-A/z / o Turf Times S ''■t'r f Mf -O0 *0ers’^5 The newsletter from the Northern Michigan Tkirf Managers Association , Bi-Monthly Update July/August Volume 34, No. 3 Senator’s Message This summer is going down in the weather books as one of the hottest on records for Northern Michigan. The U.P. is in the books not only as the hottest but driest ever. We can now call Drummond Island, Desert Island. Ever try growing grass on bedrock? You folks down state have been hogging every­ thing. Brother, send us some RAIN! Just looking at the trees and vegetation around here I think we could have an early fall, the upper leafs on the trees are all curled up, the ground cover is burned or plane dead. We just need mother nature to cool us off a bite before fall so everything can recover. We have gone from ice damage to drought. What a year for turf in Northern Michigan. Hope everyone is having as much fun as I am. If you didn’t make the meeting at “The Loon” you missed a good one. I want to thank Dave Bebble and his staff for letting us use there facilities for the day and also Dr Frank Rossi for taking time out of his schedule and plane flights to stop in and visit Northern Michigan. Can you imaging him and T yman in one room together eating dinner. Food would be flying every where. The way those two guys throw there hands around and who would get a word in edged wise? As summer is winding down so are the events for NMTMA. We are in Harbor Springs on September 13 @ True North Golf Club this event is the NMTMA annual fundraiser and Steve Sump will be our host su­ perintendent. We finish up the year in Lake Ann with the Tuck Tate Championship October 5 @ Mistwood Golf Course where Scott Adams will be our host superintendent. This is also the annual meeting where we try to elect new board members at this time and some old ones try to get re-elected. It is a pretty fierce battle up on stage in front of all the members. So we need some superintendents to run under the seats of Scott Pulaski, and Craig Hoffman whose term limits are up and cannot retain their seats. Hey how did Scott Pulaski get 6 years on the board and not become an Officer? As this is going to press, everyone should of gotten an e-mail on the Senate Hearings across the state that Tom Smith and I have been attending. I would also like to thank Andy Smith,from Smith Irrigation out of Boyne City who has been attending these meetings as President of Michigan Irrigation Association. I believe we have been well represented across the state on these issues and the Committee is listening. The NMTMA Board did a web cast on the State Association Aug 19 along with Greater Detroit, West­ ern, and Mid-Michigan. Dan has been so kind to post this info on the web for us and we have a good idea on what is happing. Enjoy the last days of summer and bring on the SNOW! The Rock Craig A Hoffman Director of Golf & Grounds Drummond Island Resort ' What ‘Type’ of Leader Are You? By Steve Princinsky Have you ever wondered why you can never seem to get along with certain employees or colleagues' In turn, have you ever considered how this personality conflict affects job performance (your and theirs) ’ thereby impacting the facility as a whole? Lack of communication and interpersonal conflict especially among management and employees has proven to negatively affect employee performance which over time begins to erode businesses’ profitability. For example, consider all the costs associated with employee turnover such as: hiring, training, and loss of productivity to name a few. We all know that experienced employees who understand your system and objectives are more effective and efficient than the revolving door of summer employees. This part-time help is needed for a variety of reasons, but most superintendents would acknowledge a sense of disappointment every August when that great college kid (who has worked for them for a few years) is graduating and will not be back the following summer. This feeling of disappointment comes from the knowledge that getting inexperienced employees up to speed on golf course operations is at best a hassle. It takes time, money, energy, and a lot of patience. What does this have to do with your ‘personality’, and how you manage/lead your employees? It is simple. Employee turnover may be reduced once you realize that some people are leaving for a reason other than ‘lousy pay’ or ‘bad hours’, and they simply do not like working with you. It may be hard to believe, since you are such a great person and everybody loves you, but the reality is certain personalities will naturally collide on a variety of fronts. In fact, many studies have shown that an employee’s relationship with their immediate supervisor has a greater impact on job satisfaction than compensation. So, when that employee tells you that they are leaving for ‘fill in the blank’ you can rest with the knowledge that for about 5 