Pennsylvania Turfgrass - Spring 2022

Spring 2022 • Vol. 11/No. 2

State of Matters:

IR R IGATION

Thomas Goyne’s First Pro Season is a TRIAL BY FIRE

Pennsylvania Turfgrass Council P.O. Box 99 Boalsburg, PA 16827-0550 Phone: (814) 237-0767 Fax: (814) 414-3303 info@paturf.org www.paturf.org

Vol. 11 / No. 2 • Spring 2022

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Publisher: Leading Edge Communications, LLC 206 Bridge Street, Suite 200 Franklin, TN 37064 Phone: (615) 790-3718 Fax: (615) 794-4524 info@leadingedgecommunications.com Pennsylvania Turfgrass Editor Max Schlossberg, Ph.D. Penn State University • mjs38@psu.edu Pennsylvania Turfgrass Associate Editor Heather Welch Penn State University • hgw1@psu.edu President Tom Fisher Wildwood Golf Club – Allison Park, PA (412) 518-8384 Vice President Rick Catalogna Harrell’s Inc Territory Manager (412) 897-0480 Secretary-Treasurer Shawn Kister Longwood Gardens, Inc. – Kennett Square, PA (484) 883-9275 Past President Pete Ramsey Range End Golf Club – Dillsburg, PA (717) 577-5401

12 Features 8 Cover Story

State of Matters: Irrigation

12 Between the Lines

Departments 6 Editor’s Letter 6 Penn State Turf Team

Director of Operations Tom Bettle Penn State University Assistant Director of Operations Nicole Kline Pennsylvania Turfgrass Association Directors Steve Craig Centre Hills Country Club

Thomas Goyne’s First Pro Season is a Trial by Fire

14 Penn State News

Tanner Delvalle Penn State Extension

18 Professional Development

19 Advertiser Index

Elliott Dowling USGA Andy Moran University of Pittsburgh Tim Wilk Scotch Valley Country Club

Find this issue, Podcasts, Events and More: THETURFZONE.COM

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Pennsylvania Turfgrass • Spring 2022

Matt Wolf Penn State University

FORSE DESIGN

Philadelphia Country Club . Centennial Nine . Renovation Architect: Jim Nagle - Forse Design | Photo: StoryLounge Films

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Ron Forse and Jim Nagle of Forse Design would like to thank all of our Pennsylvania clients, friends, and family for your support, trust, and business.

It is an honor and a pleasure to work with you in our home state.

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Editor’s Letter

Penn State Turf Team

HAPPY BIRTHDAY Pennsylvania Turfgrass M AGA Z INE !

It

is now 2022, and hopefully you are happy about it. Another season of outdoor recreation has begun, or will momentarily (we submit this copy nine weeks in advance), and the Pennsylvania Turfgrass Council (PTC) and its technical advisory board are wishing you success, good health, and great weather. Do you know it was just 10 years ago that The Pennsylvania Turfgrass Magazine made its debut? The honorable Matt Shafer was the PTC President, Dr. John Kaminski was the inaugural Editor, my home was dependably tidy, and TikTok didn’t exist.

It’s been a great run and we are glad you remain a part of it! There have been retirements, promotions, and passings across the industry; an industry that evolves and configures as the turfgrass grows all the while. The Penn State Center for Turfgrass Science has evolved as well over the last 10 years, namely benefitting from the additions of Entomologist Ben McGraw in 2014 and Irrigation Specialist Brad Jakubowski in 2016. I’d argue this Turfgrass Team is as comprehensively stacked with talent as any, but of greater importance is the ‘how?’ or ‘why?’

Since the advent of the PTC, practitioners and stakeholders alike have benefited from the concerted, selfless efforts committed by a procession of industry leaders through the cabinet of the PTC Board. Over the last 10 years, cumulative contributions by the PTC to students and faculty of the Penn State University’s Center for Turfgrass Science exceeded one million dollars! This essential support facilitated undergraduate student scholarships, graduate student fellowships, student travel to national conferences, staffing, undergraduate student research training, symposia participation, outreach programming, instructional media development, field research and the purvey of associated equipment and supplies....and this is an abbreviated list.

WE ARE so grateful for your support and ongoing commitment to Pennsylvania Turfgrass.

