Opening day preparation is upon us, but where do you start? In the first of a new series of articles, John Quinn lays out a failsafe plan for getting the green ready for the big day.
Author: John
Master Greenkeeper John Quinn is the author of Performance Bowling Greens, and several other titles on Greenkeeping, Club and Business Management.
Plant available water in bowling greens
The plant available water in bowling greens is determined by the physical characteristics of the soil. Most importantly the soil texture dictates the relative percentages of Macro, Meso and Micro pore space in the soil. This soil porosity also dictates the rate at which the green will drain. The balance between drainage and plant available water is one of the most critical components of a performance bowling green maintenance program. Here then is the very crux of all those arguments about top-dressing!
Hydrophobic Turf – leading to Localised Dry Patch
Localised Dry Patch is a common problem on greens in summer and it can take a while to conquer it. Could some of our traditional management practices be making it worse?
Grass Root Defences: Leatherjacket control in Bowling Greens
Grasses employ a range of physical, chemical, and indirect defences to protect their roots from insect herbivores. Further research is needed to fully understand these mechanisms and to explore other potential defences, but meantime, we can take some of this knowledge and apply it now to our greenkeeping practices.
Turf Grass Density. Performance Evaluation of the Bowling Green Part 3.
In the performance evaluation of the bowling green, one of the key factors is turf grass density which is important due to its ability to influence other performance factors and in monitoring bowling green and soil health generally.