1

Have you done everything you can to protect against winterkill?

SURVIVING WINTER

2 3

As the playing season winds down, most of us are looking forward to a hard-earned respite from the constant attention a golf course demands

all summer long. But as much as we might want to ease up a bit in the fall, it’s really the most critical time to prepare your turf to survive the ravages of winter.

Without adequate preventive measures, you could find yourself working through next year’s entire season—and spending unnecessary dollars—trying to restore a green that still hasn’t recovered from winter’s damage.

There’s no telling what Mother Nature will dish out this winter, but you can spare yourself that extra effort and cost by taking proactive measures to protect your turf. Produced in collaboration with our clients and industry partners, this booklet provides information and recommendations that can help minimize damage and ensure a swift recovery from the devastating effects of winterkill. In fact, the turf-building impact of sound preparation practices will keep paying dividends well into the next playing season.

Best of all, when opening day rolls around next spring and the air is filled with excited expectations, you’ll be able to say, “I’m doing everything I can—and it shows.”

C O N T E N T S

2 Intro

3 Winterkill Strategies – An interview with Greg Cormier

4 Taking on Winterkill with Erick Koskinen

5 Solutions from Precision

7 The Winter Stress Releiver Sheree Scarbrough, Silico Turf

8 Set the Stage Joel Simmons, EarthWorks

13 Time to Carbo Load Dale Miller, Redox Turf

15 Staying Ahead of Winter Eric Richardson, Essex CC

18 A Pre-Winter Checklist

19 The Tom Irwin Team

22 Product Listing

The Superintendent’s PerspectiveFor more than a half century, Nashawtuc Country Club in Concord, Massachusetts has been one of eastern Massachusetts’ premier golf courses, providing chal-lenging play for both casual golfers and pros on the Senior Tour, which Nashawtuc hosted for 24 years. Greg Cormier, Nashawtuc’s superintendent since 2009, spoke with us about how he and his team have battled – and succeeded – in the war against winterkill.

What are your past experiences with winterkill in the five years you’ve been at Nashawtuc?

Well my first year here we got a couple of spots on greens, nothing big, no real problems. But in the spring of 2010, we had four dead greens and several fairway areas that were dead. Two of those greens we were unable to open until June 10th, which was the first day of the men’s invitational, the biggest event of the year.

Since then we’ve seen some winterkill here and there. This past year I know was a bad year regionally, but we only lost a small portion of number one green and we lost several areas in fairways. Most of that appeared to be ice damage to the ryegrass.

Other damage took place in the low areas that just don’t drain well. One thing we definitely noticed was there was a lot less damage than in 2010.

Why do you feel that was the case?

Well we believe it was a combination of things. The biggest impact we had on preventing winterkill was tree removal and

drainage installation.

Every fall and winter we focus on our highest priority, which is eliminating shade issues on greens and tees and improving drainage on fairways. We’ve done a lot of work, and many of those areas that didn’t make it in 2010 survived this year.

You said that in 2010 two of those four damaged greens were closed until June 10 when you opened them for the men’s invitational. How do you think those damaged greens affected the tournament experience?

Well it was definitely a different playing condition on those particular greens. I mean speeds were slower and the ball roll was a little jumpy. And you know those greens were the first to suffer in July when it got hot. Those greens were pretty much on deathwatch the rest of the summer. The other greens did just fine. ... continued on page 10

Hole #2 Nashawtuc Country Club

WINTERKILL STRATEGIESAn Interview with Greg Cormier, CGCS Nashawtuc Country Club

WinterGreen applications on fair-ways puts you ahead in the Spring.

4 5

Erick Koskinen, District Manager, Precision Laboratories

You spend thousands of dollars and devote countless hours to create great playing surfaces for your customers. Why allow winter conditions to negate your hard work? Prepare your turf and root-zone for adverse winter conditions using products from Precision Laboratories.

We speak about “winterkill” as if it were a specific condition, but what is it really? Winterkill is actually a catchall term used to define turf loss during the winter. Winterkill can be caused by any combina-tion of factors, including crown hydration, desiccation, low temperatures, ice sheets, and snow mold.

Part of the challenge in preventing or treating these problems is that winter conditions are not easy to predict and can vary from course to course and from hole to hole.

Your first line of defense against winterkill is to understand each of the underlying problems that may be contributing to it:

Crown hydration Annual bluegrass is most susceptible to injury from crown hydration. Plants take up water during winter thaws and are prone to crown hydration when warm conditions are followed by a rapid freeze. During such cycles, ice crystals form in the crown of the plant, rupturing plant cells and causing the plant to die.

Creeping bentgrass is less susceptible to crown hydration because it remains

dormant longer than annual bluegrass and does not readily take up water during winter thaws.

DesiccationDesiccation occurs when turf is unpro-tected and subject to drying, cold winds

for extended periods of time. Exposed turf can lose moisture in crown tissues — the site of root, leaf and stem production — resulting in plant death. This condition is common on short-cut annual bluegrass, but can occur on other species and on sports turf as well.

Low temperature kill During typical fall conditions, turf plants undergo a process called “hardening off.”

This process occurs when turf responds to decreasing temperatures and shorter day lengths. As plant harden off, plant tissue dehydrates and concentrations of potassium ions and sugars increase, making the plant more resistant to low temperature kill. Warm weather late in the fall can delay hardening and allow plants to become susceptible to ice formations in the crown. The table to the right shows low temperature hardiness by species.

Former golf course superintendent Erick Koskinen brings a deep understanding of our clients’ challenges to his role at Precision Laboratories. For 50 years, Precision Laboratories has been a leading provider of specialized chemistries applied to plants, seeds, soil and water to maximize resource and biological performance potential while stewarding the environment. Here, Erick provides a closer look at the causes and treatment of winterkill.

Ice sheets Turf death occurs when a thick layer of ice covers playing surfaces, causing a reduction in gaseous exchange between the turf and the atmosphere. Under such con-ditions, oxygen is depleted and concentrations of toxic gasses, such as carbon dioxide, butanol, and ethyl butyrate increase. Factors such as the period of time under ice cover and the permeability of the ice cover may affect the survival of the turf covered.

