FieldScience |
Dr. Jason Henderson
Alternative sod T
HE NEED FOR TURFGRASS ES- TABLISHMENT can come in many
forms; new construction, a playing surface conversion, up- grading to newer cultivars, in- tense athletic field use, etc. However, the options and op- portunities for establishing cool-season turfgrasses on ath- letic fields are limited. The very short amount of time that is available to prepare a traffic tolerant turfgrass stand before field use, particularly fields that supports spring, summer, and fall sports, can be ex- tremely challenging. Addition- ally, given the popularity of fall
8 SportsTurf | June 2011
and spring sports, time periods considered optimal for estab- lishing our cool-season friends are also typically periods of peak field use.
Establishment of athletic fields in the Northeast United States is further complicated by the slow germination and
>> Figure 1. ROOTING BOXES were installed on the day of sod installation.
installation timing to extend the growing season in the Northeast
development of Kentucky blue- grass. Therefore, many fields are established using sod. Sod pro- vides instantaneous turfgrass cover and minimal weed com- petition, but obtaining suffi- cient root development prior to field use is a problem which can result in excessive divoting and
poor playing surface quality, such as poor traction and an un- even playing surface.
ONLY CHOICE SPRING? Depending on the sport that
is played, athletic fields in the Northeast United States are typ- ically used until late Novem-
Late fall installed sod produced similar or higher rooting strength in May of the subse- quent growing season compared to rooting strength values in August
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