we welcome the arrival of spring, we are reminded once again of the vitality and renewal that this season brings to our industry. The longer days, warming temperatures, and fresh growth signal an exciting time for turfgrass professionals across our region. Whether you manage golf courses, sports fields, sod farms, or landscapes, spring presents both opportunities and challenges that define our work and dedication to excellence.
The Maryland Turfgrass Council continues to advocate for our industry, providing education, resources, and networking opportunities that empower our members to thrive. This year, we are excited to introduce new initiatives, including expanded research partnerships, enhanced training workshops, and strengthened relationships with legislative leaders to support policies that benefit our industry.
Sustainability remains a key focus for us, as we continue to promote best practices that balance performance, environmental responsibility, and resource efficiency. With growing attention on water conservation, pest management, and soil health, the role of turfgrass professionals has never been more critical. Through collaboration and shared expertise, we can advance sustainable solutions that ensure the long-term success of our industry.
As we move forward this spring, I encourage each of you to engage with your colleagues and fellow MTC members, attend events, share your experiences, and contribute to the conversations shaping our future. Your dedication and passion drive our industry, and together, we will continue to make great strides. Thank you for your commitment to excellence in turfgrass management. Let’s keep growing together!
Brandon Sands President, MTC
JIM CLAXTON MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP
Jim Claxton Scholarship Fund was initiated in 2011 in order to honor Jim and his contributions to the Mid-Atlantic turfgrass industry, while financially supporting students in pursuit of a college degree.
Jim worked as a salesman for Newsom Seed from the early 1990’s until shortly before his passing in 2013. He made great contributions to turfgrass-related businesses during this period, especially businesses directly involved in turf production.
Awarded by the Turf Producers of Maryland, The Jim Claxton Scholarship Fund allows for up to $1,500 total to be issued to one or more applicants prior to the Fall college semester. Previous winners of the Jim Claxton Scholarship may re-apply.
Preference may be given to students enrolled in a turfgrass related field or with experience in turfgrass production.
Better Built. Quality Results. Period.
MARYLAND TURFGRASS COUNCIL’S
MEMBERSHIP REGISTRATION
$105 Individual Member
$40 Student ______Educator
$40 Master Gardener ______Retiree
$250 Public Agency * (First 10 Employees per County or Location)
$315 Bronze (1 – 5 employees)
$720 Silver (6 – 10 employees)
$895 Gold (11 – 15 employees)
$1,260 Platinum (16 – 20 employees)
• Currently our membership is just under 1,400 members and we would love to count you on our ranks.
• Advantages of being a member include: Discounts for professional training sessions to provide recertification for your Pesticide & Fertilizer Applicator License for Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Delaware.
Maryland Turfgrass Council 303 S. Talbot St. #389 St. Michaels, MD 21663
Full time Lobbyists in Annapolis monitoring actions by the Maryland Legislature, leading testimony when necessary and offering other assistance to the Officers and Board of Directors for action to strengthen Professional Turfgrass Management and Production.
Opportunities to form and develop networking opportunities to assist and increase your business.
linkedin.com/company/theturfzone
x.com/theturfzone
UMD Turf Bowl Team Takes Second in the Nation
By Dr. Lori A. Sefton
“T
hat’s a memory I will never forget,” shared Conner Todd, member of the 2025 UMD Turf Bowl Team. Todd was talking about his experience at this year’s Golf Course Superintendents Association of America (GSSAA) National Turf Bowl Competition in San Diego, California. Todd and his teammates took second place nationally, edging out other large turf schools such as Purdue University, Ohio State University, and Colorado State University. Todd, along with teammates Luke Murnane, Zach Onderko, and Joe Poulas, finished just two points behind the leader, Penn State.
