2. Grass form and function. Know what is a grass, the major parts of the grass plant, their developmental relationship, natural function, role in propagation and turf quality, and use in identification. How many grasses are there in the world?

3. Genera and species. Know the major genera and representative species of warm- and cool-season grasses: their origin, subfamily affiliation, climatic and maintenance adaptations, distinguishing characteristics, and turf uses. What is the difference between C3 and C4 grasses and how do their physiological adaptations relate to their problems from shade, mowing, and traffic?

4. Cultivars. Know the major cultivars of Florida turfgrasses, their uses, history, and limitations. Why do southeast Florida lawns have a virtual monoculture of Floratam St. Augustinegrass? What is the most and the least that one might expect from a new cultivar? Why are there so many dozen cultivars of cool-season grasses?

5. Propagation and establishment. Be able to plan a turf area from the ground up, including selection of species and cultivar, steps in establishment, vegetative increase and seed establishment, and development of a maintenance plan. Why do golf greens frequently show genetic off-types? Why are most warm-season grasses propagated vegetatively? Is seed propagation better?

6. Water budget. Understand the four environmental factors affecting evapotranspiration, and the relationship of depth of rooting, soil moisture reserve, rainfall, irrigation uniformity, and the application of these concepts to the water budget method. Be aware of secondary considerations such as infiltration and localized dry spots. What happens when there's too much water? How often should one water a lawn? A golf green? What is the best time of day to water a lawn and why are some of the ideas of nighttime irrigation a myth?

7. Irrigation design. Be able to design or retrofit an irrigation system considering performance and cost. Understand the interrelated concepts of precipitation rate, uniformity, wind distortion, pipe size, flow rate, pressure loss due to friction, valve control, and head characteristics. Why are irrigation systems inefficient? Why should one often choose the larger pipe size?

8. Soil chemistry and plant nutrition. Know the elements needed for plant growth, their relative preponderance in the turf plant, the effects of deficiency or over-application, and the tendency of different soils, different grasses, and different management situations to vary in the need for supplemental nutrients. Why and when do Florida grasses sometimes show micronutrient deficiency? How are consumers confused by the many choices of fertilizer?

9. Biogeochemistry. Describe the cycles of molecules in nature (water, carbon, and nitrogen), their relationship among organisms, and natural reserves (soil, thatch, and atmosphere). How much oxygen does an average lawn produce, and why is this not very important? What are the pathways and destinations of a pesticide in the environment?

10. Soil physics. Know how physical characteristics of soil relate to use factors (e.g., traffic). Know the relation of soil particle size distribution, compaction, percolation rate, aerification, and high intensity (e.g., athletic) turf. Why and when is it okay to drive on the grass? What is the USGA Green Specification?

11. Turf biota. Know major genera and species of turf pests (insects, fungi, weeds, and nematodes), beneficial organisms, their scientific and common names, and simplified life cycles. What is the disease triangle? What is the difference between signs and symptoms? If someone telephoned you with a supposed pest problem, what is the sequence of essential questions that you must ask?

12. Integrated turfgrass management. Be able to describe a turf installation, including maintenance inputs (irrigation, mowing, fertilization, pest control, and cultural practices), turf use, and economic aspects. Be able to show how practices (such as overfertilization) affect pest populations. Compare different turf installations. Why is most research on turf biota related to pesticides? Which biological controls (including biological pesticides) work? Are natural products safe?

13. Problem solving. Be able to solve turf performance problems through diagnosis, involving sample preparation, interviews, description of site conditions, management factors, turfgrass symptoms, and the interrelationship of this information to various classes of problems (soil and pests, including humans). If you manage a ballfield and you suspect a pest problem, what are some ways of testing the hypothesis?

14. Safety. Know how turf practices harm people and other inhabitants of the environment and know how to minimize these deleterious effects. What is meant by LD₅₀? What does a pesticide label tell you? What is chemical trespass?

15. Science and technology. Know and be able to skeptically interpret turf information (scientific papers, trade articles, and the experience of colleagues). What are the differences between science, technology, and engineering? What are the reason for randomization, replication, blind evaluation, and repeated experiments? What is a scientific paper?

16. Knowledge gateway. Be able to turn on a computer, open applications, and use a browser and search engine to find information on the World Wide Web. Be aware of other internet communications tools, e.g., e-mail, listserve, chat, and usenet (newsgroups). Be able to cite a scientific paper according to a given style, and be able to find a citation in the library. What are the most appropriate trade journals?