the game, the impulses
f e l t in 1894 have remained constant.
The reason f o r the existence of the
United States Golf Association still is
the need f o r a national governing body.
The purpose of the Association still is
to promote the fair play and sportsmanship which golf calls forth in those who
play the game.
The Association, as trustee f o r the
member clubs which compose it and f o r
golf generally, endeavors to fulfill its
purpose, first, by forming and administering uniform and equitable rules f o r
playing the game, f o r amateur and professional status, f o r determining par, f o r
implements and the ball, and f o r every
other factor in which uniformity is desirable. The Association interprets those
rules and gives information and advice
on many other subjects to those who inquire.
It collaborates with governing
bodies of other nations so as to keep the
game the same the world over.
Secondly, the Association conducts
four Championships annually,
Open,
Amateur, Women's Amateur and Amateur Public Links; assists in conducting
the National Collegiate Championship,
and sponsors two international team
competitions biennially, the Walker Cup
Match (in cooperation with The Royal
and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews,
Scotland) and the Curtis Cup Match
(in cooperation with the Ladies' Golf
Union, a British organization). Qualified members of clubs belonging to the
Association are eligible f o r the Cup
teams and f o r the Amateur and the
Women's Amateur Championships. The
four Championships draw players f r o m
all sections of the country into fellowship and understanding.
The international competitions likewise strengthen
ties, confirming the friendship of nations. All these events are natural and
wholesome outlets f o r man's competitive
urge. They provide splendid sport, leaders to look up to, incentives to strive
f o r goals. They develop in the contestants self-reliance, self-control and consideration f o r others—qualities of sportsmanship which make good citizens. Those
qualities are as evident in the littleskilled player as in the champion, and
so are constantly at work in the world.
Thirdly, the Association serves golf
through its Green Section, which f o r
many years has engaged in scientific
work in turf maintenance. Its discov-

5

NEWSLETTER
eries have been of value to all golf
courses and are in every-day use. In
the thirteen fiscal years from 1927 to
1939, inclusive, the Association’s net dis­

I
I
i
I

Gre e n Se cti on
Re c e ip ts

Fiscal
Year

U . S . G . A . Du es

1927
1928
1929
1930
1931
1932
1933
1934
1935
1936
1937
1938
1939
Totals

$ 29,450.00 $ 3,627.53
3,565.19
31,350.00
3,885.79
32,130.00
3,265.44
32,520.00
31,770.00
1,802.68
26,685.00
2,695.63
23,085.00
3,098.32
21,760.00
2,410.83
1,775.04
21,455.00
23,295.00
1,516.99
23,175.00
1,182.77
22,740.00
1,215.12
24,030.00
1,854.81
$343,445.00 $31,896.14

Results of most of the Green Section’s
experiments to the end of 1933 were
published in “The Bulletin”, whose
thirteen volumes constitute a valuable
reference work on tu rf culture and
copies of which still are available.
Now the Green Section issues a serial
publication entitled “Turf Culture” ,
through which information derived from
current research is circulated among the
membership of the Association. In addi­
tion, the Green Section gives advisory
service on any particular m atter to any
member club that inquires, as, for example, regarding seed, fertilizer, or
specific turf disease. The Green Section
has available a large fund of inform a­
tion which it distributes impartially. It
is free from commercial connection and
its opinions are unbiased. The Green
Section’s educational work has raised
the standards of greenkeeping through­
out the country and has helped clubs to
increase the efficiency of expenditures.
This has had a fortunate effect on the
quality of golf courses and on individual
dues and playing charges, which now
are more nearly in accord than form erly
with the spirit which fathered golf in its
Scottish cradles.
There are several points of similarity
between the United States Golf Asso­
ciation and an individual club. The As­
sociation’s officers and Executive Com­
mittee serve voluntarily, for love of the
game, and defray their own expenses to

bursements for Green Section activity
represented 91.22 per cent, of total
revenue from membership dues, as the
following statem ent shows:
Gr e e n Sec tio n
Disbursements
Gross

Gr ee n Se ction
D is b u r s e m e n t s
Net

$ 24,301.14 $ 20,673.61
27,099.41
23,534.22
32,993.47
36,879.26
38,653.14
41,918.58
45,230.14
47,032.82
37,449.36
34,753.73
26,255.81
29,354.13
14,396.45
11,985.62
12,864.41
11,089.37
14,935.19
13,418.20
15,977.04
14,794.27
17,693.00
16,477.88
23,452.85
25,307.66
$345,208.45 $313,312.31

