The EarthWorks Podcast
The EarthWorks Podcast is a series of interviews and conversations hosted by many of the EarthWorks agronomists, featuring friends from the turf industry. Interviews include noted golf course superintendents, industry experts, agronomists and business people. These conversations are designed to inform and entertain. EarthWorks has been a leader in the discussion of Biological Soil Management and has been producing professional grade carbon based fertilizers for over 30 years. Each year over 15,000 soil tests are performed by the companies agronomists and all of this builds the focus of The EarthWorks Podcast.Please enjoy.
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The EW Podcast - Jack Higgins with Tim Falvey - Rebuilding Inwood One Hole at a Time
Jack Higgins visits Tim Falvey at historic Inwood Country Club on Long Island for a tour of the property and a conversation about golf, turf management, course architecture, and restoration.<br /><br />Tim shares how he and his team are working to bring Inwood back toward its original links-style character, using historic aerials, removing trees, expanding short grass areas, incorporating fescue, and completing major renovation projects almost entirely in-house. They also discuss the challenges of managing a coastal golf course, including salt, wind, drought, extreme humidity, and an irrigation failure that left the course without its system for nearly 10 days. <b...
The EW Podcast - Kevin Hicks with John Szklinski - From the U.S. Open to a $30 Million Renovation.
Kevin Hicks reconnects with John Szklinski, his first boss out of college, for a conversation covering nearly four decades in golf course management.<br /><br />John’s career began at age 16 on a golf course near State College, Pennsylvania, before taking him to Penn State, Arizona, Southern Hills Country Club in Tulsa, and ultimately Charlotte Country Club. Along the way, he helped prepare Southern Hills for the 2001 U.S. Open, navigating everything from a maintenance facility fire and vandalism to major course renovations and the challenges of managing famously fast putting surfaces under championship conditions.<br /><br />John also reflects on...
The EW Podcast - Jack Higgins with Jamie Richardson, Churchill Downs
Jack Higgins visits Churchill Downs for an on-site conversation with Track Superintendent Jamie Richardson about the unique challenges of managing one of horse racing’s most demanding turf surfaces. Jamie explains how the track transitions from cool-season grasses to Ironcutter Bermudagrass during the summer, using the strength of the Bermuda root system to build a more stable, resilient racing surface focused on horse safety and performance.<br /><br />Jamie also discusses the evolution of the sand-based turf course, which was rebuilt in 2021, and how sprigging, DryJect, organic matter management, drainage, aerification, and fertility have helped improve the track year after ye...
The EW Podcast - Still Learning with Jerry
Jerry Brunetti was a founding partner of EarthWorks alongside Joel Simmons in 1988. At the time, Jerry owned an animal health care business in Northampton County, Pennsylvania, where Joel served as the County Extension Agent. Their friendship quickly grew, and Jerry became instrumental in helping Joel understand the value of Biological Soil Management.<br /><br />After EarthWorks was established, Jerry formulated two foundational products: the flagship Replenish 5-4-5 and the soil conditioner Kick. These products were originally intended to support a lawn care business, but Joel soon recognized that EarthWorks’ future was in manufacturing. From there, the company’s product deve...
The EW Podcast - Joel Simmons with Lawrence Mayhew - The Chemistry Behind Healthy Soil
Lawrence Mayhew, “The Chemist of EarthWorks,” joins Joel Simmons for a wide-ranging conversation about humic substances, soil biology, nutrient efficiency, and the evolving science behind Biological Soil Management. Lawrence explains how humic substances moved from being poorly understood and difficult to label to becoming widely used for improving nutrient bioavailability and fertilizer performance.<br /><br />The discussion explores rhizophagy, the process through which plants cultivate microbes, bring them into their roots, extract nutrients, and release them back into the soil to repeat the cycle. Lawrence and Joel also examine the importance of enzymes, trace elements, carbon diversity, micronization, and complex prod...
The EW Podcast - Jack Higgins at Hurstbourne Country Club - ISCO Championship 2026
Jack Higgins travels to Hurstbourne Country Club in Louisville, Kentucky for the ISCO Championship and interviews the entire agronomy team responsible for preparing the course for PGA Tour competition. The discussion explores how the team managed more than six inches of tournament rain while still delivering firm, consistent playing conditions, along with the planning, moisture management, course setup, and teamwork required to host a world-class event. Listeners also get an inside look at the daily responsibilities of each team member and the management philosophy that keeps the operation running at a high level.<br /><br />Jack interviews:<br /><br />Matt...
The EW Podcast - Joel Simmons with Tyler Bloom
In this episode, Joel Simmons joins Tyler Bloom on the Leadership on the Links podcast for a wide-ranging conversation about the evolution of Biological Soil Management, leadership, mentorship, and the future of the golf course industry. Joel shares the story of how EarthWorks was founded, his transition from Penn State Extension to recruiting and eventually launching EarthWorks with Jerry Brunetti, and the challenges of introducing carbon-based fertility in an industry that initially resisted the concept.<br /><br />The discussion explores why healthy soils create healthier turf with less effort, how today's superintendents have embraced carbon-based programs, and why soil testing...
The EW Podcast - Joel Simmons with Peter McCormick - Retirement 101
Peter McCormick, founder of TurfNet, joins Joel Simmons for a candid conversation about retirement after more than three decades serving the golf course industry. Rather than focusing solely on finances, Peter shares the emotional transition of stepping away from a career that defined much of his life, the importance of completely disconnecting from work, and the unexpected relief that comes from simplifying life.<br /><br />The discussion covers practical retirement planning, including maximizing retirement contributions, understanding Social Security, working with financial advisors, downsizing possessions, avoiding debt, and preparing financially long before retirement arrives. Peter explains how thoughtful planning gave him...
The EW Podcast - Jack Higgins & Kirk Castner - Behind the Scenes at EarthWorks
Jack Higgins sits down with EarthWorks’ Kirk Castner for a behind-the-scenes look at how the company has evolved over the past decade and where it's headed next. Rather than focusing on agronomy alone, this episode explores the people, manufacturing, logistics, and philosophy that allow EarthWorks to continue meeting growing demand while maintaining product quality.<br /><br />Jack and Kirk reflect on their years with EarthWorks and discuss the tremendous growth the company has experienced, expanding from a single granulation facility to multiple production plants across the United States. They explain how increasing demand from golf courses has expanded into sports tu...
The EW Podcast - Joel Simmons & Jack Higgins with Dr. James White, Rutgers University
Dr. James White of Rutgers University joins the EarthWorks Podcast to discuss the fascinating world of rhizophagy, a process in which plants actively farm, consume, and extract nutrients from soil bacteria and fungi. His groundbreaking research has helped identify and explain this remarkable relationship between plants and soil microbes, changing the way we think about plant nutrition and Biological Soil Management.<br /><br />Throughout the conversation, Dr. White walks through the entire rhizophagy cycle, explaining how plants bring microbes into their root cells, extract nutrients, and then release them back into the soil to continue the cycle. This process not...
