Scientific Plant Service is proud to be a sponsor and volunteer at the Field Trip event at Westminster National Golf Club.
Scientific Plant Service is proud to be a sponsor and volunteer at the Field Trip event at Westminster National Golf Club. Our employee, Bob Boyer, Plant Healthcare Advisor, also contributed by running the math station. The event took place on Wednesday, April 17th in Westminster, Maryland and was organized by First Green, a STEM program of the EIFG (Environmental Institute for Golf), the philanthropic organization of GCSAA (Golf Course Superintendents Association of America.)
First Green
First Green is an innovative environmental and STEM education outreach program that uses golf courses as learning labs. Through the program, golf course superintendents or local golf course representatives will host students on field trips and teach them to test water quality, collect soil samples, identify plants, design plantings, and more! Golf courses are an excellent environment for this education, as they are large areas of land with healthy turf, plants, and trees. Golf courses are also home to various kinds of wildlife, produce oxygen, and filter surface water.
Field Trip Activities
On the field trips organized by First Green, students will learn about the math that goes into creating a golf course, specifically area measurements. A golf course superintendent must know how to calculate the size of an area in order to determine the total amount of seed, fertilizer, or topdressing sand that is required. This lesson will lead into an activity for students to calculate the size of an area on the golf course on their own.
Next, students will learn how to calculate the square footage of an irregular space, such as a putting green or sand bunker. The third lesson focuses on measuring and calculating stream flow, as a golf course superintendent must be able to accurately calculate the volume to properly apply sand topdressing and pesticides or determine the volume of water in pond or stream. These lessons and worksheets can be found on First Green’s website.
Scientific Plant Service Is Your Go-To Source In Landscape Healthcare
Scientific Plant Service, located in Baltimore, is a privately-owned corporation, chartered in Maryland in 1957 by Frank J. Burke. We started as a full-service Arborist specializing in the care of shade trees and ornamental shrubs, but today we are a lawn and total landscape care company that is a huge part of the community. From aquatic environments and snow management to deer and mole control, SPS has services tailored specifically for your lawn and landscape.
We offer services in Maryland, Washington DC, and Virginia, including Harford, Baltimore, Carroll, Frederick, Howard, Anne Arundel, Montgomery, Prince Georges, Talbot, Calvert counties in MD, as well as Loudoun County, Fairfax County, Arlington, Alexandria, and Falls Church in VA. For more information, contact us online, or call us at 410-321-0970. Be sure to follow us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Pinterest!