Roundup NOER New Blood Needed; Snowmold C o m p l i c a t i o n s ;

The South Develops S e l e c t i v e Grasses By O. J. NOER

Iter the disastrous s u m m e r of 1955 it is only r igh t that a good o n e follows

Except ing for local spots, the season of 1956 will be r e m e m b e r e d as o n e of the best for golf course tur f . O n e supt . made a very ap t s t a t ement . H e said: " T h i s year has been the easiest one in ten years for me". T r o u b l e s occurred d u r i n g brief spells of bad wea the r in localised areas or were the result of faul ty m a n a g e m e n t mostly associated w i t h wa te r usage.

T h e need for good y o u n g fnen to re-place ag ing supts . is acme . It is diff icul t now to locate the t i gh t k i n d of m a n and will become impossible before long unless clubs make the supt 's posit ion more at tractive. T h e salary must be commensura te witli posi t ions of equa l responsibi l i ty in industry . Provision for r e t i r emen t pay is also necessary. N o t un t i l then can a golf c lub expect to a t t rac t an ambi t ious young m a n . T h e same is t rue to some ex t en t of the f o r e m a n and key w o r k m e n . I t is im-possible to keep grass d u r i n g a t ry ing year like 1955 wi th i r responsible or in-exper ienced t e m p o r a r y help . Every d u b needs a core of p e r m a n e n t employees, assured of year a r o u n d work, at a pay scale comparab l e wi th indus t ry . T h e n , it becomes feasible to a u g m e n t the force wi th college s tudents for s u m m e r t i m e work. T h e y can be used for less exac t ing jobs so t ra ined personnel can concen t ra te on the exac t ing ones — water ing, fertiliza-tion, fungic ide , insecticide and herbicidal appl icat ions .

Const ruc t ive action to be t t e r work ing condi t ions is no t likely except at a f j w clubs. T h e rap id tu rnove r in club officials makes it impossible. T h e GCSA, PGA, a n d C l u b Manager s Assn. migh t he lp b r ing it abou t by f o r m i n g a p e r m a n e n t com-mit tee f r o m their respective m e m b e r s h i p to exp lo re the p r o b l e m a n d arrive at a workable p lan . Some official of the USGA who is exper ienced in these mat te rs could

r ende r va luable service to such a com-mit tee. T h e f inal p lan mus t be fair to everyone, bo th t he employer a n d die em-ployee; o therwise , i t will fai l of adop t ion or soon become inopera t ive .

T h e win te r was a very severe o n e in some places, par t icular ly in the Prai r ie Provinces of Canada . Poa a n n u a took a terr if ic b e a t i n g there a n d was very slow coming back. Greens were bad unt i l the first half of Ju ly and many were no t really good tin til the end of tha t m o n t h or la ter . Snowmold was especially bad . T h e causal o rganism is said to be of a d i f f e r en t and more v i ru len t type. In norm-al years phenyl mercur ia ls , T e r s a n , etc., have been effect!w: in comba t t ing snow-mold. T h i s year Calo-Clor a n d s t ra ight Corrosive Subl imate seemed be t t e r wi th a slight p re fe rence for the la t te r .

T h e r e was snowmold in o the r regions. T h e old t rue s train of W a s h i n g t o n came t h r o u g h in good shape and Congress ional (C-19) gave a good account of itself. O n the c reep ing ben t nursery at Royal O t t awa Golf C lub T o r o n t o ben t (C-i5) was n o t a t tacked, bu t snowmold was modera te ly severe o n I ' e n n l u for the second s t ra ight year. Both strains got p reven ta t ive treat-ments of Calo-Clor in the la te fall a t ident ical rates and at the same t ime.

