President’s Message
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Working Together Industry Wide
pring is here in full force in New England! I hope the April showers brought you May flowers and green turf! Spring time is always a fun time for us in this industry. We get to see how our agronomic plans last fall helped us have a successful spring. This spring, we in New England have been bombarded with potential new legislation in many of our states that would make our jobs as Sports Turf Managers more difficult. In Connecticut, we partnered with STMA and submitted a social media campaign, public testimony and written letters that helped stop the potential elimination of pesticide usage and a ban of synthetic turf in the state. Thanks to our new legislative alliance with GCSAA, we were also notified about a possible preemption law change to pesticide applicators in Maine. We shared resources from GCSAA with our Maine members and they responded! One member in particular was called out by GCSAA for going the extra mile with written testimony in opposition of the pending legislation. Please keep NESTMA posted on potential legislation in your state. If we don’t know what’s coming, we can’t be a resource. As a professional in our industry, you are a leader and can be a teacher to people who may want to change the way we do business. Let them know we are stewards of the environment, we don’t apply chemicals and fertilizer for no reason, and we regularly attend educational programs to better understand current trends and new technologies. We are New England’s leading turf professionals with years of knowledge and experience! As always, please contact any board member with your great ideas, offers to host an event, or volunteer to serve on a committee or the Board of Directors. May your infields be playable and your turf green,
Upcoming Events! June 25 & 26, 2019 Municipal and Grounds Sports Turf Academy
8:00 a.m. – 3 :00 p.m. University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT ipm.uconn.edu/ events-trf-acdmy-2019.php
Wednesday, June 26, 2019
NESTMA Turf Techniques Workshop Effective Water Management in Sports Fields 8:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. DeFazio Sports Complex & Fields Needham, MA NESTMA.org
Wednesday, July 17, 2019 UMass Turf Research Field Day
Ben Polimer NESTMA President Fields and Grounds Coordinator, Town of Weston, MA
800-247-BEAM www.BEAMCLAY.com STATE APPROVED CO-OP PRICING
email: sales@beamclay.com
THE STANDARD OF EXCELLENCE FOR INFIELD MIXES, MOUND CLAYS & RED WARNING TRACKS OVER 5,000 INFIELD & SPORTS PRODUCTS 4 • New England BLADE • June 2019
Troll Turf Research Center South Deerfield, MA Ag.umass.edu/turf
Wednesday, July 31, 2019
NESTMA Summer Field & Turf Education Day Modern Sports Turf Management: Adapting to Change 9:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. Hosted by Town of Natick MHS Gardens at Elm Bank Natick, MA NESTMA.org
Wednesday, August 14, 2019 Using BioControl In the School Landscape
CT School IPM Workshop 8:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT Ipm.uconn.edu
