Purdue Turf Students Place 3rd at the Sports Turf Managers Association Annual Student Challenge

Two teams of Purdue students traveled to San Antonio, TX to participate in the Sports Turf Managers Association (STMA) Annual Collegiate Challenge sponsored by Hunter Industries on 24 January, 2014. During the two-hour competition, teams were divided into students pursuing either a 4-year or 2-year degree. All competitors were required to properly identify turfgrasses, weeds, insects, diseases and turf soils. In addition, they were tested for their knowledge of general sports turf management, the mathematics related to turf management and supplemental irrigation. The two Purdue teams placed 3rd and 13th out of 32 teams competing. The 4-year competition was won by the University of Maryland and Virginia Tech took 2nd place. Those students competing were; Matt Dudley, Zach Ferguson, Andrew Marking, Andrew Wilhelm, Matt Shaffer, Cam Rice and Matt Hession. In addition to the competition, the students were able to take advantage of many educational activities specifically geared for students, the industry trade-show and also attended the annual STMA awards banquet. The teams are greatly appreciative for the support in defraying travel expenses that they received from the Mid-West Regional Turf Foundation and the Indiana STMA chapter.
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Status: The Office of Indiana State Chemist & Seed Commissioner

Following recent flooding in their office due to a water line break, "the Office of Indiana State Chemist & Seed Commissioner has restored operational status for most of its internal activities of licensing, registering, and responding to telephone calls.  As of Tuesday, January 21, all staff reported to their regularly assigned duties. The laboratories continue to be  repaired and restored to operational status. The offices will remain closed to the public until reconstruction activities allow for  visitation. We thank you for your patience.”

Dr. Bob Waltz
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Weather warms up at week's end for the Indiana Green Expo (January 8-10, 2014)

January 8-10, 2014
Indiana Convention Center, Indianapolis, IN

While the weather outside is frightful today (Monday, January 6 2014) and tomorrow (Tuesday, January 7 2014) it does look to improve considerably by week's end with highs near 40 degrees for the Indiana Green Expo (January 8-10, 2014).

Don't miss out on Indiana's largest turf and landscape education event.

Education schedule (different education tracks), workshop descriptions, speaker highlights, exhibitors and trade show events found at www.indianagreenexpo.com or click here for IGE 2014 Brochure.

Highlighted Turf Speakers
We are excited to bring in a great group of speakers in the turf sessions this year. Highlighted speakers include:
Eric Baumeister, The Toro Company
Joe Becovitz, Office of the Indiana State Chemist
Cale Bigelow, Purdue University
Bill Brown, CGCS, Turf Republic
Mark Esoda, CGCS, Atlanta Country Club
Kevin Frank, Michigan State University
Keith Happ, United States Golf Association
Rick Latin, Purdue University
Bruce Martin, Clemson University
Aaron Patton, Purdue University 
Doug Richmond, Purdue University
James Rutledge, Bayer
Pamela Sherratt, Ohio State University
David Shetlar, Ohio State University 
John Sorochan, University of Tennessee
Fred Whitford, Purdue University

Many other great speakers will be here for the plant materials, installation/maintenance, production, business, and hardscape education tracks as well.

Don't forget Wednesday's workshops including golf and lawn specific options. Check out the workshop listings.


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2014 Turf Weed Control for Professionals, Now Available

The revised edition of Turfgrass Weed Control for Professionals is now available. The 96 page publication includes content on:
  • Turfgrass Culture
  • Weed Types
  • Weed Life Cycles
  • Developing a Weed Control Program
  • Indicator Weeds              
  • Herbicide Information (use, nomenclature, classification, mode of action, movement, resistance, etc.)
  • Control of Tough Weeds
  • Frequently Asked Questions and Answers About Weed Control with Herbicides
  • Nonselective Herbicides/Fumigants for Turfgrass Renovation
  • Nonselective Herbicides for Turfgrass Border Maintenance (Edging)
  • Preemergence Herbicides (weed control ratings for preemergence herbicides, turf tolerance information, and more instructions for each product)
  • Postemergence Herbicides (weed control ratings for postemergence broadleaf herbicides and turf tolerance, and more instructions for each product)
  • Commonly Used Broadleaf Herbicide Combinations for Turfgrass
  • Active Ingredients in Commonly Used Herbicide Combinations
  • Sedge Control Herbicides (sedge control and turfgrass tolerance ratings, turf tolerance information, and more instructions for each product)
  • Plant Growth Regulators for General Turf Use
  • Preemergence, Postemergence and PGR Options for Putting Greens
  • Postemergence Weed Control in Creeping Bentgrass Putting Greens
  • Common and Trade Names of Registered Herbicides and Plant Growth Regulators (278 different products and 103 unique herbicide ingredient combination are discussing in this publication)
  • Herbicide/PGR Common Names, Chemical Families, and Modes of Action
  • Herbicide Math
This is truly a comprehensive guide for those using herbicides in turf regardless of whether you manage athletic fields, a golf course, lawns, cemeteries, sod farms, parks, or other turf areas.

Added in 2014 are
  • New Herbicides (6 new products)
  • Updated weed control recommendations based on label changes and new research
  • Revised and udpated answers Frequently Asked Questions
A .pdf version is for sale for $10 for those that want an electronic copy. Use this electronic copy on all your devices.


It is sold for $12 as a hard copy (paperback) and $10 as an electronic (.pdf) copy. For companies with many employees interested in this information, a 25% discounted bulk order of 25 copies is available for $225.

Turfgrass Weed Control for Professionals, 2014

Aaron Patton, Turfgrass Extension Specialist

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