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Green light for first Green Start Academy
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To the uninitiated, the sleepy little burg of Clayton, N.C., just southeast of Raleigh, might seem like an odd place for the golf course management industry to plant a flag in the name of the future of the profession.
But as we said, that's to the uninitiated. The initiated know that this area is home to a pair of industry titans -- Bayer Environmental Science has a 281-acre research facility in Clayton and corporate offices in Raleigh's famed Research Triangle, while John Deere also has administrative offices in Raleigh and a huge manufacturing facility in nearby Fuquay, N.C.
That's why it actually makes perfect sense that the two companies came together in late September to host the first-ever Green Start Academy, a two-day education and networking event hosted at Bayer's research facility designed to give assistant superintendents from around the country a leg-up on taking their careers to the next level.
"This was a great event, and we all were impressed with the assistants we met over the last few days," David Ravel, a regional sales manager with Bayer, says. "We've made a commitment to continue Green Start and because of the great response, we will strive to provide even more information on pertinent topics applicable to their daily jobs."
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"We consider the first Green Start Academy a great success," said Matt Armbrister, the brand communication manager for John Deere One Source and a former GCSAA employee. "We look forward to continuing the event in the years to come and reaching out to these future leaders of our industry."
At the Green Start Academy, participants came from all over the United States and Canada, and from courses as renowned as Torrey Pines, Oakmont and Shinnecock Hills. The 49 participants were selected from more than 100 applicants based upon a 500-word essay they were required to submit that was judged by a panel of head superintendents and industry experts.
Topics covered during the event included water management and conservation, communicating with the media, disease and formulations, herbicides and insecticides, and aerating, verticutting and topdressing. Participants also got a full tour of Bayer's facilities in Clayton, as well as John Deere's manufacturing plant in Fuquay.
Bayer, NC State join forces
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In conjunction with the Green Start Academy, the company announced a recent partnership with NC State to create a plant health lab, dedicating a laboratory in Clayton to study methods of evaluating and measuring plant health.
As part of this agreement, NC State has assigned Danesha Carley, Ph.D., a post-doctorate turfgrass researcher to work fulltime out of the Clayton facility.
The lab in Clayton will include equipment that will measure photosynthesis and root biomass, as well as devices that will assist in the visual evaluation of plant health. In addition, areas of the four-hole golf course on the Clayton facility will be designated specifically for turf quality evaluation.
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