New Jersey Turf Expo

The New Jersey Turf Expo took place this week, which included three days of education sessions, with speakers from as far away as New Zealand.  Given the scope of this conference, hearing Laurel Creek mentioned twice was definitely a surprise.

During the USGA's discussion on Water Conservation, it was nice to see the Club recognized as an example for Best Management Practices.

However, the second picture wasn't one of our favorites.  While Rich Buckley, Director of the Plant Diagnostic Laboratory at Rutgers, was reviewing turf disease issues of 2017, the audience was shown a great picture of Take-All Patch...from Laurel Creek. 

While it's never fun to see your dead grass on the screen, this was actually a positive event, as it sparked some conversations with other turf managers who have been dealing with Take-All.  In addition to learning from researchers, sharing information with peers is often a great way to find out what works well.

Events such as the New Jersey Turf Expo truly show that Mother Nature is far from static.  There are certainly challenges in course management today, which we didn't see 10 or 15 years ago.  Staying on top of issues such as Annual Bluegrass Weevils, False Green Kyllinga, and fungicide resistance is critical to being able to provide consistent playing conditions.