Snow mold Typhula blight (gray snow mold) and Microdochium patch (pink snow mold) are two diseases that cause injury to turf. Gray snow mold occurs during extended periods of snow cover; whereas pink snow mold may occur with or without snow cover. If left untreated with fungicides, snow mold damage can occur, affecting the playing condi-tions of greens, tees, and fairways the following spring.

Taking on Winterkill

Winterkill solutions from Precision

TURFGRASS SPECIES

Low Temperature

Hardiness

Rough bluegrass Excellent

Creeping bentgrass Excellent

Kentucky bluegrass Good

Colonial bentgrass Good

Tall fescue Medium

Red fescue Medium

Annual bluegrass Medium

Perennial ryegrass Poor

cont. next page

DESICCATIONCROWN HYDRATION

ICE COVER PLANT HARDENING

PRODUCT Desiccation Crown Hydration

Low Temperature Ice Cover Snow Mold

Wintergreen™ Yes No Yes No No

Envy™/AquaLock™ Combo Yes No Yes No Yes

Cascade Plus™/ Duplex™ Combo

No Yes No No No

Cascade Plus Fertilizer 0-0-20 No Yes Yes No No

SYNC® No No No No Yes

6 7

The following adjuvants, soil surfactants, turf paints, and pigments from Precision Laboratories offer you field-tested solu-tions that can help protect your turf from winterkill.

Winter preparation issues and solutionsISSUE: Dessication SOLUTION: Wintergreen Plus™ – A non-phytotoxic colorant and anti-desic-cant formulated to impart a natural green color to dormant or actively growing turf. Wintergreen Plus is recommended for spraying systems using diaphragm pumps. Wintergreen Plus’ unique formulation coats the exterior of the entire plant, providing a long term insulating layer that helps offset the harmful effects of plant desiccation during periods of extended winter exposure.

Apply at 16 - 32 ounces per 1,000 ft2.

We no longer use fabric turf covers. They are very labor intensive and I don’t think they do that much for ice. They’re just a pain. We have been using Wintergreen on our greens for about 15 years. Its so much easier and we’ve been very happy with the results. I tell people “we use a liquid turf cover. We spray our covers on!”John Ottaviano , Manchester Country Club, Manchester Vt.

ISSUE: Low temperature kill during fall hardening off

SOLUTIONS: The dark green color of Wintergreen Plus absorbs sunlight during

shorter day lengths, which helps miti-gate extreme temperature changes. Less temperature fluctuation allows plants to harden off gradually and become better resistant to cold temperatures.

Apply at 16 - 32 ounces per 1,000 ft2.

For those with centrifugal pumps, tank mix AquaLockk™ & Envy™. AquaLock is a unique wax dispersion that forms

a thin, flexible water repellent layer on plant surfaces. Envy is a combination of pigments and spray adjuvants providing a natural green color that partners well with AquaLock for winter injury prevention.

Apply a mix of 6 oz. of AquaLock and .5 oz. of Envy per 1,000 sq. ft.

We use some covers, but turf blankets are extremely labor intensive. Wintergreen protects our greens all winter long from wind desiccation and helps them green up better in the spring. A heavy coat of wintergreen after our last snow mold application increases the longevity of our snow mold controls by protect-ing the chemicals from sunlight degradation in the weeks or months leading into snow cover. Kevin Komer, Stowe Moutain Club, Stowe Vt.

ISSUE: Crown hydration and low temperature kill SOLUTIONS: Apply a tank mix of 4 oz. of Cascade Plus and 1 oz. of Duplex per 1,000 square feet, prior to soils freezing in late fall. This fall application will remove water from the soil surface and deeper into the root zone, helping to prevent conditions that lead to crown hydration.

Cascade Plus™ Fertilizer 0-0-20 – Combines the ability of Cascade Plus to move water off the soil surface with beneficial potassium sulfate and calcium sulfate in a convenient granular formulation. Apply 5 lbs. per 1,000 sq. ft. of Cascade Plus Fertilizer 0-0-20, prior to soils freezing in late fall.

ISSUE: Grey snow mold and pink snow mold SOLUTION: SYNC® - Unique, proprietary adjuvant technology enhances performance of contact

and systemic fungicides, and lengthens disease control.

Add 1 pint of SYNC to 100 gallons of fungicide spray solution.

ISSUE: Low temperature kill SOLUTION: Apply 5 lbs. per 1,000 sq. ft. of Cascade Plus Fertilizer 0-0-20, prior to soils freezing in late fall, to provide potassium that is essential for plant hardening. The surfactants in Cascade Plus will move water from the soil surface and deeper into the root zone, helping to prevent conditions that lead to crown hydration.

Contact Erick Koskinen: ekoskinen@precisionlab.com

Silicon: The Winter Stress RelieverSheree Scarbrough, Owner, Silico Turf

Silicon. The mere mention of the word evokes an array of images, from steel-like blades of grass to bulletproof wear-resis-tant turf. While these perceptions may be accurate, the most significant fact to remember is that turfgrass in stress will

take up all of the silicon that is available -- up to up to 204 lbs. per 10001! What an amazing nutrient!

Since the nature of our business is stress-ing turf, whether it’s mowing at 1/10”, rolling and double cutting or playing repetitive games on the same game fields, and knowing that turfgrass seeks out all available silicon when in stress, shouldn’t we be implementing silicon into our turf programs year round?

Soluble silicon, or plant-available silicon,

is identified as mono-silicic acid. This form of plant-available silicon is not abun-dant in native soils and is nonexistent in sandy soils where we grow our most stressed turf. We need products with available silicon to fulfill this need and we need to provide it via the soil for sustain-

ability and consistent availability of silicon to be most effective.

How can Silicon help reduce winter damage to turf?Winter conditions can severely stress our turf. Dehydration, ice cover, and snow mold are key threats. When the plant has access to mono-silicic acid via the soil, it is carried by the transpiration stream and deposited in plant tissues as amorphous silica gel2, strengthening the cell walls similar to the way framing out a building

helps it withstand the elements. Silica is the drywall. So, when winter conditions cause dehydration within the leaf tissue, the amorphous silica gel prevents the collapse of the cell walls.

But even more exciting, when silicon is present in leaf tissue, research has shown that it forms complexes with organic com-pounds in the cell walls, increasing their resistance to degradation by enzymes released by fungi.

