Timely applications of PotSi have been shown to be particularly effective in preventing the onset of fungal diseases. For example, applying PotSi at the early stages of a Dollar Spot outbreak can significantly reduce disease severity by fortifying the turfgrass against the pathogen. This proactive approach not only mitigates disease impact but also reduces the need for chemical fungicides, promoting a more sustainable turf management strategy .
So far on our investigation into soil texture we've discussed the problems of building sand castles, why you shouldn't let the Treasurer buy sand for you and a few other less important details like the complexity of sand, soil formation, particle size distribution, macro and micro soil porosity and we finished last time by looking at the famous Soil Texture Triangle
In the first part of this series we discovered that the ideal bowling green soil (or rootzone) will be 50% space, 5% organic matter, with the remainder (45%) being made up of mineral matter, namely Sand, Silt and Clay. These are the 3 universal mineral components of soil. Part 1 finished with an explanation of the soil fractions, 5 of which were sands of varying sizes.
In part 2 we found out a little bit more about sand and it's behaviour as a drainage medium and we discovered a little more about how soils are formed. We finished by looking at the importance of sand particle shape and size in bowling green rootzones.
Today we'll try to get a better handle on Soil Texture and discover how some of the soil fractions come about. In particular we will look at the complexity of sand, before getting a better understanding of how soils are formed in the first place. This will help us to understand the importance of sand in bowling green maintenance, but hopefully also to understand more fully, its limitations.
This subject is so important to the future performance of bowling greens that I would say it is essential for greenkeepers to understand this subject over any other.
The physical condition of the soil in the bowling green is the most important aspect of bowling green maintenance because it impacts every other aspect of green management. The physical properties of your soil dictate everything from drainage, nutrient availability and pH right up to green speed, green smoothness, consistency and ultimately whether or not the green performs to a high standard.
But what do I mean when I say Soil Physical Properties?