Percentage
N et D isburse­
m e n t to D ues

70.2
75.1
102.7
118.8
142.3
130.2
113.7
55.1
51.7
57.6
63.8
72.4
97.6
91.22

Championships and Committee meetings.
The aim of the Association, like that of
clubs, is service, not profit-making. The
interests of clubs and the Association
dovetail, as is natural since the member
clubs are the Association.
Every regularly organized club is
eligible for membership.
Every club has benefited from the As­
sociation’s services, whether consciously
or not, from the administration of rules
by which the game is played on through
to the Green Section’s counsel. It is
hoped that every club will claim its place
in golf’s national government and active­
ly cooperate with the Association.
From the fact and the character of
its own organization, every club recog­
nizes the need for a national organiza­
tion to govern golf, and to promote and
conserve the game’s best interests and
the true spirit of fair play.
Mother— “Which of the naughty boys
hit you?”
Sonny— “The one with the cut lip
and black eye.”
— “E x.”
Student— “W hat’s the idea of wear­
ing my raincoat?”
Roommate— “You wouldn’t want your
new spring suit to get soaking wet,
would you?”

NEWSLETTER

6

Did you know that the Greenkeeping Superintendents Society had recently
run a Qualifications Contest, in which members were asked to submit a set of
questions which would serve as an examination in greenkeeping, as a test of
fitness for membership? The winner is Robert L. Mitchell of the Edison Club,
Rexford, N. Y. and well known to our members as the son of Robert A., and
brother of Sam, Bill, and Henry.
We are pleased to reprint the Winning Questionnaire from the November
issue of the GREENKEEPERS’ REPORTER.
THE W INNING QUESTIONNAIRE

by Robert L. Mitchell — Edison Club, Rexford, N. Y.

QUESTION 1.

a-—List six of the cheipicaj. elements necessary for plant growth,
b— What are the three eleriients that most soils are deficient in?
c— Tell briefly how a plant gets its food from the soil,
d— What things or conditions besides chemicals are necessary for plant growth?
QUESTION 2.
a— Describe the ideal soil for putting greens,
b— What effect would the addition of each of the following have to a soil:
clay, sand, organic m atter?
c— Explain the meaning of pH when used in reference to a soil,
d— Of what value are rapid method soil tests to a greenkeeper?
QUESTION 3.
a— What does the term “a complete fertilizer” mean?
b— W hat is the difference between organic and inorganic fertilizers?
c— Name six common materials used as fertilizer— tell whether each is
organic or inorganic, what plant food each contains and the approximate
percentage of each plant food.
QUESTION 4.
a— What effect on tu rf would a poorly drained soil have?
b— W hat advantage does the use of tile for drainage have over the use of
open ditches?
c— Give the approximate depth, spacing, grade and size of tile to use in
drainage work.
d— Describe three conditions that call for tile drains.
QUESTION 5.
List six varieties of grass commonly used on golf courses. Tell what section
of the course they are suited to, what kind of soil they prefer, and as
light, medium or heavy their fertilizer and their w ater requirements.
QUESTION 6.
a— Name three common diseases of turf and briefly describe their appearance,
tell what causes them, and give the methods of controlling them,
b— Name three insects or animals that injure tu rf— describe the injury and
give the methods of controlling them,
c— Name four weeds that are troublesome in tu rf— tell in what part of the
course they are most troublesome, and give the methods of controlling
them.
QUESTION 7.
a— What are the reasons that you topdress greens?
b— What methods and materials do you use in preparing compost for topdessing?
c— What are the advantages and the disadvantages of sterilizing compost?
QUESTION 8.
a— Approximately how often and at what rates should fairways be fertilized?
b— What are the advantages and the disadvantages of a fairway watering
system?
QUESTION 9.
W rite, briefly as possible, an outline of greens maintenance for an entire year.
QUESTION 10.
List the m ajor equipment needed for an 18-hole golf course.

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LEO

A.

