Technical
Gypsum Back to
Can Gypsum be a highly effective tool in soil agronomy when treating waterlogged, anaerobic, hydrophobic and compacted soils? With unprecedented rainfall, and sports turf managers struggling to keep turf surfaces playable, could a back to the future approach help solve the problem?
Andy Church explains more
the future? C
Soil sample taken from Stowe School 124 I PC APRIL/MAY 2014
2nd green with his team and Barry Pace of Speedcut Contractors
Phil Benn, Course Manager at The Oaks, discusses his troublesome
ommonly now, at all levels, the recommended ‘go to’ solution for the greenkeeper, when treating high moisture levels in greens or, conversely, hydrophobic soils, is a
surfactant of some description, but is this approach simply going around the problem, not solving it? Are we not actually exacerbating the problem or creating more issues by flooding the soil with sugars, oils or worse? Is poorly timed and reactive deep aeration and regular spiking having the desired effect or simply masking, or even stimulating, the real cause? In a conversation with a greenkeeper
recently, he asked; “why did we never have these problems (hydrophobic soils) before, and why do we all of a sudden have all of these new problems? Do you think we are causing the problems instead of solving them?” For the past five years, I have been
working closely with both fruit growers and sports turf managers in the use of traditional forms of soil improvers, gypsum and lime. Having spent all of my working life in turf production and sportsturf management, I have found the fruit growing side of the business to be a real eye opener. With modern production methods
applied to old fashion products like gypsum, lime and dolomite, the world of fruit production has stolen a march on us turf managers! I am convinced that we can learn
a lot from the agronomic approach of fruit growers and adapt it to improve our techniques and practices, to the good of the sports turf management community. The work at The Oaks Golf Centre in
Surrey has confirmed this to me. At the beginning of 2013, we were asked to get involved in a recovery task. Barry Pace of Speedcut Contractors was on a mission to solve the unusual drainage problems of one his long standing customers. In Barry’s eyes, fully understanding the problems at The Oaks would arm him with the understanding to aid a wider audience and achieve the ultimate goal. Despite deep aeration, regular spiking and the usual dose of wetting agents, the playing surface still held water. Below 75mm could be dry, with the surface and top 50mm being saturated, invariably there would be a hydrophobic layer at and just below these depths. The common challenge for greenkeepers
everywhere is the movement of water through the profile and the constant battle against compaction. The Holy Grail is to continually produce a playing surface that withstands the constant damage caused by heavy footfall, as well as maintaining a balanced ecology within the rootzone. A healthy, contaminant free rootzone, with free movement of moisture and nutrients, a healthy sward, as well as the elimination of hydrophobicity, takes centre stage in the
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