out of 10 people the real reason is you (5). It is just easier for most people to cite an alternate reason so as to avoid a negative confrontation, hurt feelings or embarrassment. Consider if you found a way to determine your personality or leadership ‘type’ and in tum how that type relates to everyone else, you may be able to improve your relationships with both employees and employers. A simple understanding of your leadership/management style will provide a better understandin* as to how you can communicate and motivate your staff more effectively and efficiently. This is one of the reasons personality testing has been gaining in popularity in recent years as some experts’ estimate approximately 40% of U.S. companies are currently using personality tests in some form or another and that number is expected to rise in the future (2). When looking at the Fortune 500 companies the percentage of companies using some form of personality testing is even higher, including 89 of the Top 100 (7). Determining Your Style The most common practice of determining your personality or leadership style is through a personality test. As companies struggle to become more competitive, many have started using personality tests in an effort to evaluate and place employees in the workplace. Personality testing or assessments seek to expose a person’s natural tendency or preferences in a variety of areas such as needs, attitudes, motivations, and behavior (2). The basic premise of measuring personality is that there is no right/wrong type of personality. Personality testing only seeks to evaluate an individual’s natural tendency and align those personality styles to specific rolls within an organization that would fit that person’s individual style. Types of Tests There are literally thousands of personality tests currently available on the market (2). This can be confusing and downright overwhelming. In order to get a handle on just what constitutes personality testing, it would be prudent to break them down into a manageable number. In general, personality tests can be divided into two main categories. One is the use of psychological profiles. These tests tend to focus on and attempt to discern general personality characteristics. For example, two of the more popular personality tests on the market today are the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBIT) and The “Big Five” Factor Model. The MBIT seeks to measure specific personal preferences based on four pairs of alternatives. These four pairs are: (a) extraverted or introverted, (b) sensing or intuitive, (c) thinking or feeling, and (d) judging or I perceiving. These combinations will produce up to 16 different types of personality preferences (4). The second type of widely used test and the one that is receiving considerable acceptance among research Page 2 professionals is based on a five-factor model. These five factors of personality, commonly called the ‘Big Five’ include: extraversion, emotional stability (neuroticism), agreeableness, conscientiousness, and openness to experience (1). These are only a couple of examples intended to provide you with an idea as to what traits these types of tests seek to measure. The other basic type of test seeks to measure a person’s integrity. These have a narrower focus and attempt to determine the trustworthiness of the test taker (6). Among the tools being used by organizations that wish to assess the integrity of their employees are employee references, interviews, questionnaires, simulation exercises and physiological methods (3). Personality Tests in the Work Place You will find that there are many ways in which to incorporate personality testing in the workplace, in terms of purpose and scope. However, in looking at the wide range of possibilities for implementation, they could be grouped into four distinct categories: hiring or selection, placement, training and creating self- awareness. Most superintendents and golf course facilities would find it both cost and time prohibitive to utilize widespread personality testing. The greatest benefit for superintendents may be found in creating a new self-awareness that can be used as an instrument to improve their own managerial/leadership methods. Information gained by these types of tests includes insight as to: personality type, social style, management style, and a person’s dominate style of thinking (5). This new found insight can help managers bring additional value to the organization through an understanding as to the differences that exist within the organization. Through an understanding and utilization of these differences, managers benefit an organization in a couple of key areas. First, knowledge about individual personality preferences will help personal interaction and collaboration. Second, managers will have a better idea as to what types of people are better suited working in teams, and