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Organic golf course lets the weeds grow

By shedding artificial fertilizers and pesticides, a Massachusetts golf club goes organic.

By E.B. SolomontWed, Aug 18 2010 at 5:19 PM EST
 7

Golf course Photo: John Foxx/Getty Images Stockbyte
It is one of those great ironies that pesticides and other chemicals are widely used to keep most golf courses looking lush and green. But a tony course on Martha’s Vineyard is changing that notion by going “organic,” according to The New York Times.
 
The Vineyard Golf Club is thought to be the country’s only organic course, meaning not a single pesticide, fertilizer or artificial chemical touches its hallowed 18 holes. It is not, the paper writes, a course known for being “unnaturally perfect,” as so many unblemished greens are.
 
“When we started here, some of my peers thought this golf course would be a dust bowl,” said Jeff Carlson, the club’s superintendent. “I admit I wasn’t so sure it could be done myself.”
 
Opened eight years ago, the Vineyard Gulf Club is using alternative techniques for keeping the grass vermin-free. Carlson uses boiling water to kill weeds. He has imported microscopic worms to attack grubs. Local fisherman trap raccoons and other critters that find their way onto the course. The mating cycle of oriental beetles has been stunted by strategically placed scents.
 
Still, not everyone thought going green was the right idea, including some conservationists. The Vineyard Golf Club is a favorite among well-heeled summer patrons. (President Obama has tee time there this summer.)
 
But Carlson had personal experience with mercury-based fungicides typically used on golf courses: One of his earliest jobs was to mix the stuff by hand. He learned it was toxic when his wife’s hair started falling out. Before the Vineyard club, he built the Widow’s Walk Golf Course in Scituate, Mass., a course known as the first environmental demonstration course.
 
It’s not entirely clear what it means to be an organic course.
 
“The Vineyard Golf Club has gone further than anyone organically, especially for that level of golf course and considering what they’ve achieved over the years,” said Paul Parker, author of a 79-page report by golf and environmental experts. The report listed more than 20 other courses that call themselves organic, despite using some chemical agents.
 
The Vineyard Golf Club gets its share of weeds. “We had to promote the notion of playability rather than visual perfection,” said Carlson.
 
“It is not perfect out there, but even if your ball comes to rest next to a shaved-down broadleaf weed,” Gene Mulak, the club’s golf pro, said, “it’s not going to affect your shot.”
 
Indeed, Carlson told The Times he doesn’t want it to be known as just the organic golf course. “I don’t want people to come here and say, ‘That was a real good golf course for an organic golf course,’” he said.
 
 
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Related Topics: Organic Products, Pesticides, Sports, Sustainable Gardening

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anonymous
Pam Kutscher 08/23/2010 12:31 PM

Sounds like this is a work in progress and an experiment.Kudos to those involved! I think it is a great idea. Imagine the very first golf courses in Scotland where the game was invented--I bet they were more naturally managed than most golf courses today. Great work!

anonymous
Pam Kutscher 08/23/2010 12:10 PM

Sounds like this is a work in progress and an experiment.Kudos to those involved! I think it is a great idea. Imagine the very first golf courses in Scotland where the game was invented--I bet they were more naturally managed than most golf courses today. Great work!

anonymous
Organic golf course 08/22/2010 20:41 PM

Please spread the word and let us learn to use this technique on neighborhood lawns. Why does our society think things are only pretty when they see people and places as perfect. Unique is what makes the world beautiful.

anonymous
Len Forster 08/22/2010 17:44 PM

What a great and marvelous idea. It's about time that people figured out that grass doesn't have to be perfect and weed free to offer a good round of golf. I've played many a good course that had weeds, and it never affected my game (which I freely admit was never that great anyway). But, this is marvelous. I hope more golf courses will do the same in the future.

anonymous
Doug Goodman 08/22/2010 17:24 PM

Now lets use sheep or geese to cut the grass!

anonymous
Cynthia T. 08/22/2010 17:03 PM

This is definitely a step in the right direction, but with so many golf courses nationwide, I wonder if it's possible to convert some of them to organic vegetable gardens (CSA's). I know, I know, golf enthusiasts are saying NO WAY! But, do we really need all these golf courses? With so much land used for one course, just think of the fresh food that can be harvested, especially for people who live in the city and don't have their own garden plot. No, I don't play golf. I suppose I would.... More

anonymous
Charlene R, 08/22/2010 16:02 PM

What a unique and marvelous idea. One can only hope that the idea spreads. Actually, it just might make it more interesting.

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