Turf Education Day 2018
by Meta Levin
Nearly 300 people registered
for the 10th annual Turf Education Day (TED), September 27, 2018 at the Chicago Botanic Garden. “This was the largest TED ever,” says Scott Roberts, ILCA Turf Committee chair and Regional Technical Manager for TruGreen. It’s no surprise that the event attracted a record crowd. Some of the top experts in the field were featured during the day long series of lectures and seminars. “We focused on education and had a broad spectrum of topics,” says Roberts. Featuring the technical and the practical, TED included everything from sessions on equipment to a guide to spill response to lawn fertilization fundamentals. Russo Power Equipment was TED 2018’s premier sponsor. “Russo has been a huge supporter and we appreciate that,” says Roberts. Montale Gardens sponsored the day ending 10th anniversary party. EC Grow, KO Supply, Lurvey Landscape Supply, PBI/Gordon, SavATree, and Zeiler Insurance served as session sponsors, with Advanced Turf Solutions, Arborjet/Ecologel, Arthur Clesen, BASF, Conserv FS, Dow AgroSciences, Harmony Outdoor Brands, Healthy Grow, National Seed, Nufarm Americas, Inc., Phoenix Paper Products, Rainbow Tree Care Scientific 26
Advancements, SiteOne Landscape Supply Company®, Soil Tech Corp. as tabletop sponsors. “We appreciate all of our sponsors.” Attendees started their day with Doug Soldat, of the University of Wisconsin – Madison, Department of Soil Science, as he took them through Lawn Fertilization Fundamentals. Later Soldat walked them through “Understanding the Environmental Impact of Landscape Maintenance” during the morning breakout sessions. During other morning breakout sessions, Chuck Darrah from CLC Labs, addressed “What’s in My Fertilizer Bag and What’s it Doing for Me?” to a standing room only crowd, and representatives from various stand on aerators talked about the trend toward using the equipment during “Stand on Aerator Assault!” Darrah was back during the second half of the morning, with a lecture about “Assessing Soil Nutrients to Maximize Turf Performance and Minimize Environmental Impacts and Costs.” Meanwhile, Doug Owens from the Illinois Department of Agriculture, addressed “Pesticide/ Lawn Care Programs Regulatory Update,” while vendors explained various ride on equipment during “Ride On Spread/ Spray Round Up.”
The Landscape Contractor November 2018