TECHNICAL


Seaweed


operations. Typically, monostands of grass conferring desirable traits are sown, and in some instances soil profiles may be artificially constructed using materials offering benefits to playing characteristics and pitch carrying capacity. Of course, this is all entirely necessary for the good of sports provision and is where we turf managers come in, attempting to not just manage nature, but work with it to produce high quality natural turf surfaces.


Given the very clear benefit of a healthy soil ecosystem, as well as the known and unknown impact we may have as sports turf


managers. It seems sensible to give some thoughts as to how we can best improve or enhance life in the soil and thus the performance of our sports surfaces. Of all cultural practices, apart from mowing, aeration would seem the most important. Allowing gaseous exchange to take place is critical. For plant or microbe, a soil devoid of oxygen is not a good place to be. Often, aeration will be coupled with a means of decompaction with the resultant reduction in soil bulk density and increase of air-filled pore space, a proportionally higher number of macropores and associated


gaseous exchange and drainage. Aeration not only directly benefits the grass plant by allowing air and water to the roots, but also benefits the diverse ecosystem that lives within the soil and confers all the essential benefits the grass plant and wider soil ecosystem could not do without. Soil fertility is important for successful grass plant growth and, if lacking in any of the essential nutrients, grass plants will be limited by that deficiency, may suffer stress and potential failure. Therefore, fertiliser application may be necessary to maintain nutrition at an acceptable level. Evidence suggests that, as nutrition increases, the composition of microbial life within the rhizosphere and the bulk soil changes. This may be for a number of reasons; perhaps the benefit of ‘good’ soil fertility and the selective pressure of plant rhizodeposits alters the microbial composition, or in some instances it may be a negative response to accumulations of inorganic molecules and salt damage within the soil ecosystem. I have written previously on Salt Indices and Soil Microbiology, so I will not go over old ground here. However, it is worth reiterating that nutritional inputs should be well thought


We need to demonstrate


that we are a force for good. Key to this is understanding how the soil works. How its existing function could be utilised, even encouraged, to improve pitch performance and playability


Microdochium nivale significantly impacts on surface quality 128 PC June/July 2020


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