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| Pre-Conference 2005 |
The Newsletter
of the International Turfgrass Society
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 PDF
version (130 KB) |
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| Pre-Conference 2005 |
The Newsletter
of the International Turfgrass Society
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PDF
version (130 KB) |
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International Turfgrass Society President Bill Adams reports that all preparations are complete for the 10th International Turfgrass Research Conference July 10- 15, in Llandudno, Wales. Attendees will gather for a social reception at the North Wales Conference Centre in Llandudno on Sunday, July 10th at 1900 to renew old acquaintances and make new friends. The registration desk will open at 1400. On Monday morning the 10th ITRC will be officially opened by President Adams. Dr. Jim Beard, ITS Historian, will present the first plenary lecture, which will be followed by a symposium on Maintaining Turf Without Protection Chemicals. A concurrent session on Soils and Rootzones will be held as well. In the early evening there will be a poster session on Establishment and Maintenance, and on Weeds, Pests, and Diseases in the Wales Conference Centre Exhibition Hall.
Tuesday morning will find the attendees choosing between concurrent sessions on either Breeding and Genetics or on Turfgrass Nutrition. The afternoon will feature sessions on Artificial Surfaces and on Stress Physiology.
On Tuesday evening, members will be able to kick back and enjoy an informal
social event at Kinmel Manor in Abergele.
Kinmel Manor, Abergele, Wales
Wednesday July 13th will feature a choice of three all-day technical tours, and the attendees will be hard pressed to choose among the excellent offerings. The golf tour will feature both links and inland courses. The other tours include a variety of sports facilities at popular venues such as the Manchester City Football Club Stadium and the Dunstall Park Racecourse. In addition, accompanying persons are offered a visit to three castles in north Wales, and a scenic mountain tour.
It’s back to work on Thursday, with symposia on Turf in the Urban Environment, Weeds, and Turfgrass Education in the morning, and on Establishment and Maintenance and Turfgrass Pests in the afternoon. A variety of subjects will be featured in the second poster session, Thursday evening in the Exhibition Hall.
A second session on Breeding and Genetics will be offered on Friday, along with a session on Diseases. Following lunch, the important Quadrennial Business Meeting of the International Turfgrass Society will be held. Members will want to attend this important event to, among other things, chose ITS Board Members for the next four years, and to select the site for the 12th ITRC in 2013! That evening, the 10th ITRC will wrap up with the Closing Banquet.
In all, the 10th ITRC promises to be a highly educational event, with 10 invited speakers, 83 volunteered oral presentations, and 139 posters. Turf researchers gather together for this event only once each four years, but the friendships and valuable contacts can last for a lifetime.
Additional information about the 10th ITRC can be obtained on the Conference
Website http://www.aber.ac.uk/itrc2005/
Although participation in the Pre- Conference Tour through beautiful Austria and Italy, hosted by Alex Richter, now is closed to new participants, Danny Thorogood is inviting conference participants to attend the IGER Turfgrass Breeding Opening Day in Plas Gogerddan, Aberystwyth following the Conference on July 19th.
Additional information about this tour can be found at: http://www.iger.bbsrc.ac.uk/Int_Turf_Co nf/IGERopenday_000.htm
Llandudno, the site of the 10th ITRC, is located on the picturesque north
coast of Wales.
President-elect Carol Muller already has been preparing for the 11th ITRC to be held in July of 2009. He is being assisted in this effort by his colleagues at the University of Chile, where he teaches courses in turfgrass management, and by members of the turfgrass industry in Chile. Plans to date are for the conference to be held in one of the excellent conference Hotels in Santiago. These hotels host many conferences and have outstanding convention facilities. The administration at the University of Chile has pledged to assist with the 11th ITRC, as they do with numerous scientific gatherings each year. Carol will be updating the Wales attendees on the plans for the next ITRC, which will be the first Conference held in a Hispanic country, and only the second time the ITS membership will assemble in the southern Hemisphere. July in Chile provides the opportunity to visit turfgrass venues in the valleys, and for skiing in the surrounding mountains.
Carol Muller and University of Chile Vice Dean Anna Maria Estevez meet to
discuss the 11th ITRC.
Editor- in-Chief Danny Thorogood reports that the 11th International Turfgrass
Society Research Journal will be ready for distribution at the Conference
in Wales. Containing over 230 scientific papers, it will be printed in two
volumes. Editor Thorogood and his staff of many volunteers throughout the
world have worked very diligently over the past several years producing this
most important document. They deserve the thanks of all the Membership for
their dedication and efforts in making it possible for the Journal to be available
at the Conference.
Treasurer John Cisar reports ITS membership totals 256, with 31 new members
as of June 2005. While over half the membership resides in the United States
of America, a total of 27 countries are represented on the membership roles.
