Summer of Stress – Relief is in Sight

Stress is generally understood as a physical, mental or emotional reaction that causes tension or harm. Hear that? It’s your turfgrass agreeing with that definition.

This summer most parts of the country have already experienced countless days of above average temperatures and this extreme weather has become a survival challenge for many turf pros and the turfgrass they manage. The turf is stressed out on nearly every front by both disease and a super sized dose of the hazy, hot and humid stuff.

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It’s kind of amazing when you stop and think about it. A company plans to sink an oil well in 5,000 feet of water, 41 miles off the coast of Louisiana, and then drill up to 18,000 feet into the sea bottom to pump out crude oil.

The technology it takes to accomplish this is nothing short of amazing. Yet the idea itself is easy to grasp: a floating oil rig is essentially attached to a large pipe to pump oil deep inside the Earth through the ocean to the surface so it may be shipped to a refinery.

It’s simple in theory, but what if this pipe somehow breaks or ruptures in some way from a storm at sea or some kind of accident. How do we keep the oil from leaking into the ocean? Hindsight is always 20/20, but you don’t need to be an expert to think about what could go wrong and what has occurred in the Gulf of Mexico.

The lesson here is no matter how unlikely the event, if it could happen you should have a plan in place to manage the issue. You might not be able to control the event and prevent it from occurring, but you can control your readiness for it.

Thankfully most of us don’t worry about environmental disasters on the scale of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, but turf pros are stewards of the environment and must be ready for the likely and the unlikely.

What’s the worst that could happen? Think about it and think about how you would handle it and who you may rely on for help.

Does your team know its role when that worst case scenario becomes reality? Do you have a plan ready to pull out and follow? Have you run through the plan in some kind of drill or rehearsal to see if it plays out as well in real life as it reads on paper?

The old adage that people don’t plan to fail, they fail to plan, is true.

So what is your plan for something that is likely to occur? It could be drought or too much rain. Maybe it’s vandals who tear up the course late one Saturday night, or disease that wreaks havoc on your greens before a big tournament. Perhaps it’s a customer whose yard is now full of crabgrass or damaged ornamental plants because you did not calibrate the correct rate for the preemergent herbicide you applied earlier this spring.

I’m betting you have some plans for those issues and I know that BASF can play a critical role as you encounter them. If it’s greens stressed by summer heat we’ve got Honor™ fungicide and Trinity® fungicide to ward off disease and improve turf playability. We’ve got Drive® XLR8 herbicide and Onetime® herbicide in case those grassy weeds, sedges and broadleaf’s spoil your plans for perfect turfgrass this season.

If you’ve got BASF chemistry in your shed, you’ve got more than just plans; you’ve got products that deliver results for almost any likely turf disaster. Call us if you encounter that unlikely disaster as well.

If we can help, we’ll be there to help execute your plan and help you control what you can control. You’ve got my word on it.

Thank you,

Brian Lish
Business Manager
BASF Professional Turf & Ornamentals

Wow!

Having recently joined BASF Professional Turf & Ornamentals as its new business manager, my first weeks on the job have been a whirlwind of customer visits, new product updates and meeting turf pros like you across the industry.

Whether it’s talking with superintendents at the Golf Industry Show, visiting distribution partners all across the U.S., or chatting up a lawn care operator, it’s apparent that the economy and this rough weather remain on the minds of all involved in our business.

We’ve had snow in 49 out of 50 states and record low temperatures. Yikes. You know the disease is out there percolating with all this moisture, plus the freeze and thaw cycles we have seen.

Still, you can tell the real turf pros are licking their chops a bit about these prospects. The weather will turn and while you don’t want your turf to get eaten up by disease, the challenge is in your own precision to put together the right IPM strategy and keep the turf healthy for your customers.

The economy? Not where we want it yet, but things are beginning to turn and we’ll take it. The old axiom of slow and steady wins the race can apply here. It’s important to remember to keep things in perspective, work hard and control what you can control. Do that, and more often than not, you’ll do alright.

That’s why I’m excited to be part of the industry and why I think BASF can help. We’ve got a market-leading portfolio of products to keep your turf disease- and weed- free. We’ve got more innovations coming, and we are pleased to sponsor and take part in the upcoming Plant Health series in Golfdom magazine.

Plant Health is a much discussed issue for the turf industry and we have an important science-based message to share with turf pros. BASF products can help your turf during weather-related stresses and stretch your IPM budget dollars farther. More on that is coming this year.

Another facet of our innovation is how we are using social media. You as a visitor to this blog or as a follower on Twitter know BASF as a leader in this channel as well. More is on the way as well, so stay in touch and use these platforms as another way to engage us.

And I’d like to extend that offer directly to you. Let’s start a dialog: Tweet us, post to our blog, reach out and tell us what’s on your mind.

Let’s open the season and have a great year together.

Thank you,

Brian Lish
Business Manager
BASF Professional Turf & Ornamentals