Armament® ZnB: The Grass is Greener on the Other Side

There are times in my travels when I often wonder if what I’m doing is really “making a difference.” Winter season means education season, which in turn includes quite a bit of travel for educational seminars across the Midwest. I thoroughly enjoy my time in front of people and educating folks has been a large part of my life’s work. Education is empowerment after all—and there’s nothing more satisfying than empowering people and effectuating positive change in our industry. 

This past education season, I had the opportunity to talk about Foliar-Pak®’s new granular-spray product called Armament ZnB. For those of you who missed it, or need a refresher, the concept of Armament ZnB is that most of our soils are deficient in zinc and boron naturally. Zinc and boron are necessary for root growth and development. Zinc is necessary for auxin development, which controls growth at the tips of your shoots and roots. It is also necessary for tryptophan synthesis, which turns into a key rooting hormone after a biological conversion in the soil. Boron, on the other hand, is important for cell wall development. Without boron, you can’t have calcium deposition—and that’s pretty important to new roots. In addition to this, we included a large dose of our Armament technology, which is a patented amino-acid polymer that increases the uptake and availability of the nutrients in the soil. It was a product that took over a year to perfect, and we were all excited about its release. And what did we want to see from the Armament ZnB addition? Better rooting with a faster and longer-lasting green up.

So, after spraying approximately 3,000 tons of fertilizer with Armament ZnB thus far, where are we now? What have we seen? Has the grass been greener with the Armament ZnB addition? Thanks to a colder than expected April, we’re still early in the season, but here’s what I’ve heard thus far:

A lawn care operator in the Chicagoland area switched this year from a generic 30-0-6 formulation to Advanced Turf Solutions’s 22-0-4 with Armament ZnB. The LCO said that his lawns look great and the color has been outstanding. In one of his neighborhoods, one property’s lawn looks so much better than the competitors’ lawns that he’s gained four new customers in the neighborhood.

There’s another customer that ordered a pallet of 16-28-12 without Armament ZnB, but ended up with two bags with Armament ZnB to try. This customer wanted a started fertilizer to use with his grass seed. The formulation with Armament ZnB grew in faster and stronger and with better roots. 

Finally, a golf course superintendent in Indiana has always had a difficult time getting his bluegrass bunkers to come out of the spring and begin new growth and green up. Instead of the standard 22-0-4, he decided to give the Armament ZnB formulation a try. The treated bunkers were looking great in short order, and the comment was made that he wasn’t sure if the grass could get any greener. After looking at the pictures, I’d have to agree. With Armament ZnB, the grass is greener on the other side.

Photo credit: Brad Emerick

Photo location: Sycamore Hills Country Club, Hole #9, Fort Wayne, IN
Superintendent John Thompson

George Murray
President, EnP Investments, LLC