After 10 years, we are also now pleased to invite submissions of non-commercial articles penned by members of The Pennsylvania Turfgrass Council. Please do not hesitate to contact me, or the future editor, in this regard. Thanks again, and wishing you fabulous turf and sport in 2022 —

Jeffrey A. Borger Senior Instructor in Turfgrass Weed Management 814-865-3005 • jborger@psu.edu

Michael A. Fidanza, Ph.D. Professor of Plant & Soil Science 610-396-6330 • maf100@psu.edu

David R. Huff, Ph.D. Professor of Turfgrass Genetics 814-863-9805 • drh15@psu.edu

Brad Jakubowski Instructor of Plant Science 814-865-7118 • brj8@psu.edu

John E. Kaminski, Ph.D. Professor of Turfgrass Science 814-865-3007 • jek156@psu.edu

Peter J. Landschoot, Ph.D. Professor of Turfgrass Science 814-863-1017 • pjl1@psu.edu

Ben McGraw, Ph.D. Associate Professor of Turfgrass Entomology 814-865-1138 • bam53@psu.edu

Max Schlossberg, Ph.D.

Editor and Assoc. Prof. Turfgrass Nutrition & Soil Fertility at The Pennsylvania State University

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Pennsylvania Turfgrass • Spring 2022

Andrew S. McNitt, Ph.D. Professor of Soil Science 814-863-1368 • asm4@psu.edu

Max Schlossberg, Ph.D. Associate Professor of Turfgrass Nutrition / Soil Fertility 814-863-1015 • mjs38@psu.edu

Al J. Turgeon, Ph.D. Professor Emeritus of Turfgrass Management aturgeon@psu.edu

Wakar Uddin, Ph.D. Professor of Plant Pathology 814-863-4498 • wxu2@psu.edu

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Cover Story

STATE OF MATTERS:

IRRIGATION

By Max Schlossberg, PhD.

The

important cultural practice of irrigation comprises three components. They are, in chronological order; monitoring, control, and delivery. They may ring familiar too, as they were just articulated by Dr. Grady Miller in the Sept. 2021 issue of SportsField Management (p. 50). Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, right? Then I added some otherwise original content and withheld discussion of the ‘control’ component for last.

MONITORING Current monitoring tools and techniques have undergone significant advancement in recent period.

While they share the common goal of providing timely soil water status to managing personnel, they fall into one of two categories.

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Pennsylvania Turfgrass • Spring 2022

Using climate data to estimate soil water Environmental monitoring affords professional turfgrass managers incredibly valuable information. Predictive models use real-time climate data to guide scheduling of cultural practices supporting accuracy and adopter appreciation. New irrigation systems and/or controllers often include environmental monitoring instruments that automatically compile the data for input into prediction models, run them, and adjust irrigation controller runtimes accordingly. These are commonly referred to as evapotranspiration (ET) controllers and may be available as retrofits for older systems. If this technology is interesting news to you, then please start a conversation with your neighborhood irrigation vendor or technical rep.

Otherwise, many regions of the US are covered by statewide or local ET monitoring networks. These may not relay real-time environmental conditions specific to your location, e.g., precipitation, humidity, etc., but likely will provide useful hourly or daily summaries of potential ET across your region. Nonetheless it is important to realize ET models estimate only extraction of water from the rootzone, not an explicit or certain irrigation requirement.

Irrigation need arises when soil water storage, required to support turf health between now and the next irrigation opportunity, falls below a critical level. Accurate soil water storage estimates rely heavily on site-specific edaphic properties: the effective turfgrass root depth, the mean plant-available water holding capacity throughout the effective root depth, and the estimated soil water storage at monitoring initiation. Predictive models not updated by site-specific determinations often employ default settings of varying suitability. Update these settings with representative soil laboratory test results to optimize turfgrass performance and irrigation efficiency.

Using sensors/meters to measure soil water Direct, real-time measurement of soil water comprises a significant added value to environmental monitoring. Soil moisture data is collected automatically by installed/static sensors or manually using portable meters. Below-ground sensors may be monitored remotely by smart phone, networked to your irrigation system controller, or both. Having discussed such technology with Mr. Derek Pruyne, lead agronomist for UgMO Technologies and two-time PSU Turfgrass advisee/alum, I learned wireless underground monitoring technology currently directs the automated irrigation of over a thousand facilities in North America alone.