Silicon causes a defense response within the plant that helps it fight off disease pathogens. This suggests that we can also deter the effects of snow mold and melting out if there is ample silicon in the tissue going into winter.

Application rate for SILI-CAL SS winter programThe ideal time to apply SILI-CAL SS is in late fall when the plant is still actively taking up nutrients. An application rate of 20 lbs. per 1000 sq. ft. on greens and 15 lbs. per 1000 sq. ft. on higher-cut turf will provide season long uptake of plant available silicon as well as a good shot of calcium.

1-2 Silicon in the Life and Performance of Turfgrass; Lawrence E. Datnoff, Professor of Plant Pathology, University of Florida- IFAS, Department of Plant Pathology

Contact Sheree Scarbrough: sheree@silicoturf.com

Launched in 2010, Silico Turf LLC is focused on delivering the benefits of silicon in a comprehensive

nutrition program for turf grass. Founder Sheree Scarbrough has built her company’s success by

delivering the most soluble source of silicon available, making more silicon available to the plant more

quickly. The professionals at Silico Turf maintain that silicon is a dynamic nutrient that can play a major

role in sustaining strong turfgrass throughout the winter.

8 9

Set the Stage for a Great YearJoel Simmons, Owner, EarthWorks

We grow grass because we love what we do, we love to see the results when it’s done right, and we love to see our work being enjoyed by so many. We also love to spend time with our families and enjoy summer activities with them. When we do our jobs well, that’s exactly what we can expect. Being prepared and informed helps us all achieve those goals. One of the biggest impacts we can make on any property is a good carbon feeding in the late fall going into winter.

Last winter was one of the toughest in memory -- a lot of grass and ornamentals were lost through the long desiccating winter months and too many turf managers came into the spring staring at dead grass and dealing with the frustration of all who were looking forward to being outside when spring finally arrived.

When fighting winterkill issues, it’s all about the buffers in the soil and how well that property is prepared to rebound. As long as I can remember, people have asked me, “If you had one time in the year to put down an Earth-Works dry fertilizer when would it be?” I have, for over 26 years, answered that question the same way – “In the fall as a dormant feed!”

By feeding the soil in the fall with a rich carbon-based fertilizer like one pound of nitrogen through the EarthWorks Replenish 5-4-5 you are doing so much more than providing NPK. You are providing a sustainable food and mineral source to that soil that, through the freezing and thawing cycles of the winter, will move well into the root zone and provide nutrition for the plant and food for the microbial population as they wake up in the spring.

One of the criticisms that we fought for so many years was “Organic fertilizers don’t work until the soil completely warms up in late spring.” If that were the case, the second bag of 5-4-5 would never have been sold! In fact, what we did discover, with the help of our clients, was that dormant feeding got the grass up and going in the spring faster than anything else the

turf manager did -- and that success continued all the way through the summer months.

We can talk about the types of nitrogen to use but that’s not really the issue; it’s about the carbon and the amount and quality of carbon used. Car-bon-based soils will generate plenty of nitrogen through microbial release and in a form that is completely plant-available.

That carbon is food energy for microbes and can help open up tight soils for better drainage and build populations of bacteria that will help fight diseases through out the season.

We also know that air movement through the soil is essential during the winter months. A sound

carbon-based soil will stay flocculated throughout the winter but soils fed exclusively with salt fertilizers will burn out the needed carbon. This carbon base also builds root zone buffers, a protec-tion around the roots that can get them through the toughest of winters so that by spring, the property comes back to life, healthy and ready for the perils of summer.

The EarthWorks Replenish 5-4-5, and/or Renovate Plus at ample rates will provide the greatest volume of carbon and nutri-ents to protect the plants from winterkill and set the property up for a great spring.

The key to carbon management is volume applications and getting enough into the soil to provide the level of food and recovery we need in our highly stressed environments.

Once a level of carbon is achieved, rates can start to drop, but because of the intense pressure that a golf course or sports field is subjected to every year, and the agronomic restrictions that are placed

on each property, maintaining that carbon base is essential.

Liquid products like EarthWorks Protein Plus, Trilogy, and Cal Vantage provide multiple forms of carbon and nutrients

that, if used well into the season. will continue to feed the plant while the soil remains warm, building reserves to buffer the plant/root environment.

Protein Plus is one of the most efficient ways to get nitrogen into the plant because of all the co-factors in the

product that help nitrogen quickly move through the nitrification cycle.

This can build a carbohydrate reserve in the plant to help survive any stress factors. The carbon, phosphorous, potassium and

calcium found in Trilogy and Cal Vantage further help this hardening off of the plants as they go into winter and provide a reserve for the spring. It is equally import-ant to start the liquid organic program as early in spring as possible because you want to build back that plant reserve used up in the winter to get the plant ready for summer. If these foliar and available carbon sources are started too late in the spring, there may not be enough buffers in the plant and root zone to fight off the stress of June, July and August.

Dormant feeding should only be carbon based; the carbon won’t leach out or vola-tilize like synthetic fertilizers can.

Products like EarthWorks Replenish 5-4-5 do not burn out carbon in the soil; they build carbon reserves and buffers. It’s this carbon base that provides the “blanket” in the soil to assure that your spring will be a good one for everyone who enjoys your property.

Contact Joel Simmons: Joel@soilfirst.com

Hole #2 Nashawtuc Country Club

Carbon Feeding When a golf course is covered by snow, it’s rarely completely dormant. Winter’s thermal and precipitation fluctuations provide weeks of opportunity for root systems to build strength. For more than a decade, EarthWorks’ pioneering Soil First approach has proven the value of balancing soil chemistry for Tom Irwin clients. And in the winter, that means carbon feeding.

10 11

...continued from page 3

Yes, often times it’s an entire season to get damaged greens back to championship condition. Share with us how your crew felt that year in 2010 when you worked so hard to get the course back in shape.

You know it’s um, well it’s depressing for lack of a better word. Our crew is proud of the work we do and the culture we’ve built here. You know it’s tough to look at dead grass. It’s tough to know the members aren’t getting the conditions they deserve. It’s just not what we’re used to.

What does your fall turfgrass program look like in particular?

Well you know after Labor Day, Septem-

ber is pretty much all golf. Of course we maintain our spray programs in Sep-tember and October. These are geared towards plant health and nutrition. We tend to increase rates of our Rx Supreme and Rx Calcium during these months. Rx Supreme has the P and K we need that time of year. Plants are putting down roots and need all the help they can get.

