Clemson, Georgia, USA
December 11, 2014
Frank (Gib) Bethea’s winning research poster. Image Credit: Clemson
Clemson University turfgrass students earned first-place honors at two recent international and regional conferences.
Plant and environmental sciences doctoral student Frank (Gib) Bethea Jr. took first place in the turfgrass science research poster category at the 2014 Crop Science Society of America (CSSA) International Annual Meeting in Long Beach, California.
Bethea’s poster depicted his research into the role of the grass leaf cuticle layer in the uptake of fertilizers and pesticides. For his doctoral work, Bethea is using advanced microscopy to understand how the structure of turfgrass leaves and cuticles influence water intake.
Bethea, from Saluda, co-authored a Clemson turfgrass research poster that won the top CSSA award in 2012. He will graduate in August 2015 with his Ph.D. in plant and environmental sciences with an emphasis in turfgrass science. Bethea works under the direction of Haibo Liu, professor of turfgrass science and management.
“Gib’s success is not only a tribute to his individual hard work and scholarship but also to the overall strength of Clemson’s turfgrass program,” Liu said.
Bo Barefoot of Precision Labs (left) honors Clay Barnette, Cory Hendrix, Frank Lamson-Scribner and Ben Wood.
A team of undergraduate turfgrass students that included Clay Barnette of Anderson; Cory Hendrix of Pawleys Island and Frank Lamson-Scribner and Ben Wood of Seneca, came out on top at the 2014 Carolinas Golf Course Superintendents Conference Turf Bowl competition in Myrtle Beach.
The Turf Bowl challenges students to identify turfgrass species, diseases, weeds and insects, as well as answer questions on mathematics, growth and development. Clemson last won the Turf Bowl in 2007.
The conference also gave students an opportunity to make career inroads with more than 2,000 golf course superintendents and assistants from across the Carolinas and Southeast.
“The CGSA Conference is an excellent opportunity for our students to be exposed to the turfgrass industry. We had a veteran team this year that had participated in the Turf Bowl last year and knew what it took to win. I am very proud of them. It is also a testament to the teaching they receive from our professors,” said Donald Garrett, turf team adviser and Clemson University Walker Golf Course superintendent.
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