There are many nutritional choices today’s golf course superintendents can make, however choosing what’s right for your particular course conditions is darn-right overwhelming at times. Fertility and nutritional decisions are now based on factors never considered a couple decades ago.
It’s not just plant nutrition under consideration. There’s soil inoculation to consider. Root initiation, establishment and development. Fungal suppression. Water-holding capacity. This list is seemingly endless.
So, it comes as no surprise when budgets and reputations are on the line, golf course superintendents turn to suppliers with proven track records … companies they can trust. In fact, Justin May, turf manager at Shangri-La Golf Club, located at the tip of Monkey Island (no monkeys and not technically an island, either) in Afton, Ok., feels guilty when he doesn’t use an Andersons product.
“I’ve used a couple non-Andersons' organics this year on greens and it seemed a little strange,” he says. “That’s how reliant I am on The Andersons.
“There are several products from The Andersons that I use on a consistent basis,” May says of the impact The Andersons' products have on his 2018 fertility plan at Shangril-La. “They are proven. They work for us.”
One of his go-to products is Contec DG 6-0-12, premium turf nutrients and The Andersons' patented
Dispersing Granule Technology equipped into a homogenous granule designed to optimize granular
applied turf nutrition. The 6-0-12 is one of more than 20 different Contec DG formulations The Andersons offers turf professionals. 
Contec DG’s require less watering to disperse the nutrient granules than many other nutrient choices. According to The Andersons, when water comes into contact with the granule it disperses into thousands of micro particles that quickly move through the turf canopy into the root zone. This allows for a drier, firmer, residue-free playing surface with less downtime.
“The thing about the Contec DG and really about all The Andersons' products I’ve used, is you feel safe using them,” May says. “There is never any burn, which is a big thing for me in this location.”
For example, May reported the heat index in Afton that afternoon was expected in the 110 to 120 range. Turf pros can definitely see why the no-burn factor is an important issue for superintendents managing turf in warmer locations.
May is also a big fan of The Andersons HCU (Humic Coated Urea) 44-0-0 nitrogen granule bonded with potassium humate. “I’d always been a Uflexx user, but when The Andersons came out with this HCU I knew it had to become a part of my program. We switched over last year and the results have been fantastic.”
May applies the HCU to the Bermuda fairways of the 27-hole layout of Shangri-La approximately every 21 days. “We spray it at a quarter pound of N, putting it in the tank with Primo Maxx and iron,” he says. “I also usually throw it in with our wetting agent applications, as well. I’ve noticed with the humic I’ve been able to lower rates and still have great color that lasts longer.”
The technology behind The Andersons HCU utilizes a urea and humate fusion. This exceptional granule promotes soil biology as well as containing beneficial fulvic and humic acids. It also promotes enhanced water holding capacity, which in the heat of an Oklahoma summer is indeed a good thing.