One club iu Minnesota never controlled snowmold effectively on its Seaside bent greens until this past, winter. Seaside is one of the more susceptible bent grasses. The club adopted one of Dr. J, R. Watson, Jr. 's methods, evolved on the experimental green at the Toro Research center, Calo-Clor was used dry in November mixed with an activated sludge, and at 25 to 30 per cent more than the usual dosage. Anybody wanting more information about Dr. Watson's snow-mold work should consult his article on page 88 of this issue of GOLl'DOM,

A superintendent in Toronto failed to treat until after greens were covered with snow, Calo-Clor was applied dry mixed with sand. Disease control was good, but the workman's

(Left) R. F. Lawrence converts Indian Creek fairways to Ormond strain of Bermudagrass. He gets planting stock by permitting extra growth in strip along edge of fairway, A Javi sicklebar machine cuts close, clippings ore scattered across fairway and cut in with a disc. (Right) Lloyd Scott looks over Merion 8'uegross tee ot his club that is five years old. His secret: Fertilize generously once a month;

water sparingly.

footprints burned the grass. Recovery in the spring was late. T h e application was made during a temporary thaw. Bum was caused by the weL snow, l he same thing has been done many times without any burn, t he fungicide was applied on top of dry snow.

Ice Removal Secrets Al a "bull session" during a Minnesota

Turf Conference, an Eatl Claire Wis. supt, mentioned his Secret of icc removal front greens. When honeycombing and melting starts he scatters a hundred pounds of activated sludge over the green. l he ice disappears in no time a: all. J . 1., Haines of Denver does the same thing with powdered charcoal: so it looks like a heat exchange phenomena.

Several new grasses ha\c appeared . . . some f JI the cool season regions and others for lhe South, they include Penncros, Pcnn-lawn, and in the South selections such as

(Continued on page till)

These Photos Suggest Some Do's and Donf's for the Supt.

Maleic hydrazide stopped seedhead formation in creeping bent plats ot Purdue University irrespec-

tive of rate used.

{Left} Footprint injury was result of applying corrosive sublimate for snowmold control on green covered with melting snow. (Right) Soil sterilization is carried out with Vapam. It is important

to water the material in immediately after application.

Al a ham a : K figure McRee Co., B i r m i n g h a m ; McGowin Lyons I I'd we. Co., Mobile. Ar izona : Shaw Lawn Mowing EQUIP. IU . , Phuenix. Arkansas : Choctaw, inc . , Memphis , T e n n . ; I tarry Cooper Supp ly , Spr ingf ie ld , Mo. Ca l i fo rn ia : Pacific Toro Co., Los Angeles ; Cal i forn ia Toro Co., San F r a n -cisco. Colorado: Colorado Toro Co., Colorado Sp r ings ; Colorado Toro Co,, Denver. C o n n e c t i c u t ; Toro E q u i p m e n t Co., Whi te Pla ins , N. Y . j Con-nec t i cu t Toro Sales Co., Windsor. Delaware: Ph i l ade lph i a Toro Co. r Phi lade lph ia . Dist r ic t of Co lumbia ; Nat ional Capi to l Toro, Inc . , Silver