Portable soil moisture sensors/meters employ 1- to 6-inch-long time domain reflectometry (TDR) rods, or capacitance probes, to measure soil water content rapidly and accurately with minimal disturbance. I emphasize soil moisture sensors/meters to prevent readers from mistaking handheld, pocket-sized moisture meters (for measuring firewood or drywall wetness) as appropriate for turfgrass applications. They are not. Portable soil moisture meters are two to 3-feet long and quite pricey, but rapidly support general diagnostic inquiries all across your facility.

Where irrigation water costs are high, portable soil moisture meters promptly pay for themselves. Yet overwatering is so agronomically counterproductive to turfgrass that I’d argue these portable soil moisture meters pay for themselves where water is free.

Many late-model meters are GPS-compatible and compliment GIS platforms with meaningful map layers. But dependable collection of quality data requires compliance with manufacturers’ recommendations during both setup and subsequent usage.

The performance of portable soil moisture meters is governed by

proper rod/probe length selection and optimized by initial and subsequent calibration(s). Furthermore, the steel rods/probes of moisture meters will wear down with repeated use and sample shallower depth(s) over time. Operators should interpret the resulting data accordingly and replace rods/probes as needed.

If you already use these monitoring tools and technologies at your facility, kudos! The overwhelming response I hear from managers and superintendents who have adopted irrigation monitoring instruments and/or soil moisture meters is this: Without them, they would have never realized how much they previously overwatered!

DELIVERY Optimized replenishment of soil water storage beneath our coveted turfgrass is the final, yet undoubtedly most critical, stage of the process. Imagine a facility with brand-new pumps, a fertigation tank, an ultra-modern central controller, a wireless network of multiple environmental monitoring instruments, buried soil moisture meters, and single rows of heads with missing/worn nozzles on terminal laterals branching out in every direction. It’s as sad as a shiny Carver Amp playing the White Album through speakers detached from a 1994 Panasonic stack. So don’t mistake my tone as unenthusiastic about irrigation, modern irrigation systems are amazing technological advances that support efficient water use and conservation. But if a new install isn’t in the cards, optimizing water delivery can pay dividends.

The number of valuable recommendations for optimized delivery of irrigation is too great to reproduce in full. If you seek comprehensive refreshing, please consult irrigation BMPs available through numerous trade associations or University Extension/ Outreach websites. But a few worthwhile suggestions include irrigating: during still conditions, in pulses (when delivering a sizable soil water recharge), and uniformly over the target area.

Rate and uniformity of water delivery by an irrigation system are determined by an irrigation audit. Numerous descriptive University Extension/Outreach publications are available in support of this procedure. A guide by the North Carolina State Univ.

Extension Service succinctly describes the required materials, detailed steps, and summary calculations. A well-executed irrigation audit reveals necessary repairs and/or adjustments as well as information needed to adjust runtimes and/or nozzles on a zone-by-zone basis. Data collected by Texas A&M’s AgriLife Extension show water savings from irrigation audits average between 12 and 30%, equating to 700 million gallons annually in Texas alone.

While a proper audit will likely prove worthwhile, a beneficial outcome will depend on committed effort and patience. I recommend the ‘Family-Pack’ of dedicated collection cans that feature wire stands and etched graduations, because you simply can’t have too many. The gradations facilitate trouble-free data collection and accurate irrigation rate determination. Some website instructions offer cost-cutting alternatives; like a sleeve of stackable ‘Solo-type’ cups for collection by a one-time audit. They further suggest users expedite the data collection process by measuring depth of irrigation captured in each with a ruler and recording the irrigation ‘depth’ as head units. This will suffice for auditors seeking to determine only distribution uniformity. Because stackable cups taper wide to narrow from top to bottom, this approach will inflate irrigation rate measurements per unit run time.

Spring 2022 • Pennsylvania Turfgrass

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For the proud DIY professionals, an inexpensive yet meaning ful and intuitive way to judge your soil water assessment skill is to just turn off one of your sprinkler heads.

10 Pennsylvania Turfgrass • Spring 2022

Cover Story • continued

CONTROL In all candidness, it takes extraordinary confidence in his/her team’s assessment of current conditions for a manager to withhold irrigation another night in July.

It may additionally require a ≥40% chance of afternoon thunderstorms tomorrow ....or perhaps a ≥60% chance of afternoon thunderstorms tomorrow. Regardless, deciding current soil water storage will adequately support turfgrass health until the next irrigation opportunity arises is how turfgrass managers conserve water.