The grueling competition included questions covering all aspects of golf course maintenance. “Any turfgrass question was possible,” reported Murnane. “Some of the questions included calculations of fertilizer use, water use, pesticide use, and questions regarding photosynthesis, plant structures, soil structure, even human resource questions, insect life cycles, and turfgrass ID characteristics.” One of the hardest parts of the exam was the turfgrass ID section. “When under pressure, differentiating the turfgrasses can be challenging,” Murnane said. “Some of these grasses are not prevalent in our region, so we have to become familiar with the turfgrasses from greenhouse samples, textbook characteristics and videos.” Conner also explained, “There is such a broad range of samples that they could choose from, and you just have to hope they pick the most common ones that you have studied.”
To prepare for this highly competitive event, Geoff Rinehart, UMD Turf Bowl Team Coach, and his group of seven students, met weekly from August to January. Poulas shared, “We also broke the Turf Bowl Study Guide into separate parts and created a slide deck for each one.” Rinehart said a benefit for this year’s team was the return of three of the four members of the UMD team. “Luke, Joe, and Conner were on last year’s team. This gave us a leg up this year.”
The plan worked. This year’s team, coming off a tie for 11th place last year, performed amazingly against a pool of a total of 76 teams from 29 different schools. “Being able to represent the University of Maryland is an honor. I am so proud of the team and everything we have accomplished,” added Murnan. “To achieve second place highlights the dedication and focus of this team and how close we were to being on top.”
This year’s competition was one of the largest in several years, which highlights the growth and interest in the industry.
The trip to California was not just a chance to compete; it was a chance to connect to industry professionals and visit some of the top turfgrass facilities in the San Diego area. The team visited Torrey Pines Golf Course, which was designed by legendary course architect, William P. Bell, as well as Balboa Stadium, a top-tier sports field in San Diego. “This trip was not only about going to the conference, but to visit some premier turf establishments, which is beneficial,” stated Rinehart.
Meeting and mingling with industry contacts is also a highlight of this annual trip for UMD turfgrass students. “I had overlooked how many UMD grads would be there to witness our achievement,” said Poulas. “When they announced our team as runner-up, there were so many people cheering us on.”
Todd reflected on the boost the win would give his teammates in future career pursuits. “Being able to take our results with us beyond college will make us stand out among others in the industry with our national competition results,” Todd said.
Overwhelmingly, members named the team culture as the best part of the process. “The bonds made with a great group of guys that got to travel, live, and compete together for a week…these relationships will continue long past graduation,” Todd said.
Poulas explained that he cherished the chance to spend the week with his teammates and watch Rinehart’s reaction when the award was presented. “I’ll never forget the look on Geoff’s face when they announced the University of Maryland won second place,” Poulas said, laughing. “A heart attack was not out of the question!”
So, the books close on another competitive year for UMD’s Turf Bowl team. The IAA congratulates Rinehart and his team on a great showing. “The entire College of AGNR is proud of Geoff and his 2025 team,” said IAA Director, Heather McHale. “This team works hard every year, and we are thrilled to welcome them home from their national runner-up results.” And now, on to next year! •
Major Pests and Control Programs for the MD Turfgrass Industry in 2023
Producers Sod PART 3:
By Dr. Kevin Mathias
Aphone survey was conducted in the fall of 2023 to determine the key turfgrass pests within the turfgrass industry. The survey asked turfgrass professionals what their major pest problems were within the areas of insect, weed, and disease problems and what type of control programs were used. The following article covers the major pest problems and control actions taken by sod producers in Maryland.
Sod Production
The major sod crop consists of a tall fescue (90%) and Kentucky bluegrass (10%) mixture in Maryland with lower acreage dedicated to the warm season turfgrasses Zoysiagrass and bermudagrass and the cool season turfgrasses Kentucky bluegrass and hybrid Kentucky bluegrass. Total acreage of sod is 8,000 acres based on the Maryland Economic Impact report in 2005.