Spr ings , Md. F lo r ida ; Z a u n E q u i p m e n t Co,, Jacksonvi l le ; Hec tor S u p p l y Co.. Miami ; McGowin-Lyons Hdwe. Co , Mobile, Alabama, Georgia: Toro Turf Equ ip t . Co , A t l a n t a : Zaun E q u i p m e n t Co,, Jacksonvil le , Fla, Idaho : Washington Turf k Toro Co., Scu t t l e , Wash, I l l inois : Ceo. A. Davis, inc . . Chicago; L. J. Meisel Dist. Co., Clayton, Mo,; T r i - S t a t e Toro Co,, Davenport , Iowa; Scruggs Drake E q u i p m e n t Co.. D e c a t u r ; H e i d i Monroe Co., Evansville. Did, : Drake Scruggs Equip. Co., Spr ingf ie ld . I n d i a n a : Ceo. A. Davis Co., Chicago, TIL: He ld t Monroe Co., Evansville; A. II , Heine Co,. For t Wayne; Kenney Maeh. Co., Ind ianapo l i s : B, K . Cohee Co., Montgomery, Ohio, Iowa: Globe Maeh. & S u p p l y Co.. Cedar Rapids ; T r i - S t a t e Toro Co., Davenpor t ; Globe Macli. & Supp ly Co., Des Moines; W. Credle Co., Omaha . Neb, Kansas : Turf Equ ip t , Co.. Inc. , Kansas City, Mo. K e n t u c k y : Wilson Equ ip t . Co . ,Lexington ; It. K. Cohee Co., Montgomery, Ohio; He h i t M o n r o e Co.. Evansville, I n d . ; h u n t o n Seed Co., Louisville. Louis iana : Whalen Toro Co.. New Orleans. Maine: Ph i l l ip It, Yeixa, S o u t h Por t land . Maryland: Bal t imore Toro Co., B a l t i m o r e ; Nat ional Capi to l Toro Co., Silver Spr ings . Massachuse t t s : Spr ingf ie ld Toro Co., Agawam; The Clapper Cu.. West Newton. Michiyan: It. L. Ryerson Co.. Milwaukee. Wis.: C. E. Anderson Co., Royal Oak ; S p a r t a n Di s t r ibu to r s . Spa r t a , Minnesota : Minnesota Toro, Inc. , Minneapolis , Mississippi: Choctaw, Inc. , .Memphis, T e n n . ; McGowin Lyons Hdwe. Co,, Mobile, Ala. ; Whaien Toro Co,, New Orleans. La, Missouri: Lawrence J. Meisel Dist , Co., C lay ton ; Tri S t a t e Toro Co., Davenport , Iowa; Turf Equ ip t . Co., Inc . . Kansas City 2: l l a r ry Cooper Supp ly , Spr ingf ie ld . Montana : Montana Toro Sales Co,. Hill ings; Ma it ions, Kal is pel l ; Sa l t Lake l ldwe. Co,, Sa l t Lake City, Utah. Nebraska : 7,. W. Credle Co,. Omaha, Nevada: Sal t Lake l ldwe. Co., Sa l t Lake City, U t a h ; Cal i fornia Toro Co., San Franc isco , Cal. New H a m p s h i r e : The Clapper Co., West Newton. Mass. New Jersey : Toro Equip t , Co.. White Pla ins . N, Y. : Ph i l ade lph ia Toro Co., Ph i l ade lph ia . P;i, New Mexico: The Myers Co., Roswell; Colorado Toro Co., Denver, Colo. ; Sa l t Lake City Hdwe, Co.. Sail Lake City, Utah. New York; Eaton Equ ip t , Co., Ham-bu rg ; Hudson Toro Sales Co., L a t h a m ; Chas. E. Lennon & Sons , L ibe r ty : Havers t ick Toro Sales Corp, Roches t e r ; James H . Lynch, S o u t h a m p t o n ; Golf & Trac tor Equ ip t . Corp. , Sy racuse ; Credle E q u i p t . . Utlca 4; Toro E q u i p m e n t Co., Inc . . White Pla ins . North Caro l ina : E. J. S m i t h & Sons Co., Char lo t t e North Dakota : Minnesota Toro, Inc . . Minneapol is , Minn. Ohio: Ohio Toro Co., Cleveland; Woodin Sales Co, , Co lumbus : l£, L. Shane Co,. Dayton: I!. K. Cohee Co., Montgomery; l iecht Supp ly Co., Toledo. Oklahoma: Rob Dunning Jones , Inc . . Tulsa. Oregon: Western Golf Course S u p p l y Co.. Por t land , Pennsylvania : Ea ton Equ ip t . Co., H a m b u r g , X. Y . ; Chas. E. Lennon & Son, L ibe r ty , N. Y. ; Ph i lade lph ia Toro Co., P h i l a d e l p h i a ; Penn Toro, Inc . , P i t t s b u r g h ; Haversl ick Toro Sa les & Service , Roches te r , N. Y Rhode I s land : Bay Toro Dis t r ibu to rs , Inc . , Providence. Sou th Caro l ina : E, J. S m i t h & Sons Co.. Char lo t t e , N. C. South Dako ta : Z W. Credle Co.. Omaha, Neb . : Wyoming Toro Co , S h e r i d a n . Wyo. Tennessee : Williams Equ ip t . Co.. Cha t t anooga ; Tennessee Turf k Toro, Knoxvii le; Choctaw, Inc . , Memphis ; Kilgore McRee Co., Nashville Texas: Goldthwai tes Texas Toro Co., Dallas; T h e Myers Co., El Paso ; Gold thwai tes Texas Toro Co.. For t Wor th : Goldthwai tes Texas Toro Co,. Hous ton . Utah : Salt. Lake City l ldwe. Co., Salt L a k e City, V e r m o n t : Spr ingf ie ld Toro Co.. Agawam, Mass. Virgin ia : Sydnor P u m p & Well Co.. R ichmond; National Capi tol Toro Co. . Silver Sp r ings ; Cary Hal l Maeh. Co., Salem. Washington: Western Golf Course Supp ly Co., P o r t l a n d : Washington Turf & Toro . S e a t t l e ; Washington Turf &. Toro, Spokane . West Virgin ia : General E q u i p m e n t Co.. C la rksburg : I t ranch land P ipe & S u p p l y Co., H u n t i n g t o n Penn Toro, Inc . , P i t t s b u r g h , P a . ; Cary Hall Maeh. Co., Sa lem. Vs.": Nat ional Capi tol Toro Co.. Silver Spr ings . Md. Wisconsin; Tri S t a t e Toro Co., Davenport . la ; U. L. Ryerson Co., Milwaukee; Minnesota Toro, Inc . , Minneapol i s , Minn. Wyoming: Colorado Toro Co., Denver, Colo., Sal t Lake Hardware Co., Sal t Lake City, U t a h ; Wyoming Toro Co.. She r idan . CANADA—Alberta: Burgess P>uildlng & P lumbing Suppl ies , L t d . . Calgary Brit ish Co lumbia : Willard Equ ip t . Co., Yancouver. Mani toba : Consol idated Indus t r i e s , L t d , , Winnipeg. Nova S c o t i a : Ha l i f ax Seed Co., Ha l i f ax . On ta r io : F . Manley & Sons , L t d , , Toronto . Quebec : Agri Tech , Inc . , Longueil .

