On May 1, the PACE Turfgrass Research Institute initiates a free trial program that will give turf professionals a sampling of membership benefits, just in time for the tough months ahead.
Interested individuals who register at www.paceturf.org will receive PACE's weekly updates for three consecutive weeks. These publications are the core of PACE's member benefits and feature current news and research on pest and turf trends from around the country, as well as information on the tools that would work to manage them. Allied-industry and others servicing the turf market are welcome to participate in the trial membership.
"PACE is an important decision-support tool for turf managers that helps them keep turf quality high while avoiding unnecessary inputs," says Larry Stowell, PACE research director. "We can help relieve stress on turf, as well as on turf managers, and we can also help reduce the costs of turf maintenance. We decided there was no better way to show what PACE has to offer than through a trial membership."
Annual membership in PACE is $325. In return for the investment, PACE members receive the weekly PACE updates that will be made available in the trial program. PACE's online services also include site-specific weather, pest and agronomic information, a reference library of best products and practices, pest management guidelines, useful turf management tools and monitoring procedures, and archives of all PACE publications. Web forums allow members to discuss PACE's information, as well as their own experiences. Members also receive printed materials that include in-depth technical reviews on a wide range of turf management topics; "Clubhouse Editions" written to educate golfers and managers on the rationale behind turf management practices; and reference publications on soil, water, monitoring equipment, weather models, product evaluations and more.
PACE and its members also provide several free public services to the turf community. Five percent of all member fees are donated to turf research programs, and the results are posted for free viewing on the PACE Web site. Also available to the public is Super Journal, an online turf research journal that helps turf managers in the design, implementation, interpretation, summarization and publication of turf research experiments. An extensive photo archive is also available on the public service site.
The PACE Turfgrass Research Institute is a membership organization that provides research, education and information services to the turf management community.
For more information, contact Felicia Gillham at 619-482-8820 or fgillham@cox.net.