what others are better suited working independently. Finally, they will be able to see the strengths and weaknesses of each particular style, and how they can leverage this information in order to create additional value for the organization. Once a manager realizes that problems are developing for no other reason than a conflict of styles, they will be in a better position to address the issue and find a solution instead of a new employee. If you would be interested in learning more about your leadership style, and gain insight into how you can add greater value to your organization, I would invite you to attend the educational seminar being held on November 9th in Mt. Pleasant. It is titled Effective Leadership - What’s Required in Today’s Environment and is instructed by Jeffrey Cufaude. In this interactive all day seminar you will: • Assess your own leadership/work style and learn how your style affects your interactions with others • Explore critical leadership concepts that will increase the likelihood of you being successful in the future; • Learn how individuals define value, what they consider to be meaningful experiences, and how both can be delivered. • Examine organizational building blocks for success including a strategic planning framework and other tools for enhancing your operations. This event is being co-sponsored by the NMTMA, WMGCSA, GDGCSA, and the Mid-Michigan Turf Association, in an effort to provide greater educational and professional development opportunities to then- memberships. References (1) Ash, R.A., & Stevens, C.D. (2001). Selecting employees for fit: personality and preferred managerial style. Journal of Managerial Issues, 13,500-518. (2) Bates, S. (2002). Personality counts. HR Magazine, 47, 2. (3) Fletcher, C. (1995). What means to assess integrity? People Management, 17, 30-32. (4) Kroeger, O., Rutledge, H. and Thuesen, J.M. (2002) Type talk at work. New York: Dell Publishing. (5) Lee, C. (1991). What’s you style. Training, 28, 27-34. (6) O Meara, D.P. (1994) Personality tests raise questions of legality and effectiveness. HR Magazine, 39, 97- 101. Page 3 Clean your pesticide storage area, get rid of old or unusable pesticides Grand Traverse Co. Clean Sweep Site will be holding a Clean Sweep Event. Saturday, September 24th. Appointments are required to drop off pesticides on this day. Any golf course in Northern Michigan may participate. There will be no fee for this service. Contact: Joanne Sommerfield at isommerf@grandtraverse.org or Call 231-995-6075 The recycling program is underway and we just want to say thank you for signing up and doing your part to help the environment by keeping plastic containers our of the landfills. We have already collected quite a large number of containers from golf courses and we couldn’t be more excited. To date we have over 250— 2.5 gallon containers, about 30 -30 & 55 gallon drums, and some 4 gallon containers. Keep up the good work. | Here are the main points that we need to remember about this program: 1. When you place an order, let Jennie or your sales rep from Turfgrass know that you have containers to be picked up. 2. Remove the lid and discard. 3. Remove the label-any loose paper or plastic. You do not have to scrape the glue off the container. 4. Make sure all pesticides are rinsed off the interior and exterior and lip of the container. 5. Turn the containers upside down in your storage area to get rid of any free water out of them 6. DO NOT crush the containers. They need to be inspected prior to going into the grinding machine. 7. 30 and 50 Gal. containers need to have the tops cut off and cleaned under the lip. A skill saw works great for this. 8. DO NOT hold your containers and wait until you have a bunch stored up. The grind date is September 12th and we need time and space for Turfgrass to pick them up. THE GRIND DATE IS SEPTEMBER 12, 2005 FOR ALL SMALL CONTAINERS. Another drop off date will be set in November for others! NMTMA Fundraiser September 13, 2005 True North Golf Club Register online @ nmtma.org Page 4 Items For Sale @ NMTMA.ORG (Ransome Deck Peerless 1000 Automatic Bedknife Varitime II Company: Lakes of the North Grinder Company: Chestnut Hills G.C. Description: 60" rear discharge mower deck, Company: Crystal Downs Country Club Description: taken off a 728D tractor. PTO driven. Missing Description: Main clock with 6 panels, (2 syringe)... front castor wheels. Automatic, pneumatic traverse with coolant Contact: D. Carter Contact: Scott Brown system ... Email: dcarterl @voyager.net Email: lnmaint@avci.net Contact: Mike Morris Phone: 231-889-4785 Phone: 231-585=6129 Email: mmorris@crystaldowns.org Phone: 231-352-4241 MILLER goldstar 600 ss welder I power Toro Core Pulverizer plant's 721 articulator Company: Little Traverse Bay Golf Course Company: Alpena golf club Company: Little Traverse Bay Golf Course Contact: Darin Brooks Description: Description: Email: darin@ltbaygolf.com We have (2) MILLER goldstar 600 ss welder/ pull behind articulator mower pto driven Phone: 231-526-9512 power plants for sale. 440 volt. One works, one $1,800.00 never tried. Purched from a plant auction cheep Contact: Darin Brooks and we don't... Email: darin @ltbaygolf.com Power Quint II Contact: Steve goike Phone: 231-526-9512 Company: Little Traverse Bay Golf Course Email: golfcoursemechanic@webtv.net Description: Phone: (989) 356-4298 5300-D Fairway mower 5-gang hydraulic lift, pto driven pull behind Company: Little Traverse Bay Golf Course Contact: Darin Brooks Rainbird Eagle 700 series Description: Email: darin@ltbaygolf.com Company: Eagle Glen Golf Course Toro 5300-D fairway unit, 2380 hours Phone: 231-526-9512 Description: $4,000.00 6 new Rainbird eagle 700's Contact: Darin Brooks Irrigation Supplies Complete bodies with heads Email: darin@ltbaygolf.com Company: Gaylord Country Club A little dirty but never used ... Phone: 231-526-9512 Description: Contact: Dudley Strauch - George Shephard 2 - 50hp pumps 6" cla-valve with al, the Email: dudleystrauch@yahoo.com Ideal Bedknife Grinder switches starters for the pumps all kinds of Phone: 1(989)588-6599 Company: Gaylord Country Club sure-flow fittings in different sizes too many to Description: list .. TurfCo Topdresser Good condition ... Contact: Paul Holmes Company: Crystal Mountain Contact: Paul Holmes Email: turfhead@core.com 1 Description: Email: turfhead@core.com Phone: 1-231-545-3233 Turfco ground driven topdresser. Phone: 1-231-546-3233 Contact: Adam Ikamas Toro Groundsmaster 455-D Email: adamikamas@crystalmountain.com Toro Groundsmaster 455-D Company: Crystal Mountain Phone: 231-378-2000 Ext.4501 Company: Crystal Mountain Description: Description: Three deck 455-D with 2,000 hours. Runs Foley Reel Grinder 455-D with 4,200 hours. Runs well and great and has been regularly serviced... Company: Gaylord Country Club has been serviced regularly .. Contact: Adam Ikamas Description: Contact: Adam Ikamas Email: Good condition ... Email: adamikamas @ crystalmountain .com Contact: Paul Holmes adamikamas@crystalmountain.com Phone: 231-378-2000 Ext.4501 Email: turfhead@core.com Phone: 231-378-2000 Ext.4501 Phone: 1-231-546-3233 Cushman truckster TORO 2670 leaf/debris blower Company: Missaukee golf glub Toro Greens Aerator Company: The Rogue Golf Club Description: Company: Crystal Mountain Blower fits 200&300 series three wheel cushman, air cooled with Description: groundsmasters excellent condition dump bed, top dresser and 120 gal 1997 Toro walk behind aerator. Very limited Contact: Andy Myers/Chrisw broyhil, sprayer use, has been in storage for the last four Fochtman Contact: mike kellogg years. Like new condition. Phone: 616-887-7182 Email: mkellogq @charter.net Contact: Adam Ikamas Phone: 231-825-2630 Email: adamikamas@crystalmountain.com Jacobsen Greensking IV Phone: 231-378-2000 Ext.4501 Jacobsen LF100 Fairway Mower Company: Fairview Hills Golf Club Description: Company: Fairview Hills Golf Club Items from Interlochen Golf Club Description: A used Greensking IV 2425 Hours ... (3) Jacobsen LF100 fairway Contact: Richard Stone A used LF100 Fairway Mower 2863 mowers $1,250.00 each or Best Offer Email: ricsto@yahoo.com Hours .. (3) Toro GM3 Triplex Mowers: $750.00 Phone: 989 8485810 (Clubhouse) Contact: Richard Stone each or Best Offer Email: ricsto@yahoo.com (1) Ransome 180 Trim Mower: $750.00 Phone: 989 848 5810 (clubhouse) or Best Offer. (1) Dedos Aerifier: Make Offer Page 5 USGA GREEN SECTION NORTH CENTRAL REGIONAL UPDATE When Less Is More By Bob Vavrek, Senior Agronomist Updated 8/15/05 The weather has moderated, finally, but the damage is already done to turf on greens across the upper Midwest after more than a month of exceptionally hot, humid conditions. Take-all patch, Pythium blight, and basal rot anthracnose are partly to blame for moderate to severe losses of creeping bentgrass and Poa annua. In some cases, damage occurred from what appears to be high temperature heat stress, with no signs of disease activity. Under these extreme conditions it’s often what you don’t do versus what you do that dictates the extent of turf injury. Don’ts Don’t topdress during hot weather and if you do, make sure it is applied during the early morning or evening and then only watered into the turf. Don’t brush in applications of topdressing - greens and collars at more than one course were damaged significantly by abrasive brushing operations. Don’t verticut, groom, or brush greens that are under severe heat stress. Don’t forget to check the greens for wilt during the early afternoon. Courses that judiciously hand watered greens and collars fared much better than courses that depended solely on automatic irrigation. Don’t apply herbicides for moss control or growth regulators for Poa annua control during periods of extreme heat stress. Several courses had their wishes