Ti t r o i j i i i / Authorized Distributors

Noer — Turf Roundup (Continued from fioge 60)

t i f lon 328, now tailed I ifgreen". Although of less recent origin. I'entilu, Merion, U-3 Bermuda, Ormond, I 47, elc. deserve brief comment.

"Penncross" is the new designation for Poly cross developed by [1. S. Musser at Slate College, Pa, It is a creeping bent grass, turf of which is developed from seed. Pennlu is imc ot its three parents T h e original I 'oh-cvoss gave a good account of itself Its per-formance at Edmonton has been very gooti. Locally il has been increased lo vegetative planting, Penncross should be just as good because it is from the same parent stock, l he seed is expensive, but turf can be de-

veloped with a seeding rate of one pound per thousand square feet. On thai basis the actual cost ot turf development is cheaper than for the use of purchased stolons. Penn-cross is not apt to produce a turf r>f one color and Uniform texture. Separation should be something like lhe separation in Seaside bent turf,

Penn law n is a new creep htg red fescue also developed by Musser. It has been out-standingly good in trial plots and looks like the besl yet in the line of improved fine leaf fescue.

Pennlu performed exceptionally well iu

the turf pluts at Penn State University. Greens developed from it have not received univer-sal acceptance. The grass does well from a growth standpoint. It does not develop a tight turf, l h e grass becomes puffy. Greens of that kind footprint and arc noL good putting surfaces. Vert i cut ting and lop-dressing may overcome this objection, bu t these operations increase the task and cost of maintenance.

Merion blue grass continues to find favor and seems tn be more popular in many places. Resuhs with it on golf courses have been both bad and good. Its main use has been on tees. Best results have been on courses where play is light. T h e tees at Wood way CC, Daricn, Conn., are five years old and the turf is very satisfactory with very little poa annua. These lees get gen-erous feeding utice a month and a minimum amoltnt of water. Turf is kept light. On some of the heavily played courses in Chicago the Merion has given way LO poa annua. Evident Sy it is nol the grass for tees subjected lo heavy play.

Some courses are trying Merion blue grass on the aprons and collars around bent grass greens. T h e bent takes the Merion due to lhe use of more water lhan it needs. The only place where tbe combination might suc-ceed is on courses where greens are watered by hand.

Delia blue grass and several others have

Mm* n I mmij 11 mmi 11 mmj 111 mm 1111 mmj I mm mi 11 mini I mmi 111 r -n. ni.i n .1:1:: -nil' ; l 111..... 111 -1.

