Superintendent Curtis Harder discusses the ways that soil moisture monitoring with Spiio sensors has benefitted Blue Bell Country Club. With constant app updates and incredible ease of use and install, he sees these sensors as “invaluable.”

Curtis Harder has spent eighteen years in the turfgrass industry. Graduating from Delaware Valley University in 2009, he helped host the U.S. Women’s Open at Saucon Valley Country Club. He then moved to New Jersey’s Hollywood Golf Club and, later, Philadelphia Cricket Club, where he first became a superintendent. He is now going into his fifth season at Blue Bell Country Club. 

Blue Bell Country Club opened in 1994 and boasts close to 700 acres of diverse topography. Its beautiful landscape and social environment attract a healthy membership with a wide variety of golfers. In the last twelve months of the pandemic, they’ve seen a welcomed increase in membership. Golf has proven to be a great outlet during the pandemic, making it even more important to keep courses healthy. Thankfully, Curtis Harder installed four Spiios on the course in 2019. Spiio sensors help superintendents care for their turf through temperature, salinity, and soil moisture monitoring. 

Soil Moisture Monitoring with Spiio: Supplementing Traditional Readers

Of course, Harder and the staff at Blue Bell were diligent in soil moisture monitoring before Spiio, he says:

We still go out every day with TDR moisture readers, but Spiio tracks the data. If we get rainfall and we can see as the moisture percentage goes up and then goes back down. We can start to build a model and know what we need to do after rain. It helps us be a little more precise on the labor side. In the spring and summer when we’re busy with projects, we can take a quick look at the Spiio. We might say, ‘Okay, we’re good. We don’t have to worry about the greens right now.

In addition to soil moisture monitoring, Harder has found Spiio’s temperature data very helpful. “I really enjoy looking at the data,” says Harder. For example, he notes that when he makes an application for insects, he can see what’s working and what’s not. “I like seeing whether we need to apply a little sooner or later next time. For example, right now we’re probably close to two weeks ahead of where we were last year.” In the winter, he can see how the ground temperature fluctuates and determine whether snow removal is needed. Being able to track data around the clock presents new possibilities for making comparisons and decisions like these. 

I like seeing whether we need to apply a little sooner or later next time. For example, right now we’re probably close to two weeks ahead of where we were last year.

Curtis Harder

A Low-Risk Investment: Spiio Sensors’ Ease of Use and Install and App Updates

One of the biggest factors for Harder in making the decision to start soil moisture monitoring with Spiios was its ease of use and install. “Other companies offer something similar, but Spiio is on the forefront. Installation is easy, there are no wires to dig up—for just a couple hundred dollars, I think it’s invaluable.” And it’s not just installation; constant app updates keep Spiio data easy to access and use as well. “There have definitely been some good upgrades since we started out. It’s gotten easier and less quirky to use. Overall, it’s very user-friendly, and there are elements, like notifications, that I want to explore some more. It’s good to see that they’re always tweaking things.”

Other companies offer something similar, but Spiio is on the forefront. Installation is easy, there are no wires to dig up—for just a couple hundred dollars, I think it’s invaluable.

Curtis Harder

Another Point of Reference: Making More Informed Decisions

The biggest value Harder sees, though, is still in the soil moisture monitoring. He’s known, for example, that some of his greens are a touch drier than others. So, he spread out his sensors to get data across these localized areas where wind and sun create different microclimates. He’s actually in the process of installing three more Spiios:

I’m interested to see where we’ll put them—maybe one in the fairways to compare to the greens. It helps to see whether to run overhead irrigation or just water in a few areas. And we can look at the data from 5am and make those decisions in the office before we even go out for the day.

All in all, Harder appreciates having another point of reference in making decisions. “Whether we should send mowers out, what type of sprays we should do…it’s another measure to make more informed decisions.” He recognizes that not having to just rely on feeling for these decisions is particularly helpful for new assistants. He’s quick to acknowledge that he’s got a great staff. Spiio is a tool to help communicate with them as they make these decisions:

Some of them like to see what we’re seeing, to understand why we make the decisions we do. I take a screenshot for our green committee meeting to show the raw data and explain what we’re doing.

Spiio’s soil moisture monitoring, in addition to its other readings, offers superintendents like Harder valuable decision-guiding data. With unparalleled ease of use and install, plus the promise of constant improvement through app updates, it’s an easy decision.

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Adam Hoffman, superintendent of Sunset Hills Country Club in Carrolton, Georgia, is a major proponent of diligently recording turf data. Spiio has been a valuable tool for him in this effort. In addition to being impressed by superb customer service, he’s quickly noticed the sensors’ value in turf data comparison.

