April 2008

Organic Turf Trade Show Educates Local Green Industry on Non-Toxic Methods
9th Annual Event Showcases Safer Products and Practices

Two hundred and eighty people packed the hall for the ninth annual Long Island Organic Turf Trade Show held at the reception center of the Old Bethpage Restoration Village. It was sponsored by WLNY-TV55 and the Suffolk County Water Authority. The Landscaper, a trade newspaper, and Whole Foods Market in Jericho provided in-kind donations.

The Trade Show was organized by the Neighborhood Network. It featured classes on organic methods for turf care with over 20 displays from vendors on the cutting edge of organic products from across the Northeast spanning distances from as far away as Maine to Maryland. The trend toward organics is growing. There was an 11% increase in attendance from last year.

Attendees included green industry professionals, government decision makers, parks and school officials, golf course superintendents and eco-minded consumers. Two attendees came from an organic golf course in Australia.

This event highlighted Long Island’s leadership in demonstrating that safer alternatives to toxic pesticides that contaminate our drinking water are viable.

Workshops on the topics of weed prevention, native ornamental plants, marketing strategies and soil biology were offered at the Trade Show. A special workshop on organic turf maintenance practices also took place in Spanish. Instructors included: Vincent Palmer, NY State Department of Environmental Conservation; Paul Sachs, North Country Organics, VT, author of Managing Healthy Sports Fields and Ecological Golf Course Management; Vincent Simeone, Planting Fields Arboretum, Oyster Bay, NY; Fabian Sanin of Marders Nursery, Bridgehampton and James Sotillo and Roger Feit of Treewise, the Organic Experts, East Hampton.

For more information visit the Neighborhood Network web site at neighborhood-network.org