Johnny Forrell hFf5 on the 165 yd. 4th of the new Country Club of Florida course, Delray Beach, Fla., as club pres., Corleton Blunt, surveys the testing vista. The course, designed by Robert Bruce Harris, makes more interesting use of variation of elevation than is usual on south Florida courses. The site, selected by Harris, has black soil 3 and 4 ft. deep. Supt. Norman Johnson who constructed the course hos it in fine condition generally for the official opening Dec. I . Membership of club is filling rapidly. Farrell, pro ot Ba! usrol in the spring and summer, is CC of Florida pro in the winter.

iu 1 jj LDiiiiuj 1 mm 111 nun 11 imtn 111 miim 11 minw mini! 11 mum 11 mm 1111111111111 mm 1111 nii'iu 11 mini 111 mm 11mi 1111111 mmimrim 111 ti mil 1 u 11 imm 11 rmmi 1111111m 1 mim 111 mmj 11 mm" 11 m

r e jd i ed lhe seed production stage. Delta will not he sold for use as such. Its seed will he sold to wholesale merchants fur use iu Lheir special mixtures.

T h e notable development in the use of selected glasses is occurring in the South. IL started with grasses like T i f ton 57 and 127, Gene T i f t / Everglades, Ormond, ctc. T h e first two have outstanding virtues f rom the maintenance standpoint, but are less popular with the golfer. Gene T i f t and Everglades are doing well in Suuth Florida. T h e new Houston CC course is being planted wiih Gene l i f t from tee to green. It is do-ing well at Guadalajara , Mex. and is so popu lar with golfers there that the other greens will be changed iu all probability.

T h e newest T i f ton selection, first designated "328" but now called "Ti [green", is one of the best for greens and very popular wherever it has heen used. Its range of adaptat ion is wide. There are good greens ill south Georgia. El Paso (Tex.) CC has three greens of Tif-green and plan to change the others as soon as possible. This strain has a good color, is a vigorous grower, and stays vegetative. T h e r e are almost no stubbly seed stalks.

The Orniund selection of Bermuda grass (designated T-82 iu Texas) is being used successfully on some Florida courses for tees and fairways. T h e workers ai LaCruces, N, M., regard T-47, a Texas selection, as one of the better Bermudas for use in that state,

U-3 Wins Favor Li-3 Bermuda grass continues to be the

most popular selection in the zone from Philadelphia and Washington-across to Kansas City, Farther south other strains outrank it iu popularity. Thorughou t the twilight ?one U-3 makes a tight turf and ranks high in Winter hardiness. It is used mostly on tees.

but some clubs afc converting fairways to this glass. "lhe grass on the best U-3 Bermuda tees is cUt close to keep a tight turf . They are not used from (lie time growth stops in the fall until it starts in the spring.

Even better Bermuda selections will he de-veloped as a resiflt of* die turf projects at Tif ton^ ill Florida, Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Arizona, and California. Uganda is one such grass. It is extremely fine textured and is claimed lo he one of the best.

Meyer Zoysia is being used very successfully on the center third of the tees on one Chi-cago course. This center strip is used from mid-June until af ter Labor Day, During the other parts of the year play is from the cool season turf on the other two strips of the tee. One Chicago supt. has been able to get coverage ol Zoysia iti a single sea-son. Planting is with runnel's of Meyer Zoysia in rows spaced three inches apart . This method has produced quicker cover than planted plugs spaced 8 to 10 inches apart.

T h e tall fescues, either Alta or Kentucky 31, are hccoiniug popular as vegetative cover lor roughs anil hanks around greens in the Southwest, T h e i r first use for these purposes was one the Desert Inn course, Las Vegas, Ncv. Charles G. Wilson made the original suggestion for its use while he was Western Director for the Green Section, USGA, l h e roughs arc cut at 3 to t ins, and are ideal for play. Cutting at this height enables the grass to retain color with a min imum amount of water. Some of the new California clubs are seeding roughs lo Alta or Kentucky 31 fescue, probably because of its success at Las Vegas. T h e performance of tall fescue at Magna, Utah, would indicate that, it is ahle to persist in soils of some salinity.