In his 27 years in the turfgrass industry, (6 as superintendent), Adam Hoffman says the field has changed a lot. “When I got in,” he says, “it was during the Tiger Woods boom. The money was flowing, and courses were being built everywhere. Now, everything’s closing down, getting cheaper, getting more streamlined. Courses have got to do more with less—especially in a small-town country club like this. Things are at a premium financially.” That budgetary shift is just one issue golf course superintendents face. Recording turf data using Spiio sensors can help alleviate financial strain.

Adam Hoffman was actually a graphic design major in college. On the side, he was still working his high school job at a golf course in Johnson, Tennessee. Like many turfgrass professionals, he eventually realized he enjoyed working on the course more than what he did in class. So, he transferred to the University of Tennessee to study Ornamental Horticulture with a concentration in Turfgrass Management. He’s now worked on several courses. In 2005 he and his family left Tennessee, his home state, to follow his wife’s teaching job to Georgia. His current professional home is Sunset Hills Country Club in Carrolton, GA.

Saving Money with Spiio Sensors

Sunset Hills CC installed two new Spiio sensors last June. Hoffman is really seeing the potential financial value: “I’ve used the sensor data quite a bit to time free-emergent herbicide applications. If you put those applications out either too soon or too late, you’re wasting money. You spend on the initial application, plus the cost of the post-emergent application you’ll have to put out later. Because of that, I’ve been trying to fine-tune the timing.” Recording turf data (like soil temperature) with Spiio sensors can help courses better time these applications and save money. 

“I’ve used the sensor data quite a bit to time pre-emergent herbicide applications. If you put those applications out either too soon or too late, you’re wasting money—money for the initial application, plus money for the post-emergent application you’ll have to put out later. Because of that, I’ve been trying to fine-tune the timing.”

Adam Hoffman

“We’re fortunate in Georgia that we don’t have to buy water, like places out West. But we still have to pay to pump it, so obviously it’s a resource we don’t want to waste.”

Another way Spiio helps courses save money is water conservation. “We’re fortunate in Georgia that we don’t have to buy water, like places out West. But we still have to pay to pump it, so obviously it’s a resource we don’t want to waste.” Precise soil moisture data allows Sunset Hills to save money (and help the environment) by reducing the risk of over-watering.

Customer Service at Spiio: It’s More than Just the Product

But it’s not just the value that the sensors themselves bring. Hoffman has been extremely impressed with the service he’s received from Spiio as a company. “The customer service has been mind-blowingly awesome,” he says. “They’ve always been willing to work with me. Of course, there have been a few problems and bumps in the road, but they’ve been on top of it. They’ll ask, ‘What can we do to make it right?’ They’ll send replacement units; as well as check-in with a call or a text. Even when I’ve had some requests that might seem unreasonable, they’ve gone out of their way to make it work. It’s rare to find customer service like that in any business, especially this one.” One example of this kind of personalized customer service was helping Hoffman’s efforts in recording turf data.

Spiio made sure the data from the sensors worked directly with the spreadsheets Hoffman was already using. Keeping track of and recording turf data has always been very important to Hoffman. He’s been building off the work of other turfgrass professionals who have shared spreadsheets online. At Sunset Hills, they log temperatures, rainfall, and evapotranspiration on a regular basis. “Sometimes, honestly, it turns out to be pointless. But some days, I’m able to go back and say, ‘Oh, we’re starting to see a spike in X. We need a new growth regulator application.’ Or it might be, ‘Moisture is going down, we’re not going to see as much growth.’”

“The customer service has been mind-blowingly awesome,” he says. “They’ve always been willing to work with me. Of course, there have been a few problems and bumps in the road, but they’ve been on top of it. They’ll ask, ‘What can we do to make it right?’ They’ll send replacement units, they’ll check in with a call or a text, and even when I’ve had some requests that might seem unreasonable, they’ve gone out of their way to make it work. It’s rare to find customer service like that in any business, especially this one.”

Adam Hoffman

The Importance of Recording Turf Data

Hoffman really advocates recording turf data consistently. He often advises, “It costs almost no effort. And you never know when you’re going to use it until you need it.” He also jokes, “At least it impresses people.” The Spiio sensor makes it that much easier to record accurate data, and adds a new element: “Because it’s there in the ground, you’re always getting info—rather than just momentary snapshots from going out with probes. With the sensor, I can get a fuller picture of what’s going on in the course. When I look at the data, I can see almost a heartbeat, a rhythm, in the grass. The numbers move up and down throughout the day.” Seeing this daily fluctuation opens possibilities for turf data comparison between different times of the day. This includes times of day Hoffman usually wouldn’t get much insight into.

Though he’s already noticed benefits, Hoffman looks forward to having Spiio data that spans multiple seasons. Right now, he’s able to give reports to board members on a monthly basis. Those data-driven reports instill confidence in general managers, board directors, and other stakeholders. They know the superintendent is on top of things and knows what’s going on out on the course. As he continues recording turf data with Spiio, Hoffman is excited to eventually have multiple years of records. He’ll be able to say, for instance, “Here’s what we had last October, and here’s what’s happening this year.” Turf data comparison across years would yield insights beyond what he’s got so far. 