MAJOR PEST PROBLEMS
Insect Pests
The insect pests mentioned were white grubs, fall armyworm, and hunting billbug. White grubs were considered a key pest and were treated preventatively. Since the survey included pest problems from the previous three years, the fall armyworm outbreak of 2021, which caused wide spread damage to turf in Maryland and other parts of the country, was mentioned as a pest problem. Hunting billbug was associated with Zoysiagrass production.
Key Insect Pests Based on Sod Producers Responses
The insecticides used to control insect pests in sod fields were imidacloprid products, Acelepryn (chlorantraniprole), Sevin (carbaryl), and bifenthrin based products. The major preventative white grub control insecticide was imidacloprid followed by Acelepryn. The difference in use patterns is due to the lower cost of imidacloprid-based insecticides. In smaller acreage fields such as Kentucky bluegrass, Acelepryn was often used not only for white grub control but also for leaf feeding caterpillars such as fall armyworm, sod webworms, and cutworms. The insecticide Sevin was used as a rescue treatment for white grubs and for any surface feeding insect. Bifenthrin based products were used for surface feeding insects.
Figure 1. Fall armyworm damage to a tall fescueKentucky bluegrass sod field in August, 2021.
White Grub Fall Armyworm Hunting Billbug
Weed Pests in Tall Fescue / Kentucky Bluegrass Sod Fields
The major or key weed pests can be divided into two main groups; the grassy weeds and the broadleaf weed group. Within the grassy weed group, summer annual grasses such as crabgrass were considered key pests. Two other grassy weeds mentioned were annual bluegrass and rough bluegrass that were present in smaller amounts in sod fields. What is of interest in sod production systems is a mesotrione product (Tenacity) used in the fall at seeding to address both future summer annual grasses and several broadleaf weeds present in the fall at seeding. Spot treatment or a rescue treatment with either Acclaim (fenoxaprop) or Drive (quinclorac) would be performed in late spring or early summer if any summer annual grasses were present in a field that would be harvested in the immediate future.
White clover was the key broadleaf weed mentioned in sod production fields. Oxalis and dandelion were the other two minor weeds mentioned in this survey. The herbicides listed for broadleaf weed control included phenoxy based herbicides used in combination such as 2,4-D and mecoprop or as a threeway combination of 2,4-D, mecoprop, and dicamba. For more difficult to control weeds such as oxalis, triclopyr was often used. The use of these broadleaf weed control herbicides was often applied on an as-needed basis.
Figure 2. White clover was a key weed pest in sod production fields.
Sod Growers Response of Major Grassy Weeds in 2023
Sod Growers Response to the Insecticides Used for White Grub Control
Crabgrass A. Bluegrass R. Bluegrass
Imidacloprid Acelepryn Sevin
Disease Pests
Since a majority of sod production fields consist of a tall fescue/Kentucky bluegrass mixture, the key disease pest was brown patch with 100% of sod producers indicating brown patch as a key disease. Also, a preventative fungicide program was implemented for controlling brown patch in sod fields that would be harvested in the current growing season. Other diseases that were mentioned were dollar spot and red thread in tall fescue fields, summer patch in Kentucky bluegrass fields, and large patch or Zoysia patch in zoysiagrass fields.
The preventative fungicide schedule used for brown patch and other minor diseases which consisted of monthly applications from May through August would often consist of fungicides in the DMI chemistry such as Banner Max (propiconazole) and the strobilurin chemistry such as Heritage (azoxystrobin). Also, chlorothalonil based fungicides were used.
Summary
Sod producers will grow high performing species and turfgrass cultivars that have been screened for their pest tolerances and overall survivability in the Maryland growing environment. Also, the goal of a sod producer growing a tall fescueKentucky bluegrass crop is to harvest that crop within a year and that the crop needs to be free of major pest problems whether that be a weed, insect or disease pest. The marketability of that sod crop is based on turfgrass density, color and overall uniformity of the stand. Therefore, preventative pest control programs are implemented to ensure both marketability and availability of that crop to the sod consumer. •
Figure 3. A tall fescue / Kentucky bluegrass sod field damaged by brown patch.
