Give Them Some Credit

     To often golf course superintendent are not given nearly the credit that they deserve. It’s funny how often the first people to criticize a golf course’s looks, conditions or playability are the ones who know next to nothing about how to run or maintain a golf course. Last thursday our class, Turfgrass Management at the University of Guelph, had the opportunity to travel to Glen Abbey Golf Club and speak with the Head Super Intendant, Scott Bowman. For those of you not familiar with Glen Abbey, it is the permanent home to the Canadian Open, Canada’s highest and most prestige professional golf tournament.

     For anyone who watched the Canadian Open this year, the course was pretty much rained out by the weekend. The fairways were flooding and  play was stopped numerous times. For the average person it looked like the course was simply not prepared for this type of weather. What Scott explained is that the fairways at Glen Abbey are of a high clay content soil type. The top layer of soil hardened and literally sealed off any water from draining through. This was the reason for why the course was so flooded. Not because of Scott or his crew’s lack of ability to properly prepare the golf course.

     I think that people who watch golf avidly need to pay closer attention to who they are directing their criticism toward and let the professionals do their job. Scott explained how it wasn’t even worth trying to explain the situation in the media tent because of how little they would care for his explanation and most likely lay the blame on someone in the end. All I am trying to say here is that the next time you’re watching a professional event like the Canadian Open take some time to think about the hard work and planning that went into the preparation of the tournament before giving your two cents.

St. Andrews: How the strong has survived

     Currently, golf courses in Ontario are not effected by the provincial pesticide ban. This does not mean the ban will not reach them in the future. How would golf course superintendents be able to survive without the use of pesticides? How would they be able maintain a golf course that will host championships such as the Canadian Open?  Funny enough, the answer to these questions lies with the greenskeeper of the first golf links ever founded on god’s green earth.

     Gordon Mckie is the greenskeeper at St. Andrews Old Course in Scotland and considered a god in the turf industry. One article explains how pesticides have not been used on the playing surfaces of the Old Course for 17 years. Most of the maintenance practises at St. Andrews are actually done by hand. This includes hand pulling weeds and hand spreading fertilizer. St. Andrews is home to the world’s most prestigess golf tournament, the British Open. Although the Old Course may not be the most beautiful sight to some, it is pristine in the most raw and natural way.

     I was absolutely astounded when I read about how St. Andrews has not been treated with pesticides for 17 years! If the oldest and most respected golf facility in the world can survive without pesticides than I believe ours could as well. Golf course superintendents need to start viewing ‘course conditions’ differently. One of Gordon Mckie’s philosophies is that playability should be put above the cosmetic aspect of golf course management. This is the direction all superintendents should take! Is it also a coincidence thats the Old Course is Tiger and Jack’s favourite course?

Sarritor, An Effective Organic Solution

     Because of the new Provincial Pesticide ban, Ontario homeowners are now faced with weedy lawns and little or no solution. Over the last few years there has been very little success in controlling weeds without the use of pesticides. Companies have been experimenting with many different organic weed treatment products but have had very little progress. A product called Sarritor could be the answer.

     Sarritor is a fungus derived from the lettuce plant that specifically targets broadleaf weeds. The optimal time to apply it is in the fall and it takes roughly two weeks to completely kill the weeds it is targeting.  Sarritor is completely natural and safe for kids and pets immediately after it is applied. Another great thing about this product is that it will not kill the surrounding grass or gardens.      

     When I first heard about this product I admit I was a little skeptic. But after seeing first hand how effective Sarittor really is I have been made a believer. This product is a great start in figuring out how to control weeds without the use of pesticides. I think this product will save many lawn service companies customer complaints and even worse customer cancellations. The only downfall of sarritor is it’s high market price. It will be tough for lawn care service companies to decide whether or not to invest in a product still in its infancy. Maybe waiting around for a year to see if the competition is having any success may not be a bad idea.

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