Experimenting with Sensors & Recording Turf Data

Sunset Hills is also open to expanding their use of Spiio sensors. “We put one on our wettest green and one on our driest green for now. We’re on a limited budget,” says Hoffman. “I’d love to possibly add more later. But in the meantime, there’s also a ton of flexibility; I can move the sensors as needed to check other areas.” That means he can utilize turf data comparison between different areas of his course.

“We put one on our wettest green and one on our driest green for now. We’re on a limited budget,” says Hoffman. “I’d love to possibly add more later. But in the meantime, there’s also a ton of flexibility; I can move the sensors as needed to check other areas.”

Adam Hoffman

As a long-time advocate of consistently recording turf data, Hoffman frequently tells people, “You think you’ll remember, but you won’t. Write it down.” With Spiio, someone is always “writing it down.”

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Recently partnered with TurfTasker, a growing communications and tracking platform for turfgrass professionals, Spiio is showing that its easy-to-integrate API opens new doors for the future of communication and automation in golf course operation.

One of the reasons Spiio is growing rapidly is that it’s optimized for integration with other emerging technologies. As the turf industry, along with much of the world, moves toward automation, this technological integration is key. One company that recognizes and is riding this trend is the comprehensive platform TurfTasker. 

TurfTasker: The Origins of a Comprehensive Platform

TurfTasker was started by three friends—two software engineers and a turfgrass professional who was working at Roger Dean Stadium in Florida. At one point, this friend expressed “At the stadium, we do everything on whiteboards, paper, and Excel. It’s real old school.” The three friends decided to work together to provide a more modernized data recording and communication solution for Roger Dean. 

“At the stadium, we do everything on whiteboards, paper, and Excel. It’s real old school.”

Alex Jacobs, TurfTasker

That’s how the project started, but it soon grew to be a lot more.

After some contact with other turf venues, the emerging TurfTasker soon realized that golf course operation would be a prime application for their new platform. By this point, several months of work had yielded a full-fledged product. TurfTasker provides clients with the potential for automation in many of their day-to-day operations. It offers property mapping, a comprehensive platform for tracking essential data, and—of course—the ability to integrate that platform with other technologies.

Using Spiio Data to Enhance Potential Automation

Alex Jacobs, one of the founders of TurfTasker, has expressed his excitement about the budding partnership with Spiio. “The integration was easy,” he says, “and the data is awesome. It really takes us to the next level.” Rather than positioning the app as a widget within the platform, TurfTasker pulls Spiio data directly from Spiio’s API to populate its graphically-friendly tables and charts. Alex built out a one-page portal where you can really see the potential for automation at play. For example, he says, “You can schedule a task to Worker X that’s dependent on whether it’s supposed to rain.” Integrated with local weather forecasting and soil moisture data from Spiio sensors, the system does the analysis and delegation on its own. This communication between technologies really opens doors for golf course operation.

“You can schedule a task to Worker X that’s dependent on whether it’s supposed to rain.” Integrated with local weather forecasting and soil moisture data from Spiio sensors, the system does the analysis and delegation on its own.

Alex Jacobs, TurfTasker

Though it’s a valuable product now, TurfTasker is only getting started. Its vision for automation includes the ability to combine property mapping and inventory records to show users exactly what they’ve got and what a given task will cost. Imagine this scenario: TurfTasker pulls information on soil temperatures from Spiio data to determine whether a chemical application is needed in a certain area of turf. It then uses property mapping, area calculation, and inventory tracking to figure out how much product would be needed, how much would be left afterward, and how much the task would cost before assigning that task to a specific worker.

Looking to the Future: Plans and Possibilities

TurfTasker has a lot planned in the near future. We can soon see another almost-too-good scenario becoming possible: Spiio provides real-time data on soil moisture, and irrigation responds to set thresholds by watering where and when it’s needed. In a post-Covid world that increasingly values remote and labor-efficient work, this kind of automation is a lifesaver for turfgrass professionals. “It would cut down workforce and save water, which is necessary for both financial and environmental conscientiousness,” Jacobs points out.

It would cut down workforce and save water, which is necessary for both financial and environmental conscientiousness.

Alex Jacobs

The integration between Spiio and TurfTasker is mutually beneficial. Spiio is quickly becoming a well-established product with a reputation for value and dependability. TurfTasker is unique because it is a much more comprehensive product than many of its competitors. “We’re excited to see a partnership with Spiio develop,” says Jacobs. Speaking with him about it, it’s clear that we’re witnessing a turning point in which communication between technologies like Spiio and TurfTasker is creating new possibilities for the future of golf course operation.

Read more about Spiio’s API here and don’t hesitate to contact us if you have any questions.

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