FIELD SCIENCE
26 SportsTurf | December 2015 www.sportsturfonline.com
M
ost of us, or perhaps all of
us as sports turf managers,
have been using foliar iron
on our natural grass sports
fields for many years. We
use foliar iron products either by itself,
or, as a combination product with
other important micronutrients. We
use it as a means to help "mask" off the
bronzing effects of plant growth regu-
lators and herbicides, as well as an aid
to improve turf color. We sometimes
use granular fertilizers that contain
iron as well, but for the most part, we
rely on foliar iron products because
granular iron sources are of minimal
use because they get "tied-up" in the
soil, especially if the soil pH is on the
alkaline side, waterlogged, or poorly
aerated. Excessive phosphorous in clay
soils will drastically limit iron uptake
from the soil as well, which is a com-
mon occurrence because phosphorous
easily becomes immobile. As a sports
turf manager, and former golf course
superintendent over the past 26 years
I have used many different foliar
products from various iron sources
and various chelating sources, either
by itself, or in combination with other
micronutrients.
BENEFITS OF IRON
Iron plays a crucial role in metabolic
processes, as it is a metal cofactor of
many enzymes that carry out oxida-
tion-reduction reactions involving
photosynthetic electron transport,
nitrate reduction and assimilation, turf
metabolism, and chlorophyll biosyn-
MOLECULAR AND BIOCHEMICAL
PATHWAYS OF FOLIAR IRON IN
SPORTS TURF
■ BY JEFF HAAG
