SportsTurf provides current, practical and technical content on issues relevant to sports turf managers, including facilities managers. Most readers are athletic field managers from the professional level through parks and recreation, universities.
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/448298
www.stma.org February 2015 | SportsTurf 43 dents to have a better playing experience than they'd been having on the natural lay-of-the-land field behind the school. "We decided where the bases and home plate should be, cut it out with a sod cutter and picked up all the rocks," says the now-district athletic director for five Middlesex Vocational high schools. "Everything went fine until we decided to renovate the field 9 years ago." Cipperly worked with nearby Rutgers University and numerous volunteers to tear out infield grass and foul territory, non-selectively control the outfield grass, re-grade and reseed with five different varieties of Kentucky bluegrass. The field established beautifully. "It looked like a sod farm… at first," says Cipperly, who took short courses in turfgrass management at Rutgers, as well as assisting two minor league New Jersey ballparks as head ground- skeeper for several years. "Then we started seeing spots of light green grass coming in- Poa annua," he continues. "We had gorgeous grass and then ugly green patches moved in. Apparently, Poa annua seed was in the soil and we disturbed it while re-grading the field." An 8-yeAr bAttle For the past 8 years, Cipperly has been battling the stubborn Poa annua, trying "everything under the sun" to eradicate the inva- sive grass. Head groundskeeper Ryan Radcliffe joined him in the fight 2 years ago, when he came onboard with Middlesex District schools after 14 years with the Philadelphia Phillies system, 4 years with the Reading Phillies and 10 years with the Lakewood BlueClaws on the Jersey shore. "We manage 14 fields among the five schools, including soc- cer, softball and baseball, but the East Brunswick field is the only problematic one, the one where Poa won't go away," says Radcliffe, whose seven crew members float between the schools. For general maintenance, Radcliffe cuts the field at 1.25 inches everyday during the season, and every other day in the fall. He aerifies, topdresses and overseeds each year with a Kentucky bluegrass seed blend of 30% Midnight Star, 30% Brilliant and 40% Princeton P-105. Weather permitting, he rototills and laser grades infields in the fall, as well. His five-step fertility program includes two spring applications, one during summer months and two in the fall. Middlesex District contracts with a local lawn care company for pesticide applications, which include as-needed fungicide, herbicide and insecticide treatments. "We practice a very strict Integrated Pest Management plan with all of our fields," adds Radcliffe. "The East Brunswick baseball field is so lush; we wouldn't need any herbicides if it weren't for Poa annua." After trying multiple different products, including conven- tional herbicides, plant growth regulators and a three-step organic program approach, Cipperly and Radcliffe finally saw results this year with a combination of Xonerate and Tenacity herbicides. They began experimenting with the products 2 years ago, in combination with their existing IPM program. They first applied Tenacity at the registered rate 4 weeks in a row in the spring. Then they came back in the fall with three applications of Xonerate every 10 days. "By the following spring, there was a lot less Poa annua," says Cipperly. After overseeding the field with a perennial ryegrass/Kentucky bluegrass mix to fill in where Poa annua had been suppressed, they repeated the program in 2014. By mid-season, it was clear the Poa population had decreased by an estimated 70%. "It worked!" says Cipperly. "It just comes down to getting the timing right." As a final step, Cipperly and Radcliffe began using Xonerate and Tenacity together at low rates this fall to continue promoting Kentucky bluegrass and perennial ryegrass and suppressing Poa. Going into winter, Cipperly felt confident he finally had a handle on his never-ending problem. "We are committing to this program," he adds. "These prod- ucts have worked better than anything else I've tried. When baseball season starts up next spring, we're looking forward to gorgeous grass on our East Brunswick field again." ■ ST The East Brunswick baseball field in 2011, when Poa annua prevailed. Left: The field again in 2012, before Cipperly and Radcliffe started the Xonerate and Tenacity program. Right: The field in March 2013, after using Xonerate and Tenacity the previous year. Poa annua was dying off. The field as it appeared in fall 2014. Poa annua has decreased by an estimated 70%.