(Continued on page 76)

Noer — Turf Roundup (Cdntimietf from page 70)

l he production ot seed heads in creeping bent grass nurseries is responsible for off-lype strains. Some growers al tempt to stop seed production with weed burners. At Purdue William Daniel prevented seed head forma, lion by using maleic hvdrazide, Positive re-sults were obtained even with very light dosages of this chemical.

Soil Sterilization Cyanamid and methyl bromide have been

used mostly for soil sterilization before sow-ing grass seed or planting stolons. Rolli arc good. Several weeks must elapse between Lhe use of cyanamid and seeding or planting. It docs not kill underground Bermuda grass rhizomes. Methyl bromide Is very effective, and kills the rhizomes of Bermuda and quack grass. It fails with some hard coated seeds ol clover. Seeding or planring can procecd within -fft hours alter treating. The liquid is intro-duced into sealed polyethylene tents. The methyl bromide changes to a heavy gas which sinks into the soil. It is allowed lo act for 24 hours. Then the tent is removed and soil is lefl lor another 24 hours before seed ing or planting. Treatment cost is high.

A new soil sterilant. "Vapain", looks prom-ising. It is diluted and sprayed or sprinkled over lhe surface. Drenching with water im-mediately to wash the Vapain into tile soil is essential and said to be the secret of success. Seeding or planting can start iu 10 lo 1-1 days.

l he turf nursery of Toronto bent at Maple Lane CC in Detroit is pure bent. Even poa annua is absent despite its presence in the area alongside the nursery. Clarence Wolfram follows this program before planting stolons in laic fall, and thinks it the secrct of weed and poa annua control. The nursery area is prepared by plowing or discing. Then sodium aisenile is sprayed over (he surface at ! lb. per HKX) sq. ft. with a minimum amount of water, "the area is worked with a spring-topth harrow to bring deeper soil to the surface and sodium arsenite is used again al the same T a t e . He sprays and cultivates six times in all and then plants lhe stolons.

Faster P lay Facil itated by N e w Maintenance Ideas

Hill Brady, supt.. Maple Bluff CC, Madi-son. Wis., suggests that the supt, and the green cluim. keep their eyes on tbailees to enable players lo gel around the course faster, but it) having the game made too easy it isn't fun.

Brady s;iys "The greatest improvement in playing condition at Maple Bluff this year has been the lowering of the cut on the blind boles. We used to have a 4'/. ins. heavy bluegrass rough arid this slow

ed up play while goffers looked for balls. By lowering the cut to I'/i ins. out about 150 yds, tbe balls are easily found; yet, there's still rough that is somewhat of a hazard. T h e player who doesn't get 150 yds. already has lost enough distance and should be penalized more.

"We also left a 10 ft. lo 12 ft, strip of protective rough along out-of-bounds fences to keep the ball in the course. Es-pecially along hard and dry fairways such strips save time and money for the player as much of our out-of-bounds is bordered by railroad bank and road.

Research Does the Job "Research has done a tremendously val-

uable job for us iu providing chemicals with wider range of effective use. We form-erly had to buy four or five chemicals for different diseases and go to the ex-pense of applying them separately. Now one chemical will control several diseases in all kinds of weather and without shock or burn to the turf.

"Research that would be of high value to our course would be that developing a hardy grass for our iron-shot tees. We are too far north for good results with zoysia. T h e grass, we need, preferably of the Lev rare of zoysia, must be able to stand the low cut of our bent tees."

Areas Around Greens, Rough and Ladies Tees Need Study Vreas adjacent lo greens and the rough

of ten provide opportunit ies to step up maintenance with results that are con-spicuoits and pleasing to the players and the supt,, says Waller Leix, supt., Shan tiopin CC, Pittsburgh, Pa.

Leix relates that at Shannopin this year areas adjacent to the greens and tees were limed and fertilized but, because of topography of those localities, couldn't be aerified. T h e rough was aerified, limed and fertilized. T h e Shannopin supt, calls at tention to the usual case of budgets being stretched to (he limit to do every-thing possible for the greens, collars, fairways and tees. Due to those primary demands, other areas often get less groom ing than the supt. and chmn. would like to give them. When you can get around to giv ing rough, green and tee areas some special at tention the work does a whole lot to make the whole picture of the course sparkle.

At Shannopin. several ol the ladies' tees were enlarged. "Women's golf is increas