We also add RX Magnesium to try and maintain chlorophyll production in the plants.

Use of Rx Mg during late summer all the way to winter dormancy will improve photo-synthesis and carbohydrate production.Dale Miller, Redox Chemical

We also aerify greens in October. We get real aggressive culturally with that.

When you say aggressive what do you mean by that?

For us an aggressive cultivation is 3 to 4 different processes, all aimed at adding sand to the profile. We start out with a deep 1/2” verti-drain solid tine in mid October. Typically the day after that, we go out with a 5/8” hollow tine and pull a core.

We use a Pro Core 648 in one direction. We top dress heavy, brush and roll after that. We follow that the next day with a Graden walk behind to verti-cut and dethatch with 2 mm blades in one direc-tion. And then right after that we come through with a Dry-ject Maximus.

There’s a lot of sand being put into our greens. I believe it’s one of the main reasons our greens are surviving better than they did in the past.

Do you dormant feed?

I wouldn’t call it a dormant feed. After the process that we just talked about is com-pleted, I fertilize with EarthWorks 10–2–5. It’s an organic bridge product.

I go a minimum of 1 pound of nitrogen per thousand and sometimes a pound and a half.

One of the biggest impacts we can make on any property is a good carbon feeding in the late fall going into winter. Joel Simmons, EarthWorks Natural Organic Products

I also put down about 15 pounds per thousand of Sili-Cal SS, a calcium silicate product. Again we know how important calcium and silicon are to plant health and reproduction. We want to grow roots going into winter and this type of cultiva-tion and nutrition helps us do that.

What do you use as a nitrogen source through the fall and going into winter?

We just stay on what we’re on all year, which is Protein Plus from EarthWorks. We like organic feeding. We increase our fall rate to 8 or 10 ounces per thousand every two weeks from our weekly 4 ounce rate we use all summer. That plus that pound to pound and a half of EarthWorks 10-2-5 in October really does the trick.

How do you feel about turf covers?

I don’t typically used turf covers, unless it’s a grow-in situation or recovery situa-tion where we are growing up some new turf.

We use a liquid turf cover, which is Win-tergreen from Precision Labs. I just started using wintergreen three years ago.

Wintergreen Plus coats the exterior of the entire plant, providing a long term insulat-ing layer that helps offset the harmful effects of plant desicca-tion during periods of extended winter exposure. Erick Koskinen, Precision Laboratories

We spray it on with a gun, which allows us to put it on as heavy as we want. We spray it at about 32 ounces per thousand. We get a really good coating on the plant. It’s great in helping to prevent desiccation during those years when we have little to no snow cover. I really think that helps with how we wake up in the spring.

Describe that for us.

As far as spring goes? It’s a natural green almost like I just took some covers off. They don’t turn brown like they do when you pull off a cover. And they wake up steady, and when you start to mow off the liquid cover, the plants are healthy and green as you move into the spring. They don’t get shocked like they do with the regular cover.

So I chose that method of covering my greens with the liquid cover rather than having to deal with the labor and hassle of fabric covers. And when we have to remove ice or snow, I like that there’s no cover under there that gets torn apart or gets caught in the snow blower or who knows what.

Do you dormant seed?

Not really. I do plan on purchasing a dimple seeder and seeding in early fall to get some germination before winter. We’ll repeat the process again in May to hopefully get more bentgrass into the greens. We’ve been experimenting with Paclobutrizol and Cutless on the greens to try and gain a little more bent and the over seeding process will help that.

How do you feel about soil moisture going into winter? Do you use wetting agents or dry down agents?

Yes, we use cascade and duplex all year long. Last year we did an extra application of cascade and duplex about a week before our aggressive cultivation, which I normally don’t do. I didn’t get any real amount of winterkill, so maybe that helped.

The biggest thing we did notice from that application was in the spring when the

Green #8 Nashawtuc Country Club

Club House at Nashawtuc Country Club

12 13

greens cleared off they were not hydro-phobic, every year before that the greens have been completely hydrophobic in April and would not take the water. What a difference that made for us this year. So cascade and duplex is going to be a part of that early October process for us every year.

What do you spray for snow mold chemicals?

Well, like I said we keep up our spray program through the fall which includes fungicides and nutrient supplements. In October we do a lead up spray, typically Chipco 26GT (iprodione) and Pegasus (chlorothalonil) for fungicides. And of course we keep up our rates of Rx Supreme, Calcium and Magnesium.

We also put in some fall anthracnose control because we’ve had some early season anthracnose in the past. In 2014, knock on wood, we haven’t seen any anthracnose on the greens. We usually see it in the cool and wet springs.

My ‘go to’ for the final application has been Interface and Triton for the past three years. It’s worked really well.

Do you feel the “turf Health” aspects of some of the Bayer and BASF products have been a contributor to your chemical successes?

The one thing I can say I notice is when I use Insignia, I definitely get a plant response from it. It’s like a green up. You see it. And that I would have to say helps.

Any of the other things, you know, like stress-gard, is hard to quantify for me. I can’t say I notice a big difference in plant response. But I can say their stuff works and I use their products.

Thank you for taking the time to share with us some of the things you do going into winter. Is there anything we may have missed or anything you would like to add?

Yes. It’s important to keep up your fungi-cide and nutrient programs all the way to the end.

But I think the big picture here is to not lose sight of the major factors that contribute to year round turf loss and in particular winter turf loss: shade, drainage, and air movement.

I mean every-body knows

that. You know you look at a green and say ‘this green really doesn’t have an issue’ but you watch shade patterns and you know there’s morning shade on it. Or if one of our greens holds water but it does okay. The danger here is that you don’t act.

And when you get a bad winter like 2013-2014, it’s going to expose your weaknesses and just whack you. So even though for the last ten years it might have been pretty good, you still need to do that drainage project, you still need to take that tree down, you still need to clear that underbrush.

That’s what we try to do here. I try to stay proactive and stay ahead on tree removal and drainage and other things that might hurt you. You never know what a difference even the smallest thing can make when you get a winter like we just had.Greg Cormier, CGCS, Nashawtuc Country Club

Thanks Greg. That is a very telling statement, that “a tough winter will expose your weaknesses”. It lends itself to the question, “have I done all I can to prepare my greens for winter?”

