EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S TURF TLI Research Update
Casey Reynolds, PhD
It’s that time of year again for the annual Te Lawn Institute (TLI) research update. As a former university researcher myself, this issue of Turf News is always a particularly fun one for me to take part in creating.
As many of you know, TLI funds $50,000 annually in turfgrass research at universities throughout the world. Tese funds are raised by generous donations from TPI members during the annual campaign, at TPI conferences, and at other times throughout the year.
As you read later in this issue about the many projects funded by TLI, I hope you get a feel for how far universities’ researchers are able to stretch these funds. It really is amazing how they can pull some of these projects together. As a reference point, a single graduate student costs between $35,000 and $50,000 per year after salary, benefits, classes, etc.
Te return on investment (ROI) that the turfgrass industry gets from university researchers is equally as impressive. One of the few green industry groups that cites a return on investment in research is the United States Golf Association (USGA). Trough their $2 million annual investment in research, and $10 million annual investment in the green section, they have projected $1.8 billion in annual savings for golf courses through green construction, water budgeting, fertilizer and pesticide Best Management Practices (BMPs), and new cultivars.
If you look at the wide range of projects TLI has funded in the past few years, it ranges from sod-specific research on topics like harvestability, grass mixtures, extending sod shelf-life, endophytes, and more—to bigger picture projects on sustainability, water use, athlete safety, and the environmental impacts of lawns. Each of these projects has the potential to have significant impacts on our industry, especially over time.
So, thanks to all of you for being a part of TPI and Te Lawn Institute in helping fund this type of valuable work. It is vital to keeping our turfgrass university research programs viable, and as many faculty will tell you, one of the first things university administrators look for in hiring new faculty, maintaining current faculty, or even keeping versus shutting down research programs altogether, is where and at what level is the available funding to sustain them?
So, thanks again for your support of TPI and Te Lawn Institute, and we hope you enjoy the 2022 TLI Research Update!
Cheers,
If you look at the wide range of projects TLI has funded in the past few years, it ranges from sod-specific research on topics like harvestability, grass mixtures, extending sod shelf-life, endophytes, and more—to bigger picture projects on sustainability, water use, athlete safety, and the environmental impacts of lawns.
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@TheLawnInstitute TPI Turf News September/October 2022
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