8 SportsTurf | September 2014 www.sportsturfonline.com
Field Science | By Dr. Jason Kruse
I
like to think of the turfgrass plants growing on
an athletic field as a crop, not unlike the potatoes
that my father raised when I was a kid in southern
Idaho. And just like the potatoes, the turfgrass
plants need certain inputs and environmental
conditions to maximize their performance.
It has long been my opinion that the long-term poten-
tial of a playing surface, and that of the turfgrass growing
on it, is directly tied to the characteristics of the soil used
to construct the field. I'm not talking about the simple
soil test that you might submit annually to get an idea
of where you stand with regards to the status of soil pH,
organic matter content, and nutrient levels. The soil char-
acteristics you need to pay particular attention to on your
fields are the soil texture, bulk density, and the effective
rootzone depth. While some of these are easier to manage
than others, all of them either directly or indirectly impact
plant growth and the resulting quality and durability of
the sports field.
Healthy turfgrass plants have actively growing root-
zones that explore a large volume of the soil profile.
There are a number of things that can reduce the root-
ing depth of turfgrass plants. For example, maintaining
a turfgrass plant at a height of cut that is below its
adapted range will result in reduced rooting depth as
The soil characteristics you need to pay
particular attention to on your fields are
the soil texture, bulk density, and
the effective rootzone depth.
››
Some room To breaThe:
aerification is key to plant health
(Photo 3)
Core-aerification of an
athletic field.
