TWEETING SUPPORT FOR ISU TURF CLUB

Nick Christians
nchris@iastate.edu
515-294-0036



 Notice:  this is different from the information that I first posted.


There has to be a space between Turfbowl  and the number sign or it won’t work and no spaces in the IowaStateUniversity  

#GIS14_Turfbowl #IowaStateUniversity

If it doesn't turn blue when you tweet it, they will be unable to find it.

The attached pdf file is a release from GCSAA and John Deere on the annual turf bowl.  Notice that it shows all of the winners back to the beginning of four person teams.  This years contest will be at Orlando at the GIS show on Feb. 6.

Notice in the add that John Deere has added something new this year.  There is a contest on the posting of tweets about the contest.  The club that has the most students, alumni, and friends tweet the following message  (#GIS14_Turfbowl #IowaStateUniversity) will receive a check for $650 at the show.  

We would like to win this.  I would appreciate it if as many of you as possible who have tweet accounts post this as many times as you can.  They evidently have a way of tracing this no matter who posts it.

The club appreciates your help. 

You can get the entire add by clicking on turf bowl announcement

Lawn Fertilization

Today, temperatures finally began to climb out of the negatives. With the onset of warmer weather, (using this term gently) I felt it was a good time to start looking towards spring. Over the last few months there have been several inquiries regarding lawn fertilization. In response, I have revised the Iowa State University home lawn fertilization publication. Although you will not be pulling out the fertilizer bag for another 4-5 months, I thought I would inspire you with some information that will get you ready for warmer weather. The publication outlines the importance of fertilization, rates and timing of application, label requirements in Iowa, and fertilizer products in the market.

 

The following is a small excerpt from the introduction.

Lawns are an important component of many home landscapes. Good cultural practices are necessary to achieve a healthy, attractive lawn. One important cultural practice is fertilization. The benefits of a well-maintained lawn fertilization program are good turf color, quality and density. There are 14 elements which are often referred to as mineral nutrient elements and are generally obtaining in the soil via root extraction. The quantity of most of these nutrients contained in the soil is high compared with the requirements of turfgrass plants. However the demands for nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium often exceed the supply in the soil. Thus, it becomes necessary to add these elements through fertilization.

Turfgrasses require nitrogen (N) in the largest amount of any of the essential nutrients. For this reason, nitrogen is usually applied in the largest amounts. Nitrogen nutrition is important to turfgrasses because it can affect shoot growth and density, root growth, and susceptibility to damage from disease, heat, cold, and drought.

Turfgrasses require potassium (K) in relatively large amounts, second only to nitrogen. Potassium influences turfgrass rooting, disease susceptibility and drought, heat, and cold hardiness. The terms soluble potash, soluble potassium and K₂0 may be used to refer to potassium fertilization. 

Phosphorus (P) is required by turfgrass plants in smaller amounts than nitrogen and potassium. Phosphorus is important in the establishment, rooting, maturation, and reproduction of turfgrasses. The terms available phosphate, available phosphorus, available phosphoric acid, and P₂O₅ may be used to refer to phosphorus fertilization. 

The entire extension publication is attached in pdf form.  To download the publication, click on the following link Fertilizer Publication.  

or use the following address:  https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BzSKKI3Akgy_ejV0d3FQSU1mLVk/edit?usp=sharing

 

INTERNSHIP AT NEW YORK RED BULLS STADIUM-JOEL RIEKER

Nick Christians
July 6, 2014


This is the first post of the new year.  It concerns an internship by one of our students, Joel Rieker, with the New York Red Bulls soccer team.  This was a great experience for him.  As part of the internship, he completed a report on his activities.  Joel will also be presenting an oral presentation on his summer at the Iowa Turf Conference in Des Moines, IA and at the Sports Turf Managers Association (STMA) in San Antonio.

 The following is the introduction to the report.

In the summer of 2013, I had the privilege of working as intern for the New York Red Bulls. The main reason I chose this internship was because of the Major League Soccer season. Soccer has a long season that starts in March and concludes in December.  This meant that I would be working in the heart of the season. This gave me several learning opportunities and the ability to work side by side with professional athletes.  As an intern I was able to participate in all the day-to-day aspects of the job. The grounds crew was in charge of three facilities.   Each facility had its own set of challenges with its own set of tools to accommodate these challenges. 

The entire report with all of the pictures is attached in pdf form.  To download the entire report, click on the following link internship post.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BzSX2eos6s6hekk2eTRSVkpDUmM/edit?usp=sharing

PROFESSIONAL TURFGRASS MANAGEMENT-HORT 451 ON-LINE SPRING 2014

 Nick Christians

December 3, 2013

nchris@iastate.edu

Here is some more information on the advanced turf class that will be offered this coming spring.  Let me know if any of you have any questions.

It is available for undergraduate credit and graduate credit for those of you working on an MS degree.

INFORMATION ON YOUR SPRING 2014 ONLINE CLASS!

_________________________________________________________________________________

We are pleased that you will be teaching HORT 451–using Blackboard Learn for the spring 2014 semester. Dates that we have listed for your course are: Monday, January 13, 2014 to Friday, May 9, 2014. Course website: http://agonline.iastate.edu/courses/s2014hort-451-xw - Please review and let me know of any corrections that need to be made by Friday, December 6^th, 2013.   

BOOK INFORMATION

The book and course packet information listed on the Course Initiation Form was:

Fundamentals of Turfgrass Management & Mathematics of Turfgrass Maintenance

Students may order their textbook through the Iowa State University Book Store at http://www.isubookstore.com Or they may also use other online resources to order their textbook just make sure they understand which edition or ISBN number they should be looking for.

Notes from Brenton Center: If you have online course charges, please contact Amy Pilcher for information about how to report those expenses: apilcher@iastate.edu

**I am attaching the letter that will be sent out to all students enrolled in your distance education class. Please review the attached letter and get back to me with corrections before Friday, December 6^th, 2013 or the letter will be sent out as is.  

STUDENT INFORMATION

Unless specifically directed otherwise please have your students register in the following manner:

New students to Iowa State University have to apply for admission as a non-degree seeking student: http://www.admissions.iastate.edu/apply/nondegree.php (there is a $40 application fee)

Returning ISU students can register either through Access Plus or by calling the Office of the Registrar at (515) 294-1889 during regular business hours, Monday-Friday, 8am-4pm (CST). 

To drop or withdraw from a course, students must use AccessPlus or contact the AgOnline Coordinator at agonlinehelp@iastate.edu.  Failure to attend a class does not constitute withdrawal and a student will be billed for the full tuition.

Electronic class lists are available to instructors on the web through ACCESSPLUS.  https://accessplus.iastate.edu/frontdoor/login.jsp

All students are issued an ISU ID number. This number authorizes students to use the ISU e-library facilities, Access Plus, and to establish an ISU NET ID, https://asw.iastate.edu.  Students in classes using Blackboard, need an ISU NET ID to log-on to the system.

Best wishes for a great semester!  If there is anything more that we can do to make your off-campus teaching more rewarding for you and your students, please let me or the other Brenton Center staff know.  Thanks!

Amy Pilcher

Departmental Fiscal Officer

Brenton Center for Agricultural Instruction & Technology Transfer

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Distance and Online Education

Global Food Security Consortium

0004 Curtiss Hall

Iowa State University

Ames, Iowa 50011-1050

Office:  515-294-1862

FAX:  515-294-1924

apilcher@iastate.edu