Greg welcomes you to contact him if you have questions about his experience with Tom Irwin: gcormier@nashawtuc.com

The people at Redox pride themselves on the sophisticated science behind their plant and soil nutritional products. Through proprietary nutrient complexing and chelation and a production process incorporating both chemistry and biotechnology, Redox offers solutions that are remarkably efficient and environmentally responsible. Dale Miller explains...

It’s Time for Your Turf to Carbo-LoadDale Miller, National Agronomist, Redox Turf

Last winter re-established the require-ment to provide optimal and appropriate fall nutrition to help plants store carbohy-drates and properly harden off for winter.

Redox recommends that a strong annual, overall cultural program is in place with attention to root systems, hardening off the plant in the fall and building the maximum amount of carbo-hydrate storage possible going into winter dormancy.

This involves a complete nutritional program, running from spring to fall, focused on building optimal root density and mass.

Focus on P, K and Calcium is criticalCalcium is seldom adequate in any soil

— no matter what the pH range — to supply

appropriate levels for increased root mass. Rx Ca supplies the soluble calcium your grass demands to improve cell wall integrity and facilitate increased root mass. When used in conjunction with soluble Rx P, the energy molecule, it will help the plant develop significantly greater root mass and depth.

As this is critical to winter storage of carbohydrates, building the maximum root mass prior to winter dormancy is key to winter hardi-ness and spring green up. Simply stated, more roots mean more carbohydrate storage -- and that will pay huge dividends every winter.

Redox suggests regular inputs of Rx Ca at 1-1.5gal/ac weekly to biweekly through-out the year on greens, monthly on tees and fairways. Rx P should be applied at 1-2qts./acre, weekly to biweekly on

greens, and monthly on tees and fairways.

For fall hardening off and building the plant’s ability to resist severe cold tem-peratures, Redox recommends the use of soluble potassium as well as calcium.

The plant uses potassium as the oil in the machine, improving nutrient flow and metabolic processes as well as cellular resistance to cold temperatures.

#10 Green Nashawtuc Country Club

Hole #2 Nashawtuc Country Club

14 15

Potassium is well documented as a key nutrient in the plant’s ability to deal with high stress related to extremes in tem-peratures and moisture.

With highly available potassium, Rx K+ will improve the plant’s ability to deal with low temperature extremes and harden off against cold winter temperatures.

As potassium improves total nutrient flow and metabolism in the plant, the overall condition of the plant will improves and carbohydrate storage will be maximized.

Redox suggests regular inputs of K+ starting in the late summer on greens from 2-3 lbs./acre weekly to biweekly. On tees and fairways, apply 3-4 lbs./acre monthly. Apply up to winter dormancy.

Photosynthesis is key to plant survival and carbohydrate production. As the sun moves towards the winter solstice

in October and November, cooler temperatures and low light conditions decrease photosynthesis and chlorophyll production.

Magnesium is the center of the chloro-phyll molecule and vital to chlorophyll production. Similar to calcium, mag-nesium is seldom adequate in soluble form to provide improved fall color and

increased photosynthesis.

Soluble magnesium inputs will improve fall color significantly, improve metabolic benefits better than iron, and enhance the photosynthesis process naturally.

Use of Rx Mg during late summer all the way to winter dormancy will improve photosynthesis and carbohy-drate production by supply-ing the plant with adequate soluble magnesium.

Redox suggests regular inputs starting in the late summer on greens from 8-16 oz./acre weekly to biweekly. On tees and fairways, apply 16-24 oz./acre monthly. Apply all the way to winter dormancy.

For additional Carbohydrate and overall nutritional support, Rx Supreme will provide tremendous benefits.

Rx Supreme is 30% RxK and 30% RxMicro with the rest being soluble carbon, inclusive of mannitol. The fermentation process involved in the manufacturing of Rx Supreme combines all these elements plus carbon in a highly

available nutrient package for cool season use and carbohydrate support.

Mannitol, assimilated by the plant from Rx Supreme, acts to facilitate nitrogen metabolism and further increases carbo-hydrate production in the plant.

During periods when the plant is starting to slow production of carbohydrates, Rx Supreme will continue to provide benefits nutritionally while increasing carbohy-drate production all the way up to winter dormancy.

As a product that provides significant nutrition as well as soluble carbon inputs, Rx Supreme will deliver unsurpassed overall benefits in the early spring and late fall months.

Redox suggests regular inputs of Rx Supreme starting in the early fall on greens from 0.5-1 gal./acre weekly to biweekly. On tees and fairways, apply 1-1.5 gal./acre monthly. Apply all the way to winter dormancy.

Contact Dale Miller: dale@redoxchem.com

Green #17 Essex County Club

STAYING AHEAD OF WINTERAn Interview with Eric Richardson, Essex County Club

The Superintendent’s PerspectiveIt took legendary golf course designer Donald Ross a full eight years to complete the 18-hole Essex County Club golf course in Manches-ter-by-the-Sea, Massachusetts – and it shows. Nearly a century later, the course remains one of his iconic designs, earning hosting honors for the Curtis Cup tournament in 2010. Under the care of superintendent Eric Richardson, Essex County has taken a proactive approach to minimizing winter damage, as he explained to us.

Thank you for taking the time to share with us some of your views on winter preparation. Do you use turf covers?

We do. We use a variety of turf covers. We use the impermeables and the permeable covers. We use impermeables on our three greens that collect the most water during the winter, and we use the permeables on the rest of the greens. All 20 greens are covered in the winter.

Do you use Wintergreen?

We do. We spray Wintergreen before any cover goes on. We apply it usually the day after we put out our snow mold chem-icals. Wintergreen gets put on every single green, every single approach, and every single weak spot that we have on our fairways.

What rate do you apply it at?

We use 20 ounces per thousand.

A single application?

One single application, yes.

Through your boom?

Through the boom, through our Multi-Pro. We found out that the diaphragm pumps work better with that product. You cannot use that product with a centrifugal pump; it leaks all over the place. But if you have a sprayer with a diaphragm pump, it’s easy to put out. Just make sure you do a thorough rinse and get it cleaned up. I’m a strong believer that that product saves turf. There was one winter where I did not use Wintergreen on a couple of holes, and those areas got dinged up. I think it defi-nitely gives you a little edge in terms of survival during the winter.