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Manager

NEWSLETTER

8
QUESTION 11.

a— How many men are needed (approximately) for an 18-hole golf course?
b— Show approximately how the jobs on the course would be divided among
these men.
QUESTION 12.
If called to a strange course to diagnose trouble they were having with their
turf, tell how you would determine what the trouble might be.
QUESTION 13.
a— List six trees suitable for planting on a golf course and tell the kind of
soil they prefer.
b— List six flowers suitable for cut flowers and tell the kind of soil they prefer.
QUESTION 14.
a— Should a greenkeeper keep cost accounts? Why?
b— Should a greenkeeper make w ritten reports to his chairman? Why?
QUESTION 15.
a— What are the duties of a greenkeeper?
b— W hat are the duties of a greens committee chairman?
LANDSCAPE WORK ON A GOLF
COURSE

(A W inter School for Greenkeepers
Paper)
The main attraction of a golf course
is its appearance. When a person gets
through work, he likes to leave his office
and go out to see nature’s work. The
landscape work on a golf course con­
sists mainly of trees and shrubbery. In
order t6 plant trees and shrubbery,
there are a few rules one must go by
in order to arrange them as nature does.
First, the trees must grow together
naturally; that is, require the same soil
condition and be adapted to local con­
ditions. You should attend more to
groups than to individuals. The m ajority
must harmonize, especially in groups as
to color, form, texture, and habit of
growth. In small groups the center
should be the highest. In a group of
three trees two of them should be the
same and planted close together. You
should not arrange three trees of differ­
ent heights so that their tops form in
ascending line, and be sure to always
put your striking trees in the center of
your group. You should consider the
whole as a plantation, not as a collection
of plants.
There are many different kinds of
trees you can plant on your golf course.
The following are a list of trees that
can be used. First, the maple trees.
The reason I named maple trees is be­
cause of their beautiful color in the fall.
There are seventy species in North
America which range from small shrubs
to a tree one hundred and twenty feet
high. The most common ones are:—
silver maple, red maple, Norway maple,
and sugar maple. These trees prefer a

moist rich soil. The birch trees are very
attractive to have on a golf course.
There are four different kinds of birches.
Another attractive tree is the flowering
dogwood. There are two types — the
white dogwood and the red dogwood.
One of the most prominent trees on a
golf course today is the evergreen.
Some of the most common evergreens
are— the white fur, Nikko fur, red fir,
white spruce, Norway spruce, and pines.
These trees will grow in almost any soil
but prefer rich, moist soil.
Top Grafting of Trees on Golf Courses
When may top grafting be done?
Top grafting should be done about
the time growth starts in the spring.
There is a period of perhaps a month
when it may be done with good chances
of success, although the scions will be
in best condition and will suffer less
from drying if the operation is com­
pleted just about the time the buds are
beginning to open.
Planning the new top:
When doing a job of top grafting, a
person should try to visualize the tree
as it will appear when the new top is
complete. Often it is possible to de­
velop a tree of better framework than
the original by eliminating a few un­
necessary branches. In case the tree is
under five years of age the problem is
simple, for then it is often advisable to
graft in the trunk. In an older tree
there are likely to be too many main
branches.
If so, graft only part of them. Select
dominant branches, not secondary
branches. The tree may have a weak
crotch formation. That should be cor­
rected by eliminating part of the crotch
entirely. It is never advisable to graft
two limbs which are close together and

9

NEWSLETTER
growing in the same direction. Also it
is desirable that the leader be grafted
at a somewhat higher level, instead of
grafting all branches at the same level.
Grafting equipment:
Successful top grafting presupposes
good equipment. First of all good wax
must be used. Two kinds are described
below. Necessary tools include a sharp
knife, hand saw, pruning shears, g raft­
ing chisel, mallet, small hammer, and
No. 20 gauge nails. For liquid wax, a
grafting pot and brush should be pro­
vided.
Soft Wax:
An excellent grade of wax for top
grafting may be made by heating to­
gether four pounds of rosin, two pounds
bees-wax, and one pint linseed oil.
When thoroughly dissolved, pour care­
fully into a pail of w ater and when cool
enough, pull like taffy. Store in oiled
paper in a cool place. This wax has the
advantage of being easy to apply and,
if a few drops of linseed oil are used to
grease the hands, will not stick to the
fingers. On cold days the wax may be
kept soft by placing in a pail of warm
water. It has some tendency to run
when the weather becomes warm, which
necessitates looking over the g raft once
or twice during the summer and re­
waxing if necessary or covering with
cloth or paper.
Liquid or Brush Wax:
Wax for use with a brush may be
made as follows: Melt together six
pounds rosin, one pound bees-wax, and
one pint linseed oil. A grafting pot is
required to keep this wax in liquid
form. Care must be taken to avoid
applying when too hot. If the tem pera­
ture is much above the melting point,
the cambium layer will be injured.
How To Prune
One general rule may be offered, ob­
servation of which would go toward
making a revolutionary improvement in
the pruning of shrubbery. This is to
prune at the bottom, not at the top.
Any young vigorous healthy shrub
keeps throwing up new shoots from the
base. But if each stool is left alone
year after year without thinning, the
time soon comes when there is no more
room for young sprouts; and since the
entire stool is shaded and choked by
the old stems, young growth ceases. If,
on the other hand, the oldest stems are
cut out bodily from time to time, their
places will be quickly filled by young
fresh shoots. In this way the entire plant
can be constantly renewed. The whole