The membership is drawn from 57 universities and college s, 77 commercial
companies, and 3 governments. The Society is in satisfactory fiscal condition.
Dr. Cisar will present a treasurer’s report to the membership at the
business meeting in Wales. He especially wishes to express his appreciation
to Karen Williams and Dara Park for their dedicated assistance in maintaining
the treasury books.
As the 10th ITRC draws near, we anticipate a great conference in the historic and charming seaside resort of Llandudno. President Bill Adams and the organizing committee have done an outstanding job for the ITS membership and we owe them our deepest appreciation.
I visited Llandudno during the midconference planning meeting in July 2003. The town is an easy drive of about an hour and a half by auto from the nearest international airport of Manchester, England. If you are selfdriving, most of the route is on motorways and the route is well marked. For those who do not wish to drive, the ITRC has made coaches available from Manchester Airport on Saturday July 9th at 1430, and on Sunday July 10th at 1300 and 1630.
If you are like me, remember which side of the car to get in on, and which side of the road to drive on, and try not to use the windshield wipers when you want to use the turn signals! Because Llandudno is a resort, parking spaces are sometimes hard to find. Be careful about parking even when checking in, and make sure that the space you are in is a legal one. I learned by expensive experience!
The Conference Center is along he seaside promenade. If you are staying in one of the seaside hotels or B&Bs, the pleasant walk along the promenade to the Center should not take more than 10 minutes or so.
Temperatures in Northern Wales are generally moderate in summer, although in 2003 Europe experiences a recordbreaking heat wave that did not spare Wales. Air-conditioning is not always available at hotels. I would bring a range of comfortable and sensible clothes. There are many fine dining choices. Those seeking afternoon teas, traditional UK treats, and seafood will not be disappointed. I would suggest reservations for your favorite restaurant as many spots are small in scale and fill up quickly.
Although the conference is jam-packed with great presentations, nearby attractions will tempt the curious traveler. Historic castles such as Conwy, Caernarfon, and Beaumaris are within a short drive of Llandudno. Medieval type banquets are held in the Ruthin Castle hotel. The nearby spectacular Bodnart Gardens boast beautiful gardens and lawns, and hikers will love the challenge of climbing Mt. Snowdon and the vistas of Snowdonia, all a short drive from town. Trains are available and historic train rides through breathtaking landscapes are there for you to enjoy.
I look forward to seeing everyone in Llandudno!
The International Turfgrass Society (ITS) is a not-for-profit scientific organization established in 1969 to encourage research and education in turfgrass science, and to promote personal communication among the international community of turfgrass researchers by organizing international conferences to present turfgrass research and information on all phases of turfgrass production and use. To this end, International Turfgrass Research Conferences (ITRC) are held at 4-year intervals. A refereed Journal of turfgrass research papers is published in conjunction with each conference.
Sven-Ove Dahlsson, from Sweden, reports that the Scandinavian Sod Producers association is comprised of sod producers in Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden. This organization, comprised of about 30 members, normally meets annually for a conference and tour. In Norway, a speciality sod enterprise is sod production for roof cover. Several other European turf organizations have been sponsoring meetings in recent years. For example, Internationales Rasenkolloquium, started by professor W. Skirde, was founded in 1968. Since that time, over 10 european countries have hosted the event. Warsaw, Poland, was the site of the 2001 conference, the Netherlands hosted the 2002 meeting, and the 2003 conference was held in the Czech Republic. Mr. Dahlsson is one of the officers.
John Neylan, Australia, points out that because of frequent severe droughts in Australia, there is little doubt that the long-term viability of the sod industry will rely on sod growers producing a higher proportion of warm-season grasses compared to the traditional cool season grass mixtures. Observing the effects on turf condition ha s been interesting and provides an insight into the long-term pressures on golf course sustainability. Those golf courses (particularly in the southern states) that have developed pure swards of warmseason grasses are managing extremely well with restricted water applications. Those fairways that consist of a mixture of warm and cool season grasses, and rely on a transition between the two are struggling. In a number of situations the die-off of the cool-season species (e.g. Poa annua) has occurred suddenly in the spring, however, with restricted water applications it is very difficult to encourage the couchgrass to fill in. Even on pure couchgrass fairways the lack of subsoil moisture and no summer rain is resulting in a greater
Because of the lack of subsoil moisture and the need to irrigate more frequently, it is interesting to note the persistence or germination of weed species such as Poa annua and summer grass as a consequence.
