Turf news
April 15 , 2008 The 10th annual U of A Turf Classic raises money for scholarships, research Read more: http://www.nwanews.com/nwat/Sports/64185/print/ Pictured: From left are head football coach Bobby Petrino, women's head golf coach Shauna Estes, extension turf specialist Aaron Patton, women's assistant coach Mike Adams, associate professor Doug Karcher and professor Mike Richardson. |
 |
|---|
February 21, 2008 At the 2008 Galaxy Extension conference in Little Rock, Dr. Mike Richardson was recognized as the 2007 researcher of the year by the Arkansas Association of Cooperative Extension Specialists. Dr. Mike Richardson was nominated for his work on seeded bermudagrass establishment and for the service to extension that he has provided since arriving in Arkansas. |
 |
|---|
September, 2007
Aaron Patton, Turfgrass Extension Specialist, receives national turfgrass award. Read the full article .
August 3 , 2007
Sowing Green: Field day highlights turfgrass research, extension programs. Read the full article .
June 23, 2007
Turf farms growing business in state: Arkansas' 58 sod growers cultivate nearly 9,000 acres, up to $30 million. Read the full article from the Arkansas Democrat Gazette.
April 24, 2007
UA Turf Classic raises money for scholarships, research
Funds for turfgrass research and five partially funded scholarships for students studying horticulture at the University of Arkansas were raised Monday afternoon on the firm-and-fast track at Stonebridge Meadows Golf Club.
In its eighth year, the University of Arkansas Golf and Sports Turf Classic golf tournament raised close to $ 10, 000 for research and undergraduate scholarships, said Marilyn McCord of the UA Department of Horticulture.
The turf-grass industry — including seed and equipment companies, golfcourse superintendents and turf-grass and agriculture advocacy groups — was the primary patron of the event. Fifteen alumni of the horticulture department also participated in the tournament, McCord said.
Close to 30 students are part of the turf-grass management program in the department of horticulture, said Aaron Patton, and assistant professor and extension turfgrass specialist. The horticulture department is under the umbrella of the Dale Bumpers College of Agriculture, Food & Life Sciences.
Students with a horticulture degree can pursue myriad careers. Some aspire to be golf-course superintendents, charged with maintaining and improving playing conditions while minimizing the absorption of fertilizers and other forms of nutrients into the surface and ground water. Others will go into sports field management or landscaping. Working in sales for a turf management related business is also an option.
Patton, who earned his doctorate from Purdue University in December, is the newest addition to the horticulture department. Rather than teaching in the classroom, Patton said he spends most of his time working with county-extension agents and writing publications that help those agents answer the public’s questions about how to best cultivate their yards.
He’s also a resource for golf-course superintendents to reference. When a problem crops up on the course, such as the deterioration of bent-grass greens in the summer, superintendents can avail themselves of Patton’s extensive knowledge and expertise. In addition to his work with county-extension agents and golf-course superintendents, he conducts applied research such as evaluating what fertilizers work best on certain grasses and plants. Patton said questions about lawns can be answered by accessing the turf.uark.edu website.
Read the full article at http://www.nwanews.com/nwat/Sports/52421
December 20, 2006
Patton joins Department of Horticulture as Turfgrass Extension Specialist
Aaron Patton recently joined the Department of Horticulture as Turfgrass Extension Specialist. Patton is originally from Bloomington, Indiana. He earned his M.S. and Ph.D. at Purdue University and B.S. at Iowa State University. His research experience is in the area of bermudagrass and zoysiagrass establishment and the physiological aspects of zoysiagrass cold hardiness.
Patton will work in concert with extension, research, and teaching faculty to provide leadership in development of an interdisciplinary program to support the turfgrass industry and county extension agents. He will also be designing and developing innovative training programs and materials for the turfgrass and landscape industries, county extension agents, and home audiences, and interact with industry associations.
“This new position offers many great opportunities,” Patton said. “I work with a strong team and I am looking forward serving the turfgrass industry in Arkansas.”
Fall/Winter, 2006
Turfgrass Science a Growing Industry
September 18, 2006
Pat Berger featured on Houston Nutt show.
http://hort.uark.edu/video/video.html
May 17, 2006
Watching Grass Grow
http://www.uark.edu/depts/agripub/Publications/Agnews/agnews06-28.html
April 6, 2006
JOHN W. WHITE OUTSTANDING TEAM AWARD
The University of Arkansas Turfgrass Program provides cutting edge research and extends new technology to turfgrass professionals. The team also has developed one of the finest undergraduate and graduate education programs in the nation. Graduates are recruited by prestigious golf courses and other turfgrass operations nationally. Work in weed control, pathology, nutrition and other cultural techniques are the basis for best
management practices used in Arkansas and the region. Team members are Dr. Michael Richardson and Dr. Douglas Karcher, Horticulture; Dr. Eugene Milus, Plant Pathology; and Dr. John Boyd and Dr. James A. Robbins, Cooperative Extension Service.