March 11 , 2002  

Mr. Tim Sessoms
7949 Bailey Road
Middlesex, NC 27557

Dear Mr. Sessoms:

I am writing to provide you with my impressions of American Turfgrass Corporation (ATC), a sod producer located in Creswell, NC. I have worked with the staff at American Turfgrass  since early 2000 as they have established and developed their farm into a producer of high quality turfgrass sod. ATC currently operates a 475 acre farm producing the following grasses:

• Tall Fescue Blend (Endeavor, Tomahawk, Coronado, and Apache II)

• Tifway (419)' hybrid Bermuda grass

• Common Centipede grass

• Palmetto' St. Augustine grass

• Empire ' Zoysia grass

The soil at the farm is a Cape Fear loam. Soil tests have shown the soil to have a high cation exchange capacity (9.2 -13.6 meq /100g) which means that it is fertile and capable of good nutrient retention. Because the soil is a loam, it provides good water holding capacity compared to sandier soils. While all sod requires careful watering until it becomes established, a loam soil will aid in retaining moisture until the sod knits down on the new site. The Creswell farm has been maintained as an active farm for 29 years before turning to sod production.  Thus, the soils have been limed all fertilized to optimize plant growth. The farm also uses a high volume irrigation system to assure rapid establishment and stress-free growth of their turfgrass crop.

The management and crew at ATC have impressed me with their knowledge and ability to produce a high quality product. They use modem production techniques and have invested substantially in the equipment needed to produce and deliver a dense, weed fee sod. ATC subjects their sod to inspection by the North Carolina Dept. of Agriculture and most of their grasses are available as 'Certified Sod'. This certification assures that the grasses you buy are genetically pure, weed free, and of the highest quality available.

Tim, if you nave clients looking for a high quality product backed by dependable service, I think that they would do well to consider American Turfgrass Corp. for their sod needs.

Sincerely,
Rich Cooper, Ph. D.

Turfgrass Agronomist