Successfully Conquering Aerification
Most turf managers are in full strive as spring progresses and signs of summer prevail. For others managing turf, the weather may have been less than desirable. However, this spring has been quite different than in the past due to COVID-19. Most golf courses are busier than normal making cultivation practices difficult, while others might have closed temporarily. For most lawn care operations, things have remained fairly normal, except for the distancing aspect. Whatever situation you may be experiencing, alleviating compaction and accumulated organic material on highly maintained turf by a means of aerification is necessary for ensuring long-term health and aesthetics.
Aerification loosens compaction and allows oxygen to come in contact with the roots and helps strengthen turf to allow for increase stress tolerance. There are many benefits to disrupting the surface in turf, but it is perceived negatively in some regards because of the initial surface area impact, especially on golf greens. Aerification takes place in many forms: core aerification, solid tine, water-driven, and air-driven. Either method allows for the opening of the surface and allows for better gas exchange and oxygen to come in contact with the roots. It is important to remember that solid tines only open the surface temporarily and do not remove any organic material. If the removal of organic material is required, then core aerification is necessary. Additionally, spacing, size, and depth of tines determine the amount of surface disruption, and this is usually decided by site conditions and desired turf expectations.
Recovery Program
Depending on the amount of disruption created by aerification, a speedy recovery program is necessary for maintaining happy customers and can easily be accomplished by having a proper nutritional plan in place. Slightly increasing nutrients before and after aerification with soluble products such as YaraMila® TURF ROYALE® offers immediately available nutrients for promoting growth and recovery in a timely manner. Enhanced with combined nutrient synergies, YaraMila TURF ROYALE homogeneous fertilizer will boost recovery and encourage critical root growth for efficient nutrient uptake and stress tolerance.
Remember, aerifcation is necessary for highly maintained turf, but it is crucial to mitigate the disruption of the surface with a proper nutritional plan. Customers want pristine conditions throughout the year and YaraMila TURF ROYALE (also available in minis) is a great solution for accomplishing these customer demands.
Neil Mayberry - Crop Manager, Turf & Ornamental