help
W o o d r u f f , c o n s t a n t l y s t u d y in g and
a n a l y z i n g N e w E n g la n d soil and
g r o w i n g c o nd iti o ns , is r e a d y to
help Y O U g r o w b e t t e r t u r f . Y e a r s
of e x p e ri e n c e , plus t h e n e v e r - c e a s ­
ing e x p e r i m e n t s , both on t h e P r o v ­
ing G r o u n d s and in th e la b o r a t o r y ,
m a k e W o o d r u f f an a c k n o w le d g e d
e x p e r t on N e w E n g la n d t u r f . L e t
I W o o d r u f f d r a w on t h e i r v a s t e x ­
per ien ce and c o n t i n u o u s res ea rch
| for th e a n s w e r s to y o u r pr ob lem s.
Yo u w i ll not only lea rn how tc
g r o w b e t t e r t u r f , b u t how to car e
I f o r it m ost s a t i s f a c t o r i l y .
Let
W o o d r u f f help you. W r i t e t o d a y .
NEW

CRASS

D i s t r i b u t e d by
E N G L A N D T O R O CO.

SEED

DIVISION

h.WOOQRUFFI

AND
SONS
IN C.

mmmmmmm thf

sign of

co co seed *

mmmm

WINTER HARDY— ACCLIMATED
RHODE ISLAND
CREEPING
VELVET

K E\ T
GRASS
SEED
and F a irw a y M ixtures
of h igh est quality for lo we st price that
seed of equal quality can be offered.
N A T U R E H A S W R IT T E N A P R E ­
SC RIPTIO N for vour course. R ight
here in southern N ew E ngland is the
natural hom e of the entire fam ily of
the B ent grasses, the principal m em ber
of w hich, nam ely R. I. B ent, derived
its nam e from this, the sm allest sta te
in the union.
You can grow N A T U R E ’S OW N IN ­
SU R A N C E into your turf by using
F R E SH , V IA B E E seed w hich grow s in
YOUR latitude in YOUR country.
S A V E for your club:
B uy your seed
direct from the grower.
A . N. PECKHAM

KINGSTON

RHODE ISLAND

10

NEWSLETTER

shrub thus remains indefinitely young,
clean, and thrifty, whereas by common
method of pruning at the top the shrub
soon becomes old, decrepit, leggy and
unattractive, with a maximum of old
gnarled wood bearing a minimum of
flowers and foliage.
At each annual pruning, therefore,
one should remove the oldest stems, and
these should be cut out clean down to
the level of the ground, or as nearly to
that point as possible. From one-fifth
to one-third of the entire shrub should
usually be taken out each year.
The customary style of pruning, con­
sisting of snipping off the tips of all
branches and making each shrub look
like a boy’s hair cut pompadour, is bad
horticulture and bad landscape garden­
ing. It should be practiced only on
hedges or on formal shrubs like the
evergreen boxes.
Pruning Time and Tools
Shrubs of most species may be
pruned with excellent results either in
midsummer or early spring. If the
summer is to be chosen, the work should
be done soon after the year’s growth
is completed, and this point is reached
earlier than most persons think. Usually,
June 15 or July 15 may be taken as
the most favorable time for summer
pruning.
Most persons, however, and especially
those who are not expert horticul­
turists, will find winter pruning safer.
Moreover, it is a commoner practice.
A popular mistake consists of de­
laying this pruning until too late in the
season. It is looked upon as a spring
operation, when instead it should be
assigned to the winter. Pruning may be
safely done at any time during an open
winter, but usually February is the best
month. Should the weather be severe
during February, the work may be car­
ried over into March. As soon as the
snow begins to disappear, and preferably
before it is all gone, during the very first
warm and sunny days, the annual prun­
ing should be given. Putting this work
off until the buds are bursting, the birds
singing, and spring activities are every­
where in full blast is dangerous to
every shrub, and may even be fatal.
A pair of ordinary hand pruning
shears is very useful in taking care of
shrubs and may possibly answer every
need. In a m ajority of cases, however,
a larger and much stronger tool will
prove more effective as well as easier
to operate. The best implement of this
kind is a large pair of two-hand shears

