Greetings, Turfgrass Warriors. Here are some considerations for turfgrass establishment. First, you need to identify where you want your turfgrass. There may be stands of turfgrass already present. You may want to start a new stand. Or, you may want to increase existing stands. Either way, you will need to prepare the area.
If there are trees, wood, logs, stumps, all of these may need to be removed. If there is other debris (like my backyard, when I bought my quarters – chunks of concrete, ivy, weeds, pieces of an old BBQ grill), that needs to go too. Remember, certain things that have been in, or sitting on, your soil can influence the fertility, pH level or usefulness of that soil. Stones and rocks may need to be removed by hand. Items in the soil may inhibit root density and growth.
If the area is covered by weeds, there are some chemical methods for killing the weeds. Soil fumigants are one way. But, that can be dangerous and expensive. Leave that to the experts. There are some good weapons you can have in your arms room. Herbicides are widely used in agriculture and landscape turf management. In the US, they account for about 70% of all agricultural pesticide use.
There are non-selective herbicides – primarily glyphosate. Glyphosate, is frequently sold under the brand name "Roundup." Glyphosate is a broad-spectrum systemic herbicide used to kill weeds, especially annual broadleaf weeds and grasses known to compete with commercial crops grown around the globe. Systemic herbicides are translocated through the plant, either from foliar application down to the roots, or from soil application up to the leaves. They are capable of controlling perennial plants and may be slower-acting, but are ultimately more effective than contact herbicides. More on herbicides later, in another briefing. This should be applied to weeds several inches tall. After about 2 weeks, the dead weeds can be tilled under.
Speaking of tilling; topsoil should be graded for adequate surface drainage. The minimum grade should be 2% (2.4 to 4.8 inches drop in 20 feet). Steep slopes (more than 25%; a drop of 1 foot in 4 feet) are definitely not authorized. If there is no way around steep slopes, think about retaining walls or other, thicker ground covers.
If seeding, the top 2 inches should be loose dirt. After seeding, it is okay to go through the area with a rake or other, similar type of equipment. Remember, having seeds in and on top of the soil is a good idea. A sandy loam to loamy sand is ideal for the top few inches. Sometimes landscapers add sand to increase aeration and drainage.
Do not add just a plain 1 to 2 inch layer of sand. That’s an order. Many Warriors do that and it is not authorized. It causes layering and impedes water and fertilizer movement. It is also a waste of precious funding. More on establishment in my next post. Stay highly motivated, Turfgrass Warriors. See you on the high ground (no pun intended).
“The soil is the great connector of lives, the source and destination of all. It is the healer and restorer and resurrector, by which disease passes into health, age into youth, death into life. Without proper care for it we can have no community, because without proper care for it we can have no life.”
― Wendell Berry, The Unsettling of America: Culture and Agriculture
As a Turfgrass Warrior, you must have a thorough knowledge of soil. It is our operating environment. In today's battlespace, information on soil is considered as important as any weapon system. For this briefing, soil will be defined as: “That portion of the earth’s crust made up of mineral materials, organic matter (living and non-living), water, and air, that is capable of supporting plant growth." As soils develop, they usually form horizontal layers. A soil profile is a vertical sample cut that shows the layers – called horizons. There are four principle horizons – 0 through C – up to parent rock. See the soil horizons above. (Procedures for Soil Analysis, VanReeuwijk, 1995)
O) Organic matter: Litter layer of plant residues in relatively un-decomposed form. (There’s your thatch. More on that later.)
A) Surface soil: Layer of mineral soil with most organic matter accumulation and soil life. This layer eluviates (is depleted of) iron, clay, aluminum, organic compounds, and other soluble constituents. The A-horizon is regarded as a "biomantle".
B) Subsoil: This layer accumulates iron, clay, aluminum and organic compounds, a process referred to as illuviation.
C) Parent rock: Layer of large unbroken rocks. This layer may accumulate the more soluble compounds.
R) Bedrock.
Therefore, soil has four components: mineral materials, organic materials, water and air. The mineral component is inorganic (lacking the element carbon) and has three types of particles: sand silt and clay. Soil “texture” refers to the size and relative proportion of each of these particles in the soil.
The organic component of soils usually ranges from 1 to 8 percent. Also called humus, the organic component has this decomposed organic matter. The organic matter also contains fungi, bacteria and organisms.
Water is taken up by turfgrass by its root system. Soil holds water and air in its pores. The texture and structure of the soil can determine the amount of water is available for uptake by the turfgrass.
Air fills the pores not filled by water. Turfgrass roots need soil oxygen for the uptake of water and nutrients and for growth. Soil micro organisms and other soil inhabiting organisms need oxygen for normal metabolic processes.
Understanding the soil in your AO (Area of Operation) is critical to mission success.
At ease. Carry on.
In the 6th century B.C., chinese general and military strategist Sun Tzu said, "...that if you know your enemies and know yourself, you will not be imperiled in a hundred battles; if you do not know your enemies but do know yourself, you will win one and lose one; if you do not know your enemies nor yourself, you will be imperiled in every single battle."
I believe, before you can learn about the "operating environment" or "know your enemy", one must know one's self. You must know your command, your subordinates. You must know turfgrass. Do you want your turfgrass to follow you through fire...or push you in?
A critical requirement for Turfgrass Warriors is to understand the troops under their command. What are they made of? Turfgrass Warriors need to know the capabilities and limitations of their Turfgrass.
There are two major categories of flowering plants – monocotyledons (monocots) and dicotyledons (dicots). Turfgrass is a monocot. There are about ten differences between monocots and dicots - roots, embryo, root system, etc. The big, noticable difference is: monocots have parallel leaf veins; dicots have reticulated (branched) leaf veins.
Turfgrass seed has three parts: an embryo or immature grass plant, the endosperm and the seed coat. As a seed matures, four basic circumstances must be satisfied in order for the seed to grow and germinate. These conditions are: sufficient water, favorable temperature and oxygen. In many cases, light is a fourth requirement.
The turfgrass plant consists of a root system, shoots or stems and a crown. A good turfgrass Soldier must have a basic understanding of turfgrass morphology and growth.
To the left is a diagram of a mature turfgrass plant (Source: Penn State, College of Agricultural Sciences, 2013). A mature, unmowed grass plant is composed of leaves, roots, stems, and a seed head. The diagram shows these basic structures. (BTW - My website is pretty cool. If you click on these diagrams, they should pop out at you a little bigger. You can close them by clicking on the "X" at the top right of the diagram or just click anywhere else on the web page.) Keep in mind that some grass species do not have all the structures shown and that mowed grasses typically lack flower stems and seed heads. As a rule of thumb, stolons are "runners" along the surface; rhizomes run below the surface. Some plants don't stick to that rule of thumb, but, for the most part, turfgrass plants do. Got it? Keep these parts of turfgrass in mind, and maybe even refer back to this diagram, as we continue with our training. Drive on with a purpose, Turfgrass Warrior.