Going Green on Your Golf Turf

Public officials are becoming increasingly aware that green space within urban vicinities preserve air quality and enhance the community’s overall quality of life. Most people would agree that having a beautiful city park or lush golf green can add to the attractiveness of an area. One of the main reasons golf courses attract visitors is the overall natural beauty of the course; unfortunately, this appealing turf is often created and maintained using harmful chemicals. Shifts in public opinion have recently increased demand for environmentally-friendly turf management, with a particular emphasis on cutting down the use of pesticides and fungicides and reducing ground water pollution.

The City of San Francisco has been using the organic soil amendment EM-1 to achieve an organic, chemical-free, conditioned soil without compromising the beautiful turf that golf aficionados enjoy. Like San Francisco, many public greenways are looking to use more environmentally-friendly organic soil amendments, such as EM-1, to ensure top soil quality without adding harmful chemicals to the ground.

Even recently, at the 2011 PGA Championship at the Atlanta Athletic Club, the importance of environmentally-sound soil conditioning became an issue. Kevin Mangum, Director of Golf Courses and Grounds at the championship host site in Georgia, found a new grass to use for the tournament. In a video on the importance of turf management and the new grass, Mangum discussed that the only foreseeable challenge to the success of his new grass would be if it couldn’t maintain moisture. Fortunately, micronutrient fertilizers like EM-1, employ a beneficial micro-ecology strategized to improve water retention. Water retention is a huge obstacle when maintaining turf and thus, utilizing an organic soil conditioner like EM-1 is essential. Beyond augmenting water retention, EM-1 improves soil structure as well as drainage. All of these qualities work to sustain top golf course turf quality and greenness even despite skyrocketing heat and/or drought. The biggest perk of all comes through the completely organic make-up of EM-1, which will allow for top turf management without tossing more harmful pesticides and fungicides into the environment.

So, whether you’re a pro golfer, course director or just a golf fan, make sure to inquire with your favorite courses as to their use of organic soil treatments on the turf. Let them know that choosing an organic soil conditioner will help prep and treat the soil as chemicals would without the negative environmental side effects. Many courses and cities are joining in the effort to green out the golf course and with EM-1, it’s simple and reliable.

A little more about EM-1: The organic soil amendment product EM-1 emerged in agricultural practices almost three decades ago and has proven to be a top choice for eco-friendly agriculture management. From farming soil, vineyard soil to golf course soil, EM-1 represents a proven way to amend soil healthily. Additionally the EM-1 micronutrient fertilizer has expanded across the soils of six continents with six diverse climates, which proves the functionality and flexibility of the micronutrient fertilizer amendment.