GCSAA/USGA Wetting Agent Evaluation

Interpretation of data

GCSAA has received questions on why no overall summary was produced from the results of the wetting agent evaluation. The validity of combining results from evaluation sites that vary greatly in location, grass species and cultivar, root zone materials, management, degree of soil hydrophobicity and weather is questionable. Variability this great calls into question the usefulness of any summary.

While the most useful way to interpret the data is to examine the results for each site individually for each year, summarized data from the GCSAA/USGA wetting agent evaluation have appeared. GCSAA cannot prohibit the use of the data in this fashion. Exercise caution when reading these summaries. At best, these summaries can provide a general grouping of the performance of wetting agents over a broad range of conditions. A summary that ranks the performance of individual products is taking the data beyond reasonable interpretation.

Complete information on the GCSAA/USGA Wetting Agent Evaluation can be found in the April (m) and August (m) issues of GCM and the complete data set can be found at www.eifg.org.