with short curved blades and with
handles about 2 V2 feet long. These are
much more powerful than the common
hand pruning shears and are capable of
cutting out the large old stems as
recommended below.
Kinds of Plants for Planting
The kinds of plants to use in any
planting are determined by the soil, ex­
posure, elevation, and climate of the
region.
Woody plants may be divided into
two main groups— deciduous and ever­
green. Decidous plants are those whose
leaves die on the approach of cold
weather; they grow practically every­
where and constitute the principal plant
growth in most parts of the country.
Evergreens are those holding their
leaves during the winter or until after
one or two new crops of leaves have
grown, thus affording an abundance of
green foliage throughout the year.
Often these leaves take the form of
slender needles of close scales, as, for
example in the cone-bearing trees that
we call coniferous evergreen, such as
pines, firs, and cedars. In contrast
there are those that have leaves with
a broad blade, spoken of as broadleaf
evergreens, such as American holly,
southern magnolia, mountain laurel,
rhododendrons, and gums or eucalypts.
Comparatively few evergreens can be
successfully grown in the dry parts of
the central and western United States
especially where unprotected by build­
ings or other trees, owing to the exces­
sive evaporation caused by dry winds.
There are some kinds, however, that
may be grown even under these severe
conditions. Primarily, evergreens are
plants of moist climates, the cone-bear­
ing trees being best adapted to the north
and the broadleaf palms thriving in dry,
hot regions.
Because of the demand of the foliage
for a continuous and abundant supply
of moisture on the part of the ever­
greens, both broad-leaf and coniferous,
the care required in moving them is
greater than in moving deciduous plants.
Taking care of tu rf is not the only
thing a greenkeeper should do. There
are many people who come out and play
on a golf course just to be out-of-doors.
With the help of landscaping, a greenkeeper can make the trees and grass on
his course look beautiful, thus pleasing
everybody.
Lloyd Russell,
Woodbridge Hills Country Club,
Woodbridge, Connecticut.

WORTHINGTON Mowing and Maintenance Equipment

Th e W o rth ing to n

G o lf C h ie f

1939’s lea di n g golf course t r a c t o r

All W orthington equipm ent is
sturdily built to give you years of
trouble-free service.
It is designed and m ade by
specialists in tu rf - conditioning
machinery.
Hundreds of golf course super­
intendents rep o rt operating sav­
ings that enabled W orthington
installations to pay fo r them selves
in a single season.
Investigate the W orthington
Golf Chief and M ulti-gang M ow­
ers, the O vergreen, the Scout

Hand Putting G reen M ower,
Dump Trucks and other m ain­
tenance accessories now, and
learn how you, too, can save your
club the w astefu l expenditure of
repairing w orn or obsolete m a­
chinery during the w inter by re ­
placing it w ith modern, efficient
W orthington equipment.
C. M. S A W T E L L E
N e w E n g la n d D i s t r i b u t o r
3 W a lk e r Terrace
Cam bridge,
T e le p h o n e : T r o w b r i d g e 7491

Mass.

iVear out and mail this coupon for handsome illustrated catalogue showing how you can give your
members a better course and save your greens committee money at the same time.

STROUDSBURG • PENNSYLVANIA
Sales Agencies: A ll Principa/ Cities

WORTHINGTON MOWER COMPANY
Stroudsburg, Pa., Dept. N L /Ja.
Please send catalogue on your equipment at no
obligation.
Name ...........................................................................................
Address
City
................................................ State ..................

Milorganize This Spring!!
Give your members those luxuriant, green, and thicklymatted fairways, greens, and tees they love to see and
play on. MILORGANITE will help you arrive at this de­
sirable combination.
Easy to apply, safe to use, MILORGANITE, the allorganic nitrogen fertilizer, is the leader when it comes to
use by golf courses. You know the excellent results from
past performance.
300 tons more MILORGANITE were used in New Eng­
land during 1939 than ever before.

PROTECTION
We are not attempting to rush or scare anyone into
placing orders now. However, we might say orders are
being accepted by us at present low prices. This will in­
sure you against any possible price increase as none of us
knows what might happen between now and spring.
Inquire for details on carload shipments.

New England Toro Co.

DISTRIBUTORS FOR NEW ENGLAND
1121 Washington Su West Newton — WESt New. 1658