Please share with us what your fall cultural practices look like.

Our winter prep really starts in August. We aerify and overseed in August to get more bent grass into the greens. Obviously, bent grass survives winter better than poa. And we kind of roll that into September, where we start feeding the plants more. We’re not starving them anymore. We’re giving them more carbon.

What do you use for your fertilizer?

We’re using Redox products. We’re using EarthWorks products, liquid Redox products, granular EarthWorks products. We apply 500 pounds per acre of EarthWorks 5-4-5 at greens aerification. Club House at Essex County Club

16 17

Do you use EarthWorks other than at aerification?

Yes, we also put out 500 pounds dormant on the greens along with 500 pounds per acre of Sili-Cal, our calcium silicate product. We use the EarthWorks 3-4-3 on fairways every spring at 500 pounds per acre. We get lots of carbon that way without having to put out too much N. We apply 500 pounds of Sili-Cal in the fairways around the same time.

Do you do any additional cultivation after August?

We do. We solid tine aerate the greens two more times at the end of October. We solid tine on a very tight spacing with

half-inch solid tines in two directions so we’re opening up drainage channels.

In two directions?

Two directions, yes, at a 45 degree angle. Sometimes that process goes into Novem-ber. We also core-aerate all the collars and leave those holes empty during the winter. We feel it helps move water from the surface. It may not be a large percent-age of the water, but any little edge that we can get going into winter, we take.

Do you use wetting agents going into fall?

We use wetting agent all season long into September. After that we don’t use any wetting agents. In fact, we try not to water at all. The drier the soil and plant, the

more hydrophobic they become, the better the chances they will shed water. I feel late season applications of wetting agents, no matter what type, can hold some water, which could contribute to crown hydration.

Is there anything else you do that might help prevent winterkill here at the club?

Well, over the years we’ve significantly decreased our incidences of winter damage. The number-one factor that affected that is managing the growing

environment around the greens, tees, and fairways by removing trees and adding drainage.

You’ve done a lot of extensive tree work here at Essex. Has that impacted the greens areas in particular?

That was the main focus originally with the tree work. We’ve been peeling back some of the layers on this golf course, not just from a visual standpoint, but from an agronomic standpoint also. We really con-centrate on tree removal around greens and areas that were weak. Not just from winter damage, but just weak in general.

It’s really changed this golf course. Air flow through this golf course is com-pletely different than it was eight years ago. We’ve removed over 25,000 trees. We’ve installed over 10,000 linear feet of drainage with still more to do. We’re still working on it.

The results show. This was a difficult winter and a lot of good people lost turf on greens, tees and fairways. How did you make out this past winter?

We lost a couple of small water collection areas on two approaches. Other than that, we did okay.

Is there anything else you would like to add?

Yes. You know, plant health issues aside, you need the club’s support and under-standing when you take on the many chal-lenges like we faced here at Essex. Besides the extensive tree and drainage work we were allowed to do, the club has afforded us a year-round staff of 8 to 10 guys and the equipment necessary to remove snow, ice, and water during the winter. We’re able to get out there and do the work on those days that are extremely

important in January, February, and March. And so they’ve really allowed us to do what is necessary all year long. They understand that providing the champion-ship conditions they expect needs just as big a commitment from them as is does from me and my team.

Thank you, Eric, for taking the time with us today.

Eric welcomes you to contact him if you have any questions about his experience with Tom Irwin: erichardson@essexcc.org

Hole #4 at Essex Country Club

Hole #4 at Essex County Club

18 19

The Tom Irwin Team

Chris Petersen President, Sales in Greater Boston Chris joined the Tom Irwin sales team in 1988 where he worked with his father, company co-founder Jack Petersen. Together, Jack and Chris continued to build a strong company culture centered around a unique collaborative, customer care value structure. The knowledge and experience Chris gained were put to good use when he was named President of Tom Irwin in 2002. Under his leadership, Tom Irwin, Inc. has continued to grow and prosper and in 2008 successfully expanded its operations into the sports turf market. Chris is a member and past president of the Independent Turf & Ornamental Distributors Association (ITODA) and Executive Board Member of ProKoz. Contact Chris at 508-277-3333

Paul Skafas Vice President, Sales in Northeastern MA, NH, VTFor more than 25 years, Paul has exemplified the Tom Irwin collaborative approach to helping clients succeed. He has an unmatched record of industry accomplishments, a unique grasp of plant, soil, and water sciences, and a comprehensive understanding of industry chemistries. After successfully growing and leading the sales team, Paul was named Vice President of Tom Irwin Inc. in 2002. He has a rare dedication to finding practical solutions to the ever-changing challenges facing today’s golf course superintendents and sports turf managers. Contact Paul at 603- 490-7774

Ben Andrews Operations Manager

Ben is responsible for the oversight and management of all office operations, purchasing and distribution, vehicles and infrastructure at Tom Irwin. In addition, he has served on the Board of Directors for the New England Sports Turf Managers Association (NESTMA) and is a member of the Sports Turf Managers Association (STMA). Ben received his Associate’s Degree in Horticulture from Essex Agricultural in 1998 and his BS in Soil Science from the University of Massachusetts in 2000. Contact Ben at 508-572-7801

Joseph Szymanowski Chief Financial Officer

Joe has been the Chief Financial Officer for Tom Irwin Inc. for more than 15 years. He has an extensive financial and operations background, having previously held the positions of Corporate Controller for Digital Software Services, Manager of International Accounting Operations for Itek Graphic products, and CPA with Coopers & Lybrand. Joe earned a BS in Accounting from LeMoyne College and a MBA from American International College.

Rob Larson Sales Manager, Sales in Central and Western MA, Northeastern CT Rob joined the Tom Irwin team in 2001. His extensive turf grass experience was gained working as a Golf Course Superintendent in Central Massachusetts for 15 years. He served on the Board of Directors for the Golf Course Superintendents of New England Association and is a graduate of the Turf Management program at the University Of Massachusetts, Stockbridge School Of Agriculture. Contact Rob at 508-789-0059

Preparing for Winter ChecklistAre you…

■■ Removing trees that block sunlight to greens, tees, and other weak turfgrass areas, especially those trees that block morning sun?