For any given year, if we knew the number of times professional managers applied irrigation within 24 hours of a sizeable rainfall event; i.e., unnecessarily, then we could compare it to the number of times significant turfgrass areas perished due to reckless withholding of irrigation. Am I implying one number consistently exceeds the other? No. The data hasn’t been collected…and I never imply. Rather, the message turfgrass science sends us is that good information, a talented supporting staff, and a confident mindset can make both numbers zero.

Overwatering is irresponsible, injurious, and arguably the foremost scourge on our industry. I mean c’mon, 14-yearold TikTok influencers get 8000 likes for dogging neighbors irrigating in the rain.

In addition to broader societal benefits associated with not wasting valuable resources, irrigating unnecessarily can stress and injure turfgrass. This is especially true of intensively-managed cool season turfgrass during extended periods of high temperature.

The over-arching paradox is clear: A clientele that made beaucoup investment in supporting infrastructure won’t forever tolerate a superintendent appearing to underutilize it. As a result, risk aversion makes unnecessary irrigation a more common outcome than drought stress injury. But a reasonable counterpoint is my favorite Dr. Clint Waltz Jr. adage: Just because you currently have formula and a bottle warmer, doesn’t mean it’s time to feed the sleeping baby!

If you are already employing modern instruments to actively monitor ET and/ or soil water storage, and the irrigation delivery in every zone of your facility has

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Apply this product only to your lawn/garden, and sweep any product that lands on the driveway, sidewalk, or street back onto your lawn/garden.

For the proud DIY professionals, an inexpensive yet meaningful and intuitive way to judge your soil water assessment skill is to just turn off one of your sprinkler heads. I’m serious. Spring is a really good time to take ‘The One-Off Challenge!’ Pick a head that services a fairly typical soil profile at your facility, and manually key it to off. Avoid predominately annual or rough bluegrass stands, opting instead for a system populated by species capable of recovering from shortterm drought stress. An ideal spot is at the beginning of a frequently visited fairway and/or near your maintenance facility.

Now you may be wondering why anyone would do this. It certainly isn’t predictive or proactive like estimating or measuring soil water. It won’t afford any utility until irrigation is applied. But for turfgrass professionals who strive for improvement, it may prove a valuable retrospective self-evaluation tool that recalibrates your irrigation decisionmaking. For example, the longer the sprinkler head stays off without reduced vigor or density of the serviced turfgrass, the more productive the exercise will prove.

As a professional, you’ll be prepared to turn the head back on when required.

This time will arrive under all but the rarest of summer weather conditions.

For those managing facilities where dry seasons prevail, the One-Off Challenge may be terminated after the first week.

But if it helps a manager identify a recent irrigation event was unnecessary, then it was an informative week. Return the sprinkler head to operation if the serviced area presents symptoms of drought stress, e.g., wilt, discoloration, matting/ footprinting; or the current climatic conditions compel initiation of a leaching requirement.

Caution: This product contains the secondary micronutrient iron. Iron may stain concrete, wood and other pervious and impervious surfaces. Apply only to turf and soil.

Keep out of reach of children. If product comes in contact immediatel with skin or eyes flush with water immediately.

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Spring 2022 • Pennsylvania Turfgrass 11

Between the Lines

Tom with the Heinz Field Crew

Thomas Goyne’s First Pro Season is a Trial by Fire

W

hen Heinz Field Sports Turf Manager Thomas Goyne started his new job with the Steelers organization last August, he was “thrown into the fire,” as he puts it.

From covid mitigations to packed schedules, his new job brought one challenge after another. But his education and experience at Penn State prepared him well. “My goals are the same here as they were at Penn State,” he says, “to tackle problems and create solutions for providing a safe, playable, high-quality playing field.

Same goals — but more pressure! The eyes on my work have almost doubled from the roughly 6 million who saw a Penn State game on TV or in person to the 11 million who see a Steelers game.

I want to do right by the players and by the organization and make sure we look good.”

Challenges Tom with Paul Curtis

His first challenge came in the form of a change of venue for training camp. Traditionally held in Latrobe, it was decided to move it to Heinz Field because of covid concerns on the same day that Thomas Goyne was interviewing for the job. Grooming the field and getting it ready for the season had to work around training camp. Then from September to December, he notes, there were simply no weeks off to regroup. Two teams, the Steelers and the Pitt Panthers, share the facilities at Heinz Field, so at times the field is in use for back-to-back games, Pitt on Saturday and the Steelers on Sunday.

