Turfgrass research
Observing growth
By Gary Deters
As turfgrass managers we have a responsibility to observe the growth of the many varieties, cultivars, and species of turfgrass from seed to maturity. Pretty obvious, right? Observing growth is more than just looking at the turf with our own eyes from day to day. I have mentioned in a previous blog post about the importance of before and after photos and while they can be a great resource (Figure 1), there are more ways to see the progress of growth.
Sometimes you have to be creative
By Andrew Hollman
When people hear that I work with turfgrass, inevitably the question comes up of “what do you do all winter?” The assumption from some people is that when the weather turns cold and you no longer need to mow your lawn, what else is there to be done? If you are involved with the turf industry, you likely know that there is a myriad of things that need to be done after mowing has stopped and before the ground freezes and the snow arrives. Irrigation needs to be blown out, snow mold fungicides sprayed, and covering greens are a few that come to mind for the golf courses.
How big is our tree?
By Gary Deters
Raise your hand if you thought this was going to be an article about the latest University of Minnesota variety or cultivar of tree. What I am referring to is the tree of learning that extends from the educators and researchers at our university.
When I had my in-person interview with the turfgrass research team, I had the opportunity to walk the hallways of Alderman Hall for the first time in twenty years since I was a turf student. It brought back some great memories of Dr. Don White and my horticulture classmates. Dr. White was a fantastic turfgrass professor, but better yet, he was a very kind and caring person.
New to our website - more content on turfgrass seed production
Did you know that the University of Minnesota conducts research on turfgrass seed production in northern Minnesota? If you are interested in learning more, our website now has information on Seed Production Research at Magnusson Research Farm.
Working across boundaries: The importance of transdisciplinary turf research
By Michael Barnes
This article was originally published on the Low Input Turf Using Fine Fescues blog.
Winter turfgrass protection
By Andrew Hollman
For some people, winter and snow cover might be a welcome relief from maintaining a yard and lawn.
Before and after
By Gary Deters
When I was a golf course superintendent, I frequently used before and after photos to show progress. The key, of course, was to remember to take the “before” photo. I can remember many times wishing I had a particular photo because either I couldn't remember how something looked, or knew that we made progress but wasn't sure how much. With the smartphone, it has become significantly easier to get that important first photo. It is nice to be able to look back at my gallery and realize I have a good shot of an area, now I just need the "after" shot.
Golf course data collection assistance - We need your help!
Are you a golf superintendent who has been affected by winter stress injury? We are seeking assistance from golf course superintendents on a research project (WinterTurf) focused on understanding winter stresses of turfgrass so that we can develop easy-to-implement solutions for turfgrass managers in cold climates. For this to be successful, we need to enlist the help of hundreds of golf courses located in cold climates throughout the world.