■■ Installing or improving drainage where possible?

■■ Aerifying in order to open up channels for drainage and gas exchanges?

■■ Planning on using Wintergreen to protect turf from winter desiccation, and your snow mold chemicals from photodegradation?

■■ Applying enough soluble Calcium and Silicon to supply the raw materials needed to facilitate healthy root growth for carbohydrate storage?

■■ Applying enough soluble Phosphorous, the energy molecule, to facilitate healthy and vigorous root growth?

■■ Applying enough soluble Potassium to allow the plant tissue to harden off going into winter?

■■ Applying enough soluble Magnesium to increase chlorophyll and carbohydrate production in the plant as autumn daylight diminishes?

■■ Applying carbon based fertility to help build a healthy and well-aerified soil in order to facilitate water and air movement through the soil?

■■ Dormant feeding with EarthWorks 5-4-5 to provide nutrient reserves which will aid in spring green-up and turf grass recovery?

■■ Enlisting the support of club members and management by helping them to understand what needs to be done to prevent winter kill and provide healthy, championship conditions year round?

20 21

Greg Misodoulakis Sales in Southeastern MA, Cape Cod, RI Greg’s work experience in the golf industry spans more than 35 years, including 16 years as a Golf Course Superintendent and 11 years as a turf grass industry sales professional. He is an alumnus of the University of Massachusetts, Stockbridge School of Agriculture and has served on the boards of directors for the Northeastern Golf Course Superintendents Association (NEGCSA), and the New Hampshire Golf Course Superintendents Association (NHGCSA) where he was editor for the industry publication Turf Talk. Contact Greg at 508-243-6166

Mike DeForge Sales in Maine and NH

Since joining Tom Irwin in 2004, Mike has worked closely with clients to help them achieve their personal and professional goals. He has spent many years in the turf business and has participated in construction and grow-in as well as two PGA tournaments. Mike received his BS in Business from Framingham State College. Contact Mike at 603-490-8013

Brian Luccini Sales in Athletic Turf and Grounds, Eastern MA, RI, NH

Brian is dedicated to supporting Tom Irwin clients at schools, municipalities, professional sports facilities, and private estates across eastern New England. He’s been involved in fine turf and grounds maintenance literally since birth, having been born and raised on Franklin Country Club, in Franklin, Massachusetts. After a successful career in golf course management, Brian joined the Tom Irwin team in 2005. In addition to over 25 years of industry experience, Brian is a graduate of the Rutgers University Golf Turf Management program, as well as the University of Massachusetts Winter School for Turf Managers. Contact Brian at 781-799-9450

Jeff Houde Sales in Central and Southern CT, Westchester County

Before joining the Tom Irwin team, Jeff spent more than 20 years working on New England golf courses, including 10 years as a Superintendent and General Manager. Jeff received his degree in Plant and Soil Science from Essex Agricultural Institute. Contact Jeff at 203-731-1776

Chris Kneale Sales in Athletic Turf and Grounds, CT, Western MA, VT A 2003 graduate of the University of Massachusetts Amherst with a degree in Turf Management, Chris joined the Tom Irwin sales team, Sports Turf Division, in March of 2010. Earlier in his career, he served as the Athletic Turf Manager at Wellesley College and the Grounds Manager at Bentley University. Chris is a member of the Sports Turf Manager Association (STMA), CPA, CPRA and a member and past board member of NESTMA. Contact Chris at 860-539-1516

Fred Murray Customer Relations Manager

Fred is responsible for making sure that all of our clients are well cared for when they call the office with a question or concern. Before joining the Tom Irwin team in 2005, Fred was the Superintendent at Maynard Country Club and Wayland Country Club. Fred holds an Associate’s Degree in Turf Management from Ohio State University and previously served as a US Navy Air Crewman search and rescue swimmer with a helicopter squadron based in Norfolk, Virginia. Contact Fred at 978-337-6280

Sue Dube IT and Office Manager

Sue has been with Tom Irwin for over 15 years and oversees all of the technical programming, IT management and office logistics. Sue is an avid gardener and she enjoys creating floral design.

Kathy Halko Customer Assistance and Administrative ServicesKathy has been with Tom Irwin for over 13 years. She is an integral member of the office team. Kathy helps with orders, accounts payable and inventory control. Kathy is a devoted mother of two boys.

Franca Santoro Accounts Receivable and Finance AssistantFranca handles all Invoicing and receivables for Tom Irwin clients as well as payables for our partners. Franca enjoys spending time in the lakes region of New Hampshire.

Andy Noone Warehouse Manager Andy started with Tom Irwin as a delivery Specialist in 1999. In 2009, he was promoted to the position of Warehouse Manager where he keeps things running smoothly by overseeing transportation, distribution, our physical plant and fleet maintenance. Andy is a graduate of Northeastern University and is married with 3 children, aged 16, 14 and 8.