Adding to the wear and tear of training and games by two teams is the occasional concert stage, he says. Even though a floor is put down to protect the turf from the heavy equipment needed to bring in a stage, the grass under the floor suffers from pressure and lack of light. When the Rolling Stones played at Heinz Field in October, the stage area itself required a quick resodding of 35,000 square feet before the Steelers game the following Sunday.

Goyne heads a crew of four, two long-term groundskeepers and another associate hired at the same time he came on board.

He takes his leadership role seriously and tries to keep the worst of the pressure away from his crew members, he says. It’s a young crew with an average age of 30 and the non-stop challenges had an upside in that it gave them a chance to bond quickly.

Tom painting for game day

Keystone Athletic Field Managers Organization 1451 Peter’s Mountain Road Dauphin, PA 17018-9504 www.KAFMO.org • Email: KAFMO@aol.com

12 Pennsylvania Turfgrass • Spring 2022

Contact: Linda Kulp, Executive Secretary Phone: 717-497-4154 kulp1451@gmail.com

Contact: Dan Douglas, President Phone: 610-375-8469 x 212 KAFMO@aol.com

Career Path

That raises the question: how does a turf manager make it to the pro level at the relatively young age of 26? In Goyne’s case, a friend pointed him to the Steelers opportunity and the more he considered it, the more impressive he found the organization. It was not just the home of a stellar football team but also had lots of long-haul, old school employees. That was evidence to Goyne of a fulfilling workplace where he could grow professionally. “I thought I would be at PSU forever,” he confesses. “I learned so much about best practices through Penn State, and there is just such a great network there that prepared me for this move.”

Thomas Goyne comes by his attachment to sports fields and to Penn State honestly. He first got interested in maintaining sports fields watching his dad work on his Little League field, and at the age of 13, he took part in a “groundskeeper for a day” learning experience. In high school, his American Legion baseball team submitted their field for a KAFMO Field of Distinction award and were thrilled to get an honorable mention. His high school golf course superintendent, who hailed from Penn State, further encouraged his interest and his uncle, Keith Goyne, now at Virginia Tech, was also a Penn Stater familiar with the possibilities in turf science as a field of study. So when it came time to choose a university, Penn State was the natural choice for Goyne. There, with the help of a KAFMO scholarship, he learned about the science of turf at school, while he got hands-on experience in caring for and preparing fields at his job and internships — and he chose those internships with an eye to who would give him the most opportunities for wide experience.

As president of the Penn State Turf Club, Goyne worked on the Beaver Stadium grounds crew and he interned for the Philadelphia Eagles, the Miami Marlins, and the Lehigh Valley IronPigs. He valued interning under Tony Leonard in Philadelphia and Chad Mulholland in Miami, he says, because they gave him a taste of every aspect of the work. Upon graduation, he took a job at Florida State and then became Intercollegiate Athletics Assistant Supervisor of Grounds for Penn State. He credits the mentorship of recently retired lead groundskeeper Paul Curtis for deepening his experience and giving him a firm grounding in the profession.

Words of Advice

It is not so long ago that a young Thomas Goyne was looking to the fields of pro football organizations and hoping to find a place there. When asked what he would advise a young person with similar goals, he warns not to look for instant gratification. “It’s a tough industry but a good one,” he says. An aspiring turf manager will have to work to get to the top. There is a lot to learn in the classroom about the science of turf, like roots, drainage, pest management, etc., and then there are all the hands-on things you can only learn on the field, like how to paint lines, manage an irrigation system, and work on a scoreboard. “When choosing internships, don’t take the one that looks easy,” he advises. “You have to look for mentors. Use your internships and relationships, lean on the professional organizations like KAFMO, build your skills and your network at the same time. When it all comes together, this profession allows you to use your creative ability in a perfect blend of art, business, science, and management.”

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Spring 2022 • Pennsylvania Turfgrass 13

Penn State News

PENN STATE LAUNCHES COMMERCIAL TURF PEST DIAGNOSTIC LAB At Right: Lab manager Dr. Louis Bengyella

The

Department of Plant Science is pleased to announce the launch of the Turf Pest Diagnostic Lab that will provide rapid diagnosis and recommendations for commercial turfgrass managers in Pennsylvania and around the world.

