FIELD 12 following fraze mowing compared to 5 weeks later
used similar techniques such as scalping, shallow sod cutting, and even burning off to remove thatch build-ups.
Now those are brought into one practice. The process is a
vastly different approach to thatch management. It is a
practice is not for the faint of heart and can leave a sports
turf manager questioning whether they should have done it
or not for the 1st week. But ultimately, the strong grass will
prevail.
Albert Einstein said it best: "If you always do what you
have always done, you will always get what you have always
got." Can fraze mowing bermudagrass become an accepted
practice in a regular maintenance program to advance the
durability of fields for them to sustain more traffic? That is
now up to the industry to decide. For more on fraze mowing bermudagrass, see Jerad Minnick's blog, http://GrowingGreenGrass.Net. n
Jerad Minnick is sports turf manager of the Maryland SoccerPlex at the Maryland Soccer Foundation, Boyds, MD. Allen
Reed is stadium groundsman for FC Dallas.
www.stma.org
SportsTurf 29
