Nearly 200 people gathered for the 2009 Western Regional Conference held March 2 in Buffalo, New York.
Featured speaker, Richard Buckley, Director of the New Jersey Agricultural Experimental Station Soil Testing and Plant Diagnostic Services at Rutgers University, presented a general session on basic turf diseases. Mr. Buckley gave a straight-forward, energetic talk that kept his audience captivated through the use of good examples, many samples from his diagnostic lab and a lot of humor.
Dr. Frank Rossi, Associate Professor in the Department of Horticulture at Cornell University, presented a sports turf session where each attendee received a complimentary copy of “Sports Field Management,” a comprehensive management guide on how to maintain sports fields to maximize safety and performance. Dr. Rossi, a dynamic speaker who regularly speaks at NYSTA regional conferences, also spoke on late season fertility and snow mold. His popular presentations always receive positive comments from those who attend them.
According to conference co-chair, Rick Holfoth, CGCS, “The Western Regional Conference is a quality program with excellent speakers representing top universities and industry professionals. The conference also offers a trade show with 20 different vendor displays so that attendees not only earn required recertification credits but also network with green industry exhibitors.”
We welcome the five members who joined NYSTA at this event, and would like to thank our presenters, exhibitors, sponsors and attendees for making the Western Regional Conference a success!