Diagnosing turfgrass pest problems quickly is essential when managing high-value turfgrass areas such as golf courses, sports fields, and sod farms. Due to the unique nature and difficulty of pest identification, professional turfgrass managers often rely on services offered by commercial diagnostic labs. These labs benefit from the trained expertise of diagnosticians dedicated to identifying the causal agent(s) and offering cultural and chemical recommendations to help minimize damage and maintain healthy turf.

The core principle of the lab is to provide rapid disease, insect, and/or weed identification for the commercial turfgrass industry and assure the success of the site’s manager. The lab will be managed by Dr. Louis Bengyella, assistant research professor and lead diagnostician. According to Bengyella, “Accuracy and speed are what the diagnostic lab offers its clientele. We are also in constant communication with each client from sample arrival to identification of the pest and offer management options when requested.”

The lab will rely on the expertise of turfgrass faculty in the Department of Plant Science including John Kaminski, Professor of turfgrass management, and Ben McGraw, Associate Professor of turfgrass entomology. “Our goal is to take the guessing game out of the hands of turfgrass managers and use our combined expertise to provide accurate results and recommendations as quickly as possible,” said Kaminski. In most cases, diagnosis is made within 24 hours of receiving a sample in the lab, and often sooner. Clients are initially notified of the diagnosis by text, email, or phone and are then sent a formal diagnostic report for their records.

The diagnostic lab was conceived out of the need to close the gap for a fast and reliable service for the turfgrass community in Pennsylvania and surrounding areas. According to Kaminski, who has over 24 years of diagnostic experience, “In addition to helping out the industry, we benefit from being up-to-date on active pests and can utilize that information to warn others of what might be heading their way.” One way that the group plans to do this is through a series of social media platforms, blogs on their website, and the mobile diagnostic app Turfpath.

The lab’s new website, turfpestlab.psu.edu, will feature an active blog that will share current pest updates, timely pest management recommendations, and even provide some insights into the procedures used to diagnose problems. In addition to the website, the lab will use the free mobile app Turfpath developed by Kaminski

14 Pennsylvania Turfgrass • Spring 2022

to send regional-specific SMS updates to notify turfgrass managers of what pests are active in their area. Information will also be shared across their social media platforms under the username @PSUTurfPests.

In addition to identifying and solving unknown problems for turfgrass managers, another key component of the lab will be to monitor and track pesticide resistance that can limit or reduce the ability of a product to control resistant insects, weeds, and pathogens. By identifying resistant pest populations at individual properties, the team can then work with managers to develop more effective pesticide programs for their facility. “Utilizing our research on pesticide resistance, in combination with the lab’s pesticide resistance screening service, allows us to make recommendations that will reduce pesticide use while still maintaining high turfgrass quality,” said Kaminski.

Now open to all commercial turfgrass managers, the lab did a soft launch in 2021 and worked with a select number of properties in the region. “The Penn State Diagnostic Lab has been a tremendous resource for us at Butler Country Club,“ said Micah Lowell, Golf Course Superintendent at Butler Country Club. “If we are not 100% sure of what we are looking at in the field, we will send samples out to the lab for confirmation because we cannot waste time and money spraying incorrect pesticides. We trust the fantastic services they provide.”

Services currently offered by the Turf Pest Diagnostic Lab include: • • • • •

Disease, insect, and weed identification Pesticide resistance screening Endophyte screening and identification Molecular pathogen detection DNA sequencing to the species level

In addition to providing support for turfgrass managers in Pennsylvania and the surrounding regions, the lab has received international permits to accept samples from around the world. As the lab expands it plans to add nematode assays and other helpful services to benefit the industry. “Establishing this lab has been a goal of mine for a long time and will build upon the assistance that the Penn State turf team provides for the entire industry,” said Kaminski.

For more information on the lab’s services and sampling / shipping instructions, please visit www.turfpestlab.psu.edu.

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Spring 2022 • Pennsylvania Turfgrass 15

Penn State News • continued

SSRC

RESEARCH UPDATE

The

SSRC continues to study infield soil mixtures.

We previously developed a laboratory technique for this purpose. The technique uses a pneumatic “foot” and a 3D scanner to determine the critical water content at which a drying infield soil stops providing cleat-in/ cleat-out performance and begins to chip or chunk out.

