You might read about the possibility of dealing with fairy ring by using fungicides, or even be advised to use such an approach. Fungicides could well be part of the reason you have fairy ring in your turf in the first place so it’s best not to go down this road. Applying fungicide now is a sure way to cast your green back into another spin on the Circle of Decline. The correct action plan is clear and simple.
Over the course of many years of providing the Bowls Central Soil Analysis service and based on the thousands of reports I’ve written, certain trends have been revealed, and these relate very closely to a group of problems I have termed collectively as The Circle of Decline in fine turf. Perhaps the most annoying and …
This Pack of materials will help you carry out a thorough Autumn Renovation Programme on your green and is most suited to greens that exhibit problems including excessive sand content of the rootzone, LDP, low organic matter, thatch, low calcium content, all of which are common traits in greens where the rootzone has become excessively sandy.
I genuinely believe that it's possible to come up with a formula to fix your bowling green, regardless of it's current condition. This is due to one over-riding fact that I've discovered after looking at literally hundreds of greens. They are all at some stage of what I've termed the Circle of Decline. The critical factor in making this possible is simple. You must know what you are dealing with and there is no way to find that out without carrying out some hand dirtying investigative work. So let's get dirty!
Last time, I introduced the subject of Disturbance in bowling green ecology and maintenance. I finished by posing the question; How can we use disturbance theory to our advantage in our quest to create a Performance Bowling Green? To answer that, let’s look at what might constitute Disturbance in the average bowling green. As greenkeepers we …
Localised Dry Patch typically rears its ugly head in June in the UK, but by then it is way too late to do anything about it. Once your green is displaying the large brown patches of desiccated grass and powder dry soil beneath, no amount of watering or wetting agent will bring it back fully this year. Now is the time to inspect your green and deal with it permanently.
Essential Greenkeeping tasks for April include Scarification, moss control, microbe boosting, disease prevention and keeping the surface clear of worm casts. Now is the time to make soil nutrient balance corrections and to get some starter fertiliser and bio-stimulants on to boost soil microbial activity and get the grass growing well. Take advantage of my soil analysis service for a positive start to the season with a done for you greenkeeping schedule.
One of the easiest, cheapest and effective methods of killing moss in turf is to apply Ferrous Sulphate. Therefore, on Bowls Central, I could sell many tonnes of Ferrous Sulphate at a nice profit margin every year by simply pandering to conventional thinking, but you won't find any for sale here. Let me explain why:
Well here we are at the end of another bowling season. It’s hard to believe that it’s that time already. On my travels around I’ve spotted the usual signs that autumn is coming with some clubs still stacking up the top dressing ready for the renovation onslaught. How I wish more clubs would re-think that …
Successfully dealing with fairy ring in fine turf is a challenge facing many greenkeepers, but one that can be broken down into easily taken key steps. The conventional remedies that feature the use of fungicides are simply dealing with symptoms and can guarantee only one outcome; temporary relief followed by a worsening of the problem over the longer term. In this article you'll find a pesticide free, long term solution that also alleviates the short term symptoms.
