3-in-1: Needle tine - Pitchcare

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Wetting AGENTS GOLF is one of the most popular turf grass sports and caters for a wide age group with both male and female players. According to Beard (2002), “Others have described the game as fascinating, exasperating, aggravating, bewitching, and madness. Nevertheless, all those who have permitted themselves to become so entranced admit to its absorbing science. It is truly the sport of a lifetime”. Golf courses range from multi-million pound constructions, with high membership fees and large maintenance budgets, to cheaply constructed pay and play courses that are relatively inexpensive to play and are maintained on small budgets. Maintenance budgets above all else are a limiting factor in course presentation. Increasing expectation from players and club members creates increasing pressure on Course Managers to produce healthy, even and aesthetically pleasing surfaces year round almost regardless of the weather. Most clubs have irrigation on greens as normal cutting heights of 5mm and below restricts root depth and therefore available water to the plant however many do not possess fairway irrigation. It is therefore crucial that during the summer the effect of any natural rainfall on the turf is maximised. Templeton (1988) found that “only 30%- 70% of applied water, whether natural or through irrigation, actually becomes root zone moisture and that wetting agents which modify the cohesion of water, can greatly increase moisture penetration in certain soils”. It is important to present the course in a visually pleasing manner, as players will view this as a sign of quality. This can keep members contented and encourage paying visitors. Carey and Gunn (1999) state that after wetting agent application there were “trends that indicate that treated plots were generally darker and greener than the control, and that treatments which scored better on quality and uniformity also were darker and greener”. The majority of similar studies have been undertaken in the USA. Emmons (2000) lists some of the benefits from using a wetting agent during the summer as, rapid water penetration into the soil, a more uniform wetting of the root zone, increased infiltration into hard-to-wet soils and water conservation. According to Christians (2004), “every attempt should be made to use this resource in the most efficient way possible”. The role of wetting agent in water management As turf starts to dry, the dead and decomposing organic material within the litter and rhizosphere of the turf can become hydrophobic. A result of this is that rates of infiltration of irrigation and rainfall can decline, with a corresponding increase in surface ponding and run-off. This water can then be lost to the turf by evaporation or run-off direct into a water course. According to Beard (2002), “plant growth slows, plant tissues wilt and death will eventually occur if the water deficit continues”. An application of a wetting agent can increase infiltration rates by reducing the hydrophobic effect of decomposing organic matter in the turf. Emmons (2000) states, “The primary use of wetting agents is on hydrophobic turf. Their use helps water to infiltrate hardto-wet soils. When wetting agents are present, water penetrates rapidly into the soil giving a more uniform wetting of the rootzone. Wetting agents can therefore maximize the beneficial effect of rainfall or irrigation on turf ”. The chemistry of wetting agents and how they react with soil water As organic material becomes hydrophobic or the soil particles are coated in an organic coating they can become water repellent. This water repellent coating is nonpolar Figure 1. Soil particle coated with an organic water repellent coating. (Karnok, Kang and Tucker 2004) Water consists of two hydrogen atoms (positively charged) and one oxygen atom (negatively charged) and is therefore dipolar with both positive and negative polar ends. Polar molecules cannot bond with nonpolar molecules therefore soils and organic material affected by the nonpolar hydrophobic molecules cannot be wetted. Wetting agents are designed to have both polar and nonpolar ends so have an affinity for polar as well as nonpolar substances, this then forms the bond between the two allowing the turf or soil to wet. Figure 2. Figure 2. Soil particle with a water repellent coating after treatment with a wetting agent. (Karnok,Kang and Tucker 2004) All golf clubs want to present their courses in good condition. It is critical for the financial security of the club that their members renew their membership and that visitors will want to pay and play. It is therefore, very important that the golfers view the golf course as of being high quality. Budgets play a large part in the maintenance of the golf course, some clubs with smaller budgets view the purchase of wetting agents as an expensive luxury. However, wetting agents can be a tool for the Course Manager to use in the maintaining of turf quality. The use of wetting agents on golf courses in the UK is varied. Some clubs with large budgets use wetting agents on all their major turf areas, whilst clubs with smaller budgets will refrain from using them or tend to target critical areas such as the greens and tees. It is well documented that the maximum benefit is gained from applying a wetting agent to turf that suffers from periodic drought stress. Therefore applying a wetting agent to turf that may suffer from hydrophobic conditions should help maintain turf health. Colin Robinson LCGI, MSc. Course Manager, John O Gaunt Golf Club It is important to present the course in a visually pleasing manner, as players will view this as a sign of quality
