Since 2015 Clint Steele has managed the sports fields at the University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC) mostly by himself! When he arrived at this Division 1 school there was an assistant on his staff but that didn’t last long and ever since he has been on his own to manage nine fields, eight of which are natural grass.
Years before he worked at George Mason University where he was introduced to the concepts of Biological Soil Management and carbon based fertility. He now follows the same practices and says it helps him reduce inputs, which saves him precious time. He is able to outsource a lot of the work with contactors, and often some of the baseball and softball players will pitch in to keep the fields playing and looking good.
Clint got his start in the sports turf industry when he was a high school baseball player, realized that he was not going to make the pros, so he started working to help with the field. His advice for anyone who may want to get into the sports turf industry is “ you have to love it!” A great conversation full of tidbits that can help any grass grower.
Listen to "The EW Podcast - Joel Simmons with Clint Steele" on Spreaker.