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Fort Lauderdale Research and Education Center

South Florida Turf EXPO Breaks Attendance Records

Turgrass managers study the design of a Toro mower.  Other manufacturers and distributors showed their wares, including Hector Turf, Nucrane Machinery, and Kilpatrick Turf.  
Turfgrass managers study the design of a mower.    

According to Miami Herald reporter Hector Florin, turf is big business in Florida.  Critiquing the South Florida Turf EXPO, Florin discovered that turfgrass managers are maintaining their cutting-edge technology.  Strong in its 22nd year, the EXPO is co-sponsored by the South Florida Golf Course Superintendents Association. 

Lori Parrish, Chair of the Broward County Board of County Commissioners, applauded South Florida's turf managers for constantly learning how to do a better job.  As keynote speaker, she also recognized the importance of relying on BMPs (Best Management Practices).  Two of Broward County's municipalities, Cooper City and Plantation are considering purchase of older golf courses, and are considering their options in managing the courses.  Commissioner Parrish cited the example of Bayshore Golf Course in Miami Beach as a facility that was being completely reconstructed to bring it into better environmental standards.  Finally, she described Fort Lauderdale Research and Education Center as a facility that was "vital" to the taxpayers of Broward County.  The title for Lori Parrish's talk was, "Get involved in your community."

  
   
 
 
  Miami Herald covers turfgrass.  Florin's article appeared on page B-1 of the Broward Section of the Herald for March 22, 2002.  

There were 480 attendees at this year's South Florida Turf EXPO, held March 21, 2002.  People came for all-day seminars on environmental turf management, the latest in field plot experiments, equipment technology, and spray calibration.  The last previous record was 2001, when the Fort Lauderdale Research and Education Center drew 400 attendees.  The reason for the large attendance is because Fort Lauderdale Research and Education Center is centrally located.  Within 1.5 hours drive of the UF Center, there are 400 golf courses, and over 7 million of Florida's citizens, specifically the triangle from southern Martin County to Homestead, to Naples.

Herald reporter Florin quoted several turfgrass managers about the importance of the event and the importance of its location.  For example, Miami-Dade Parks Coordinator Mike Barechio came to find out about "new grasses and new methods to control disease."  As a testing ground for environmentally safe products, the Fort Lauderdale Research and Education Center looks at how products actually work in the South Florida climate and soils.

Beyond the education of turfgrass managers, there is the even bigger challenge of educating the public on the importance of turf.  Florin's article was good, but could have gone into more depth on the actual role of turf root systems as a filter to protect the groundwater from pollution, and as a contributor to tourism and and other forms of economic security for Florida.  The article did mention that turf is an approximately $8 billion business for Florida each year.  That people may not realize the work of maintaining a Florida golf course was captured by the quote from Bryan Singleton, Golf Course Superintendent at Riviera Country Club, "It's something that people don't realize when they drive by a course.  We're not just watering."

Another draw for the 480 attendees was that a wide array of CEUs (Continuing Education Units) were offered, in pesticide training (both the Core and Ornamental and Turf), as well as CEUs offered for the GCSAA (Golf Course Superintendents Association of Florida).  A 24-page booklet was distributed, "South Florida Turfgrass Research," which was a summary of findings on nematodes, weeds, turfgrass soil microbiology, insects, soil and nutrition, and Ultradwarf bermudagrasses.