PSD Agronomy visit Denmark and discover that Fescue’s FINE but don’t forget the putting surface ... PSD AGRONOMY Ltd would initially like to extend a thank you to Ian Tomlinson, Course Manager at Rungsted Golf Klub, for arranging a short tour of selected clubs in Denmark. In addition, to ‘the Sons of Golf ’, a group of Course Managers who meet to discuss and debate the development of fescue turf, for allowing us to visit their courses. Interest in this subject was aroused following a meeting at Harrogate earlier in the year and an increasing awareness within the industry of the work being carried out by Ian and his colleagues in Denmark. The R & A have launched articles on their website, and numerous papers written in the press, extolling the virtues and success of the programme so far. It was therefore decided that Jay Dobson and Andy Cole, PSD Agronomy Ltd, would visit a few courses to see this work first hand. The following has been put together for the benefit of greenkeepers looking to develop more fescue in the future, but also raising a few questions, which require further debate. THE reasons for the golf clubs in Denmark adopting this policy of fescue Graden and hollow tine aeration to reduce accumulated thatch at Falster Golf Klub. Localised turf thinning and dry patch issues. promotion has been well documented, but just to re-cap in simplistic terms: 1. Fungicides are not available for the treatment of disease on the golf course. Severe attacks of fusarium patch disease, readily attacking the meadow grass, can be disfiguring and disruptive to the putting surface without treatment. What grass species is considered least susceptible to disease? FESCUE. 2. Alongside the heavy tax imposed on nitrogen-based fertilisers there is also a desire to reduce the level of chemicals applied to the golf course. What grass species requires a minimum amount of fertiliser to maintain good condition? FESCUE. 3. In the ‘good old days’ before popup irrigation, what was the dominant grass species within golf greens? FESCUE. Without going too far you can see the logic behind the trend towards promoting more fescue for the long-term sustainability of the golf course under an enforced regime of turf management. Ian arranged an excellent tour of six golf clubs. FALSTER Golf Klub, built in 1970 and coming out of what appeared to be a lapse in the ‘programme’. The greens were rather soft, an obvious result of the Graden and hollow tine works recently completed to reduce the accumulated thatch which had built up at the turf base. There was a degree of variability within the greens, the more exposed supporting a higher proportion of fescue compared to those shaded by the trees and, where the putting surface was a little bobbly, exacerbated by the inconsistency in the blend of species composition i.e. fescue, bent and annual meadowgrass and dry patch. Flat and procumbent growth on the bent was noted though within our discussion. It was confirmed that in the regime to promote more fescue, there has been a decline in the level of verticutting, which was reported to have been counterproductive. MARIELYST Golf Klub, with nine holes built in 1995 and a second nine in 2000, was a gem. Relatively small greens, the turf supported a first sward of predominantly bent, fescue and small areas of meadowgrass, related to the size Ian Tomlinson and Andy Cole at Falster Golf Klub
Page 1 and 2: WE’RE SERIOUS ABOUT TURFCARE TURF
Page 3 and 4: Inside this issue Any damage caused
Page 5 and 6: Wembley appointment announced As we
Page 7 and 8: National Turfgrass Federation Resea
Page 9 and 10: MagKnife cuts it at RASE Silver awa
Page 11 and 12: “There’s a long journey ahead i
Page 13 and 14: ARE YOU GETTING THE MESSAGE? THE Me
Page 15 and 16: The most damage tends to come from
Page 17 and 18: For Tividale Football Club’s volu
Page 19 and 20: The difference in pitch quality in
Page 21 and 22: 20 www.pitchcare.com/re For UK sale
Page 23 and 24: ESSENTIAL MANAGEMENT SKILLS trainin
Page 25 and 26: The perfect choice for every pitch.
Page 27: Using the Mag Knife blade system on
Page 31 and 32: “There is still much to be debate
Page 33 and 34: Brother Joseph could not wait to dr
Page 35 and 36: “Here’s one for you! When we do
Page 37 and 38: “The seed houses have worked clos
Page 39 and 40: “Treading-in is part of the show
Page 41 and 42: A day with MACHINERY & WORKSHOP DEN
Page 43 and 44: An IRISH connection DESIGNING, manu
Page 45 and 46: “Warranties aren’t worth the pa
Page 47 and 48: An industry standard should be avai
Page 49 and 50: Oil Storage Regs - have YOU complie
Page 51 and 52: What do you know SQUIRT? PETER POYN
Page 53 and 54: Bono has left the stadium! Carrow R
Page 55 and 56: occasions. The next part of the bui
Page 57 and 58: Can you tell what it is yet? Paint
Page 59 and 60: and prices can vary from around £5
Page 61 and 62: In a large installation there could
Page 63 and 64: OVERSEEDING ROLLERS NEED TO 38 OVER
Page 65 and 66: Head Groundsman Llanelli Rugby Foot
Page 67 and 68: The IOG & Google? THE Google search

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