Infield mixes usually combine a washed sand with a finegrained soil. Our working hypothesis is that different types of clay minerals affect the mixture’s behavior, regardless of particle size.

We have now tested several experimental infield mixes. These mixes use a sand similar to those used in USGA greens construction. They contain a range of sand contents (55–80%) and various

clay minerals (kaolinite, illite, smectite, and iron oxides). We’ve found that the water content which yields optimum playability varies mostly with clay type. In other words, if both a “professionaltype” and “recreational-type” mix contain the same type of clay, there is only a small difference in their critical threshold water contents. However, their strengths are quite different. In addition, for every clay type there is a unique sand content above which the cleat-in/cleat-out effect cannot be produced.

It also appears that the sand content required to produce a given type of mix is not absolute — it varies across clay types. For example, 60% sand is a common recommendation for pro-style mixes. However, our experimental mixes containing expandable smectite clay require almost 70% sand to perform similarly to illite mixes containing only 55% sand. If the current specification were followed “to a T” using smectite clay, a 60% sand mix containing pure smectite clay would be nearly impossible to groom.

So far, we have focused on the behavior of infield soils as they dry out. However, a more critical issue is the behavior of the mix during a rain event. We are currently developing a new way to measure the stiffness of a moist infield soil. This technique will draw a more complete picture of a given soil’s performance. The upcoming year of research will improve our quantitative predictions of how clay type and sand content interact to form the ideal infield mix.

Scanner setup

Example of high, medium, and low DNE meshes

DNE = 1,810

DNE = 2,900

DNE = 4,280

16 Pennsylvania Turfgrass • Spring 2022

PENN S TA TE T U RF G RA S S S T U D E N T S

COMPETE NATIONALLY

Students completing the Golf Course Turfgrass Management Certificate Program finished 1st in the 2-yr division of the Sports Field Management Association’s 2022 Student Challenge held in Savannah, Georgia. They are from left to right: Peyton Kvistad, Mason Marsh, Ryan Trudeau, and Nick Sterlace. This team also finished 5th in the GCSAA 2022 Collegiate Turf Bowl held in San Diego.

Students completing their Bachelor of Science degree in Turfgrass Science finished 2nd in the 4-yr division of the Sports Field Management Association’s 2022 Student Challenge, and finished 4th in the GCSAA 2022 Collegiate Turf Bowl. They are from left to right: Stephen Campbell, Nate Moore, Cameron Foreman, and Kyle Masters.

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Spring 2022 • Pennsylvania Turfgrass 17

Professional Development

Let’s Make WOR K EASIER

By Neal Glatt, CSP, ASM

W

ork can be so hard sometimes. I don’t have to tell you this as nearly every organization is short staffed and desperate for labor to help. But as hard as work can be, it’s got to be even tougher for new hires when impatient customers and nearly impossible deadlines overwhelm even experienced employees. Maybe that’s why they’re quitting so quickly. As managers, we need to make it easier for them.

In fact, before we talk about how to boost retention by creating a better new employee experience, let’s think about all the people who haven’t even applied to our job postings. In a world of job descriptions that are often too long, too boring, and too confusing, we need to rewrite descriptions that introduce our organization’s mission and inspire people to help the team.

We need to talk about what’s in store for them beyond pay and benefits that every job offers and focus on the career development and purpose that is unique to each organization. And we need to post our story in a clear, concise, and inviting manner.

One of my colleagues also believes that most organizations make it far too difficult for prospective employees to apply for work. He strives to make it as easy to apply for a job as to order a pizza from Domino’s (if you don’t know you can order in at least 15 different ways: from a voice command on Alexa to posting a pizza emoji on social media). By streamlining applications to the essentials and allowing job seekers to text-to-apply, you can engage people faster and provide a more convenient application process. I like this idea so much that I don’t even have a job application anymore. And we all know most people under 30-years-old hate talking on the phone, so why do hiring managers continue to make job seekers uncomfortable with a phone call to start the process?

When we do manage to hire a candidate, the experience needs to be a smooth ramp up rather than a swift jump into the fray. I believe that leaders need to focus first on building a relationship with their people before they can lead a team toward real production. Without a foundation of trust and opportunities to learn the positional and cultural expectations, success is impossible, and burnout is likely. But how long will it take to build these relationships and integrate someone new into a team?

