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/50965
FieldScience and cutting at 180 degrees creates a whole new category of divot. Most of you have probably heard about the divot stomp, where the spectators enter the field between chukkers and stomp down the divots. This is very helpful, but we only hold one formal event each year where we have spectators to fulfill this duty. The first thing the turf crew does after each match is walk the field, flipping and stomping the divots. Doing this immediately is extremely im- portant so the divots don't dry out. The field is then rolled to keep a smooth surface and to protect the mowers from scalping the mounds that each divot creates. Now it's time to fill 10 acres of turf that are covered in divots wall to wall. Sod is not an option. If a horse slips on un- rooted sod and breaks its leg, then that horse, un- fortunately, has played its final match. Therefore, we must use seed. Most of you have probably heard about the divot stomp, where the spectators enter the field between chukkers and stomp down the divots. COMPOST NEEDED IN DIVOT MIX The divot mix is 80% sand and 20% compost. 18 SportsTurf | January 2012 The compost is an absolute necessity to hold moisture for germi- nation because we are restricted to a very delicate watering regi- men (more on this later). We use an 80% Kentucky bluegrass and 20% perennial ryegrass blend for the divot mix. The ryegrass ger- mination is critical to hold the divot together until the KBG comes in. We always are experimenting to find the best methods for germination. In the heat of the summer, we began experi- menting with pre-germination. The methods were extremely sci- entific and calculated, meaning we threw the seed bags in a horse trough full of water and poked holes in them, letting them soak for a day. Did this help? I can't tell you for sure, but I believe that it worked to our benefit. I plan on continuing pre-germination and comparing with other methods like using a pre-coated-seed for higher germination rates. The best and most efficient process will never be found be- cause there always will be something new to try and see what hap- pens. Once the seed and sand are mixed we load it into a trailer. The trailer is pulled back and forth slowly with 8 to 10 divot fillers following, each with a bucket in hand. For the next 6 to 8 hours, it's scoop, drop, smooth and move until all of the divots are filled. A final drag with a chain between two carts will help clean up any sand piles and save the life of the reels for the next mow. Our watering situation is also very unique compared to most turf properties, mostly because there is no in-ground irrigation on the fields. We use large water reels, each 300 yards long. We also have water cannons outside the playing field that are spaced at every 75 yards. The reels are pulled out with a tractor and reeled www.sportsturfonline.com