Bob Ronci Delivery Specialist

Brian Muldoon Warehouse Assistant

Mike Bailey Delivery Specialist

22 23

Tom Irwin

PRODUCT LISTING

Bayer CropScience www.bayer.com

Banol

Bayleton

Interface

Merit 75 WSP

Tartan

Acclaim Extra

Chipco 26019 Flo

Chipco 26GT Flo

Chipco Signature

Compass

CoreTect

Dylox 420 SL

Dylox 6.2 Granular

Finale Herbicide

Fiata®

Merit

Mirage®

Nortica®

Prograss

Prostar WG

Proxy

BASF Corporationwww.basf.com

Curalan EG

Drive XLR8

Lexicon

Emerald

Freehand

Insignia SC Intrinsic

Trinity

Honor Intrinsic

Pendulum Aquacap

Pillar G

Pylex

Segment

Tower

Xzemplar

Dow Chemicalwww.dow.com

Dimension 2EW

Conserve

Fore 80WP

Gallery 75 DF

Snapshot 2.5TG

EarthWorkswww.soilfirst.com

20-8-15 Ammon Sulfate

Base-One

Cal-Vantage

Eco-Lite

Kick Soil Conditioner

Potent-Sea Plus

Protein Plus 14-2-6

Renovate Plus

Replenish 10-2-5 GG

Replenish 10-2-5 SG

Replenish 5-4-5 GG

Replenish 5-4-5 SG

Replenish 8-2-2 SG

Replenish 16-1-5 SG

Sea-3

Trilogy TBS

FMCwww.fmcprosolutions.com/

Disarm 480 SC

Quicksilver

Xonerate

Growth Productswww.growthproducts.com

0-0-25 Liquid Potassium

0-30-0 Liquid

10-10-10

15-2-15 HI KAL

18-3-6 +Micros

20-3-3 Quick Response

22-0-0 Ammos

22-0-16 Nitro +K

30-0-0 Nitro

8-32-5 Starter Plus

Companion

Iron Max +Mn 15-0-0

Magnesium Chelate 3%

Micrel Total Chelate

Micro-Green

Organic Iron 5%

PH Reducer Citric Acid

Phos-Fight 0-29-26

X-Xtra Iron

Lebanon Seaboard Corp.www.lebanonturf.com

Country Club 10-18-18 Micros

Country Club 13-25-12 SGN 195

Country Club 16-4-8 SGN 145

Country Club 16-0-8 SGN 100

Country Club 17-0-17 SGN 145

Country Club 17-0-20 SGN 195

Country Club 18-3-18 SGN 100

Country Club 19-0-19 SGN 145

Country Club 21-3-18 SGN 195

Country Club 22-0-12 SGN 195

Country Club 29-0-10 SGN 195

Country Club 8-4-24 SGN 145

Country Club MD 12-0-24 SGN 80

Country Club MD 18-0-18 SGN 80

Country Club MD 22-0-16 SGN 80

NXPro 21-0-10 SGN 195

NXPro 28-0-14 SGN 195

PennMulch Seed Establish Mulch

ProScape 12-24-11 Tupersan

ProScape 15-0-5 .13 Dimension

ProScape 15-2-5 0.2%

ProScape 19-0-6 Confront3 w/Dimension

ProScape 19-0-7 .68 Confront

ProScape 20-0-5 0.2% Merit

ProScape 20-0-5 0.067% Acelepryn ProScape 20-0-8 .13 Dimension

ProScape 5-0-20 0.13 Dimension

Sulphate Of Potash 0-0-50

Logan Labswww.loganlabs.com

Logan Physical Test

Logan Chloride Test

Logan Compost Analysis

Logan Diagnostic Soil Test

Logan Nitrate & Ammonium Test

Logan Phosphorus Test

Logan Plant Tissue Testing

Logan Saturated Paste Extract

Logan Silicon Test

PBI / Gordon Corp.www.pbigordon.com

Bensumec 4LF

Brushmaster

Embark 2S

Embark T&O

Ferromec AC

Mecomec 2.5

Ornamec

Powerzone

Q4 Plus

Segway

SpeedZone

Speedzone Southern

Surge

Trimec Bentgrass Formula

Trimec Broadleaf Classic

Tupersan 50 WP

T-Zone

Zylam

Phoenix Environmental Carewww.phoenixenvcare.com

Dovetail

Firebird Pro

Goldwing

Kestrel

Monarch

Pegasus 6L

Pegasus DFX

Pegasus HPX

Peregrine

Raven

T-Bird

Viceroy 70 DF

Jetphiter

Pickseedwww.pickseed.com

Bentgrass

A-1 Bentgrass

G-1 Bentgrass

Highland Colonial Bentgrass

Penn A-4 Bentgrass

Penncross Creeping Bentgrass

Approach Tee & Fairway Bentgrass Blend™

Signature Greens Blend™

Tandem Bentgrass Blend™

A-4 / G-1 50/50 Greens Blend

Futura Pro Bentgrass Blend

Bluegrass

Granite Kentucky Bluegrass Mercury Kentucky Bluegrass

Touchdown Kentucky Bluegrass

Touchdown Bluegrass Blend

Triple Crown Bluegrass Blend

America Low Cut Bluegrass Blend

Ryegrass

Transist Ryegrass

Futura 2500 Rye Blend

Futura 3000 Rye Blend

Fescue

Garnet Creeping Red Fescue

Windward Chewings Fescue

Spartan Links Blend

Mixes

33 Select Mix

Falcon Sun & Shade Mix

Hash Mark Sports Turf Mix

Kick Start Recovery Mix

Overseeding Bent Fescue Mix

Touchdown 50/50 Mix

Touchdown 80/20 Mix

Precision Laboratories, LLCwww.precisionlab.com

Alypso

Aqualock

Border T&O

Cascade Plus

Cascade Plus 16G

Cascade Plus 0-0-20

Convert

Duplex

Envy

EZ Tabs

Incide-Out TankCleaner

Ion

Jet Black Pond Dye

Knockdown Defoamer

Magnaplex

Magnus

Microyl

New Balance Ph Buffer

Precise Pond

Precision 5-0-0 5 Fe Uptake Tech

Runway Foam Marker

Signal Blue EZ Solupak

Signal Green EZ Solupak

Speed

SYNC Fungicide Activator

True Blue

Vivax

Winter Green Plus™

Prime Turfwww.primeturf.com

V77 Injection System

PT 990 Sports Turf Sysytem

Prokozwww.prokoz.net

Fathom 14.3 MEC

Hoist

Mainsail

Transom

Prokoz Sevin SL

Redox Chemicalwww.redoxturf.com

TurfRx B+

TurfRx C85

TurfRx Ca

TurfRx CaSi

TurfRx Fairway

TurfRx Fe+

TurfRx K+

TurfRx Mg

TurfRx Micro+

TurfRx Mn+

TurfRx NatureCur

TurfRx OxyCal

TurfRx P+

TurfRx PeneCal

TurfRx Supreme

TurfRx Zn+

SePro Corporationwww.sepro.com

Cutless

Legacy

Edgeless

Musketeer

Junction

Pentathlon

Silico Turf

Sili-Cal SS GG

Sili-Cal SS SG

Tom Irwin, Inc.www.tomirwin.com

T 45™ 30-0-15

Exchange

BaseMag

BaseCal

University of Rhode Island

URI Turf Pathology Test

Valent/NuFarmwww.valent.com

Affirm WDG

Arena

Defiant

Spotrete F

Stellar

Torque

Tourney

Velocity

3336

24

Tom Irwin, Inc. | 11 A Street, Burlington, MA 01803 | 800.582.5959