granted and then some with respect to Poa control this summer. Don’t pass on any opportunity to improve the exchange of air and moisture into the upper root zone. Spiking, water injection, and small diameter solid or hollow tine aeration can improve growing conditions for turf when little of the root systems can be found more than a half-inch deep into the soil. Don’t forget to raise the height of cut and switch from grooved rollers to solid rollers when greens begin to thin out. I’ve never seen so many superintendents looking forward to the time when they aerate greens this fall. In the upper Midwest, aeration time coincides with mild days, cool nights, and little humidity. Leaves begin to change colors and the season is finally winding down.. .and it continues to be one of the most difficult seasons during the past 20 years or so for maintaining turf. Source: Bob Vavrek, ryayrek@us^a:pr^ or 262-797-8743 Page 6 Statewide Association or No Statewide Association! You Decide. On August 19, 2005, many board members from the NMTMA along with other board members from around the state gathered to hear a presentation from the committee to form a statewide superintendents association. The information was presented thru a web cast that the GCSAA set up so that everyone did not have to travel around the state. During this web cast, each member of the committee presented their information and during their presentation everyone involved could ask questions that arose. Believe me, many questions did arise. The question is not “Do we need a statewide association?”, it is “Will the statewide association be formed?” At the end of the session it was proposed that each association will vote at their annual meeting to determine if this is going to happen. If one association out of the four; Western, Greater Detroit, Mid-Michigan or NMTMA does not vote in favor of this, then the committee goes back to the drawing table to figure out what will make this work. If all associations are in favor of this, then the formation of a Statewide Association will be formed as of January 1, 2006. Where can I get answers to the questions that I have? You can go to nmtma.org and all the minutes are posted on the website under “online newsletter”. Or you can contact John Fulling, Dan Bissonette, Dan Billette or Dave Pawluk who are on the committee. Each one of these individuals have spend many hours trying to come up with the best ideas to try and make sure this is done correctly to ensure that everyone can be involved. Currently your Board of Directors are discussing the advantages and disadvantages and will be able to present their opinion to you at the Annual Meeting on October 5, 2005 at Mistwood Golf Course. Your Board of Directors will not make this decision for you, but present their opinion. It is up to you, the member of the Northern Michigan Turf Managers Association to decide. Your voice will be heard thru your vote. If you are not able to attend the annual meeting, I believe that you still can vote on this matter? Please contact a member of the board if you are not able to attend. Statewide Association Statewide Association Yes NO Your voice will be heard on October 5, 2005 Page 7 r 1 The NMTMA appreciates the support from the following businesses... *SOD, SOIL, & CONSTRUCTION* ‘FERTILIZER, CHEMICAL & SEED* ‘GOLF CART SALES & SERVICE* Tri Turf Soils, Inc. Lebanon Fertilizers and Seed Kodiak Equipment Company Tom Reed, Sr. Better Technology For Today’s Turf New / Used E-Z-Go Golf Cars and Utility Vehicles (888)616-7806 “Mesa”- SR N & “EXPO” - SR N-K (231) 264-9900 / (888) 746-0800 Huggett Sod Farm Grigg Brothers Boylan Sales, Inc. Bent & Bluegrass Sod, Shade & Ornamental Trees Specialty Fertilizers Jim Atchison (989) 635-7482 (888) 246-8873 (269) 685-68281 FAX (269) 685-6051 Beck Sod Farm, Inc. Tri-Turf Ellis Sales Inc. David Beck Serving all ofMichigan Bob Hope (800) 968-2325 (800) 636-7039 (269) 375-3535 / (800) 962-4128 Great Lakes Golf Construction, Inc. Christopher Furness *EQUIPMENT/IRRIGATION* (231)582-6783 ^EQUIPMENT, SERVICE & SUPPLIES* Spartan Distributors John Read (Equipment) / Kris Early (Irrigation) Weingartz Golf & Turf (800) 822-2216 / (800) 232-6288 FAX John Deere One Source *TIRES & TUBES* (877) 465-9040 / (616) 696-2913 Automatic Irrigation Supply Company Tire Wholesalers Company, Inc. The Automatic Advantage W. F. Miller Golf & Turf Dan Cress 877-222-0240 Jacobsen, Smithco, Turfco, National (231)775-6666 (800) 555-8189 Waterways Irrigation Ken Morrison (989) 906-3338 Jim VanAntwerp (231) 838-3330 and we encourage you to support them, j Northern Michigan Turf Managers Association P.O. Box 80086 Lansing, MI 48908 Information Center GCSAA 1421 Research Park Dr. Lawrence, KS 66049 MTMA Executive Committee Craig Hoffman President Joe Breighner Vice President Paul Galligan Treasurer l i t i 1114•«») I,111111(I111111111 i 111 > 111 (i {11111111 {111 f IJ111i i