Divot Mix

The only course that will remain difficult under all conditions will be one that is designed and kept for golf of a stereotyped, monotonous character, and this makes a most uninteresting proposition. -- Bobby Jones

PGA Tour's first green golf tournament

The Oneida Indian Nation is partnering with the prestigious Environmental Media Association to ensure the inaugural Turning Stone Resort Championship, an official PGA Tour event to be held at the Nation's Atunyote Golf Course, is as environmentally friendly as possible.
 
As many as 100,000 people are expected to attend the Turning Stone Resort Championship this week. In an effort to "go for the green," the Oneida Indian Nation, owners of Turning Stone Resort, has sought the advice and practical input of EMA, whose mission is to serve as a link between the entertainment industry and the environmental community.
 
"All courses at Turning Stone, including Atunyote, have been developed and maintained to strict environmental standards, and we at the Oneida Indian Nation are proud of what has been achieved here," says Ray Halbritter, nation representative and CEO.  "Our friends at EMA are helping us to lead by example.  Their profound practical knowledge of all things 'green' and their skill at communicating that environmental information to the media and the general public have been invaluable."

Matt Falvo, GCSAA superintendent at Atunyote Golf Club, and his staff are contributing by changing the maintenance carts to electric, switching all hydraulic oil in mowers to environmentally friendly BASF Plurasafe fluid, and working toward Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary certification.

Printed materials, such as the tournament's credentials, parking tags, and employee and volunteer handbooks are printed on recycled paper with soy-based ink. The same goes for other printed items, including the daily pairings panel, the fan guide, the media guide, and the pro-am guide.
 
Pencils, merchandise bags, and even the liners in the trash cans around the course are made from recycled materials. And there are dozens of recycling bins on the course to encourage fans, volunteers and tournament staff to do their part in keeping the event green.

Snacks will be served on biodegradable, disposable plates and trays and cups are made from Nebraska corn, a 100 percent renewable resource.

Since Turning Stone was built in 1993, the Nation has had a policy of pursuing sustainable development. That has meant ensuring that its environmental policies meet or exceed the goals of the state and federal standards and looking for ways to incorporate reusable resources into its everyday practices. Since 1999, the Nation has maintained strict environmental policies that are aimed at controlling waste production, reducing pollution and promoting the wise use of natural resources in the design and construction of any facility on Nation lands.

Oregon State University seed lab busy

Millions of bags of Oregon grass seed will be shipped around the world this year, and many of them will be bearing a blue tag issued by the Oregon State University Seed Certification Service.

The blue tag assures buyers of the authenticity and quality of the seeds, verified by tests conducted by the OSU Seed Laboratory.

"This is a crucial time of the year for grass seed cleaners, growers and shippers," said Adriel Garay, the seed lab manager. "They need their seed tested and tagged in time for the fall planting season."

In response, the OSU Seed Lab is hard at work testing and reporting on this year's crop of grass seed.

The Seed Lab, part of the OSU College of Agricultural Sciences, tests up to 14,000 samples each year for seed purity and germination rates, according to Garay. About 60 percent of those samples are grass seed processed from mid-July through September.

 To be certified, a seed sample must be from 95 to 98 percent free of impurities such as weed seeds, stems or debris, depending on the kind of seed tested. Germination rate requirements range from 75 to 90 percent, also depending on the crop kind, according to Garay.

Those are minimum requirements, Garay said, but most samples exceed the minimum.

"Oregon grass seed typically germinates at rates of up to 95 percent, which is excellent for any seed,” Garay pointed out. “That is why it is recognized as the best grass seed in the world."

Oregon is the world's No. 1 grass seed producer, supplying nearly 60 percent of all commercial grass seed, according to William Young, an OSU Extension agronomist.

And the industry is increasing. Last year growers produced 789 million pounds of Oregon grass seed worth $454 million, according to Young. That was up from 720 million pounds valued at $348 million in 2005.

 The OSU Seed Lab tests more than 200 different kinds seed products – representing about 14,000 samples – in more than 30,000 different tests in a year.

"We test everything from field crops like wheat, barely and oats, to trees and vegetable seeds," Garay said. "In the past few years we've seen an increase in requests to test native grasses and shrubs. This is a reflection of our state's broad agricultural and climatic diversity."

Switchgrass: bridging bioenergy and conservation

An important part of the answer to the country's energy woes could be blowing in the prairie wind, according to Agricultural Research Service plant geneticist Michael Casler. He has spent the past 10 years breeding switchgrass, an eight-foot-plus native plant that was an integral part of the tall grass prairies that once dominated America's Midwest.

As a breeder, Casler is mostly concerned with the plant's bioenergy-friendly attributes, including its ability to accumulate large amounts of biomass and tolerate environmental stress. Recently, he began looking at switchgrass from another standpoint—as a restorer of once-pristine prairies.

Historically, a sprawling seas of grasses once stretched from Montana and the Dakotas down to Texas, with pockets of prairie as far east as New York. Now, with much of this land fragmented or altered, only a patchwork of remnant prairies remains.

Numerous federal, state and private conservation efforts are examining how best to revive these vestigial prairies. But a question of genealogy always arises: Which switchgrass varieties should be planted that will be in keeping with a site's genetic legacy?

Some conservationists insist on using only long-established, local varieties of switchgrass. Others argue that modern-day cultivars can appropriately be used.

Along with ARS scientist Kenneth Vogel in Lincoln, Neb., Casler set out to bring clarity to this debate and, hopefully, ease the task of grassland restoration.

After two summers spent trekking native Midwestern prairies, plucking samples and sending them back to his laboratory, Casler discovered that today's agronomically important switchgrass cultivars are nearly identical genetically to their grassy ancestors.

The study's findings are good news for prairie restorers, who can confidently tap a wider pool of switchgrass cultivars and local varieties for conservation projects. And switchgrass growers can take satisfaction knowing their fields still are, in many ways, symbolic of the country's rich grassy past. More about the research is in the September 2007 issue of Agricultural Research magazine.