18 Pennsylvania Turfgrass • Spring 2022

After considering and testing the time requirement for many years, I believe it takes a full year to expect someone to be working successfully. This doesn’t mean they don’t complete tasks and add value in their first year of employment, but rather that managers need to be intentionally investing in their development at the base level of job performance for a full year to help them stay engaged. A large part of this effort is protecting first year employees from overbearing expectations.

When I propose my one-year theory to most managers, it isn’t met with enthusiasm and excitement. I empathize with their frustration and have worked hard to disprove this idea by onboarding people faster for years. Yet every time I accelerate the expectations it fails, and I find myself trying to rehire for a position (costing a fortune in recruiting, interviewing, and onboarding time and costs). So, I’ve given up attempts to fast track new employees.

The good news is that I have found incredible success in a patient approach of weekly coaching and development. In fact, people produce at basic tasks more reliably than ever and while it takes a year for them to reach their potential, I think that their potential grows immensely during that time. By committing my time and patience to my people, both production and retention skyrocket.

It’s time for managers to change their approach for success.

If you want help implementing a better application process or would like to discuss how to better coach your people through onboarding and beyond, I’d be happy to help. Just send me a note at Neal@GrowTheBench.com. When you change your approach, you’ll be amazed at how the outcomes change too.

NEAL GLATT is the Managing Partner of GrowTheBench, an online training platform for the green industry. Learn more about him and his solutions at www.NealGlatt.com.

Advertiser Index

Aer-Core, Inc......................................... 15 www.aer-core.com

AgriMetal................................................. 3 agrimetal.com

Burlingham Seeds................................... 7 www.burlinghamseeds.com

Coombs Sod Farms............................... 19 www.coombsfarms.com

Covermaster, Inc................................... 10 www.covermaster.com

East Coast Sod & Seed........................... 6 www.eastcoastsod.com

Fisher & Son Company Inc............... Inside Front Cover www.fisherandson.com

FM Brown’s & Sons............................... 19 www.fmbrown.com

Forse Design........................................... 5 www.forsegolfdesign.com

George E. Ley Co.................................. 19 www.gelcogolf.com

Greene County Fertilizer Co.................. 11 www.greenecountyfert.com

Progressive Turf Equipment Inc............ 17 www.progressiveturfequip.com

Seedway................................................ 11 www.seedway.com

Shreiner Tree Care................................. 19 www.shreinertreecare.com

The Turf Zone................... 15, Back Cover theturfzone.com

Tri-Cure / Mitchell Products.................. 13

130 Devereux Road

www.mitchellsand.com

The Pennsylvania Turfgrass Council (PTC) serves its members in the industry through education, promotion and representation. The statements and opinions expressed herein are those of the individual authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the association, its staff, or its board of directors, Pennsylvania Turfgrass, or its editors. Likewise, the appearance of advertisers, or PTC members, does not constitute an endorsement of the products or services featured in this, past or subsequent issues of this publication. Copyright © 2022 by the Pennsylvania Turfgrass Council. Pennsylvania Turfgrass is published quarterly. Subscriptions are complimentary to PTC members. Presorted standard postage is paid at Jefferson City, MO. Printed in the U.S.A. Reprints and Submissions: Pennsylvania Turfgrass allows reprinting of material published here.

Permission requests should be directed to the PTC. We are not responsible for unsolicited freelance manuscripts and photographs. Contact the managing editor for contribution information. Advertising: For display and classified advertising rates and insertions, please contact Leading Edge Communications, LLC, 206 Bridge Street, Suite 200, Franklin, TN 37064, (615) 790-3718, Fax (615) 794-4524.

610-942-3809

gelcogolf.com

Irrigation Systems Golf Course Alterations • Field Drainage

• •

Glenmoore, PA 19343 Fax: 610-942-9556

Pump Stations Vibratory Plowing • Pond Cleanout

Trenching Stream Bank Stabilization • Drainage on Existing Greens

•

•

•

•

•

•

Mike Kachurak

ISA Certified Arborist PD-2739A

334 South Henderson Road King of Prussia, PA 19406

Office 610.265.6004 Cell 570.262.3612 mikek@shreinertreecare.com www.shreinertreecare.com

Spring 2022 • Pennsylvania Turfgrass 19

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