Letters to the editor

Topdressing greens
I’m interested to know where contributing writer Kevin Ross purchases his push brooms for pushing sand into his greens (“An age-old practice,” page 52, July issue). This fall, I would like to begin the process of hand brooming the sand into aeration holes to incorporate the topdressing. The less equipment we put on the greens after topdressing, the better off the greens are going to be. I haven’t yet purchased my brooms, and I don’t want to buy the wrong ones. I’m having a difficult time with the process. Does he have any suggestions?
Also, his greens look quite large. We have about 158,000 square feet of greens on our course. How many guys does it take for the process, and how long does it usually take?
Jeff Johnson
Golf course superintendent
The Minikahda Club
Minneapolis, Minn.

Ross’ response:
I agree with you about putting equipment on the green surfaces – the less the better. We renovated our greens about 10 years ago and resodded using Penn A-4 creeping bentgrass. Since then, I’ve been hand brooming only. We use a broom made by Seymour (Ind.) Manufacturing (www.seymourmfg.com). I recommend the Structron push broom (model #PB24R). The bristle stiffness is perfect. You have to be careful of the bristles in brooms – too soft doesn’t work well, and too stiff tends to damage the leaf tissue.
Our green surfaces total 125,000 square feet. During the aerification process, we use three to four people to broom in the sand for six greens (we do six greens per day), which takes about five to six hours.

Kevin Ross writes some interesting and informative articles to make the career of the golf course superintendent stand out and be respected. He does a good job. I enjoyed reading his article about topdressing (“An age-old practice,” page 52, July issue). I echo his timely remarks and have been preaching topdressing on a regular basis for many years. Grass loves topdressing and responds accordingly.
Ross says to keep organic matter less than 4 percent by weight in the upper two inches of the surface. This statement begs the question: How does a superintendent accurately measure the organic matter in the top two inches?
Robert V. Mitchell
Retired turf consultant
Director of golf and grounds
The Greenbrier
Lewisburg, W. Va.

Ross’ response:
Testing for organic matter percentage should be an important part of present day aerification/thatch reduction/topdressing programs. Many accredited labs throughout the country are capable of performing the proper testing. I personally use and recommend Norm Hummel of Hummel and Co. (www.turfdoctor.com) in Trumansburg, N.Y.  Norm has been in the business a long time and is topnotch.
The results of the testing can be analyzed to determine whether topdressing and aerification programs are on track, or need to become more aggressive. With the 4-percent guideline, it’s the first time we can determine scientifically how much to aerify and topdress. There certainly could be some more research performed on the whole organic matter dynamics on sand green surfaces that could be helpful.

A tip of the hat
Thanks for the kind and wonderful words about FarmLinks in your July issue (“Part of the future,” page 8). What a terrific editorial. We want every superintendent to know about us, and that they’re welcome here. More than that, we want them to know there are things to learn here. You’ve helped a bunch.
I appreciate your call to the other suppliers as well. We’re not full speed on that part of our initiative yet, but we will be soon. A great assist. Thanks.
I continue to be impressed, amazed and thankful for your company’s willingness to run the full page PSA for the Salvation Army World Service Office. That’s really above and beyond. You set a high standard for all of us.
I wish you continued success with the publication.
Dave Heegard
Vice president of sales
and marketing
Pursell Technologies
Sylacauga, Ala.