During droughts, water restrictions are put in place in many locations, which poses significant implications for the turf industry. In the state of Victoria, Stage 2 restrictions mean no irrigation of sportsfields or lawns with potable water. Golf courses using potable water are restricted to watering greens only. Sod producers also face difficult times with the restrictions on lawns, although they have achieved exemptions for new lawns so that they can be established.
There is nothing like a drought and water restrictions to focus attention on alternative water resources and in particular recycled water or treated sewage. In Melbourne, the governing water authority is very active in promoting the use of treated effluent from treatment plants or by “sewer mining” using on-site package treatment plants. It is very interesting to note the effort put into coming up with a “community friendly” term for this water source so as to avoid the association with its origins. In the state of Victoria, the term “New Water” has been trade marked. There now are strong political policies being put in place to use this resource.
While the use of treated effluent is desirable, there are impacts on turf management that need to be considered such as the management of nutrients, salts, sodium and bicarbonate. This is providing a challenge in developing strategies that will ensure the long-term sustainability of the turf facilities using recycled water. Currently there are two projects assessing the impact of a high salinity, high sodium water on a golf course recently connected to effluent water. One project is studying the impacts of the water on soil and groundwater chemistry as well as turf composition and quality on fairways. The second project involves a large sand profile nursery green that has half irrigated with effluent and half with potable water. The green is established with four bentgrass cultivars reported to have improved salt tolerance, the local Poa annua currently on the greens at the golf course (currently not irrigated with the effluent because of the salinity) and a Poa annua selection from the Penn State program.
While Australian turf managers are well skilled in producing high quality turf surfaces they will continue to be challenged by what continues to be inconsistent and fickle climatic conditions and the wider demands of being good environmental managers. The need to adapt to change is providing turf researchers with a long list of potential projects in the area of water management and maintaining turf condition in a hostile environment.
Richard Gibbs, New Zealand, tells us that stadium and golf developments have been proceeding at a rapid pace in New Zealand. Eden Park, one of the country’s most famous stadia, was converted to a Motz reinforced turf system in 2003. A new golf course in Hawke’s Bay on the east coast of the North Island, and golf course projects in tourist regions like Lake Taupo and Queenstown are examples of heightened activity in the golf sector.
Supporting the increased interest in turfgrass, the New Zealand Sports Turf
Institute hosted a forum to foster an open exchange of information on the
new technologies available for the construction and management of outdoor
multi-use venues. Issues covered included shading problems and their management,
artificial light requirements for turf, stadium architecture, rootzone heating,
turf reinforcement, and turf replacement systems. The New Zealand also has
been hosting biannual Sports Turf Conferences attended by hundreds of delegates
from around the country representing a complete cross section of the turf
community.
ITS DIRECTORS
| Australia: | John Neylan |
Norway: |
Morten E. Engelsjord |
| lan Chivers | New Zealand: | Richard Gibbs | |
| Austria: | Hermann Richter | Sweden: |
Sven-Ove Dahlsson |
| Canada: |
Ken Carey | United Kingdom: | William Adams |
| Chile: | Carol P. Müller-Turina | Stephen Baker | |
| China: |
Han Liebao | Danny Thorogood | |
| France: | Jean Pierre Leboucher | United States: | Robert N. Carrow |
| Germany | Klaus G. Müller-Beck | John Cisar | |
| Italy: |
Marco Volterrani | Bruce B. Clarke | |
| Japan : |
Yutaka Noma | Joseph M. Dipaola | |
| Korea: |
Joon Soo Choi |
ITS Officers
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President |
Vice-President Robert N. Carrow University of Georgia Griffin, GA 30223-1797 U.S.A. PH: 770-228-7277 FAX: 770-229-3215 rcarrow@gaes.griffin.peachnet.edu |
President-Elect Carol P. Muller-Turina University of Chile , Camino Del Algarrobo Santiago, Region Metropolitana 6770941 Chile PH: 56-2-2110973 FAX: 56-2-211-0973 mulbot@chilesat.net |
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Treasurer |
Secretary Ken Carey Dept. of Plant Agriculture and the Guelph Turfgrass Institute 328 Victoria Road South Guelph, Ontario N1H 6H8 Canada PH: (519) 824-4120 x2777 FAX: (519) 766-1704 ken@gti.uoguelph.ca |
Past President |
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| Newsletter Editor George H. Snyder University of Florida Everglades Res. & Educ. Center 3200 East Palm Beach Rd. Belle Glade, FL 33430-8003 U.S.A. PH: 561-993-1574 FAX: 561-993-1582 ghs@mail.ifas.ufl.edu |
Editor-in-Chief, |
Historian |
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International Turfgrass Editor: Dr. George H. Snyder With thanks and appreciation to all who contributed to this newsletter |
Ken Carey, ITS Secretary, has redesigned and updated the ITS website: |
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