Greens Firmness Management Project
Summary: On January 23, 2006, Santa Ana Country Club and the PACE Turfgrass Research Institute embarked on a multi-month study to study the issue of greens firmness by characterizing the current situation and then identifying management practices that can help to achieve more consistent greens firmness throughout the year. Factors contributing to greens firmness were identified, with soil moisture a key component. Greens were characterized by golfers as performing well, with good surface firmness, on the 1/23/06 evaluation date. Based on data collected 1/23/06, a tentative range of 15 – 25% soil moisture was identified as the target for producing optimal levels of firmness (tentatively characterized as ranging from 70 – 125g on a Clegg meter).
Full print version of report (460 KB)
Investigator: Larry J. Stowell, Ph.D., CPPP, CPAg
Cooperator: David Zahrte, CGCS, Santa Ana Country Club
Evaluation of Captor for Management of Sodic Soils
Summary: In a replicated field trial conducted on a Bermudagrass fairway with a history of high sodium levels, the product Captor was evaluated for its ability to improve turf quality by reducing sodium levels in the soil. Key results include:
- Following three applications of Captor, no significant differences in turf quality were observed when data was analyzed at the P<0.05 level. However, using a less stringent P of <0.10, a significant improvement in turf quality was observed on the last sampling date only, for a treatment of Captor at 88 oz/1000 square feet (30 gallons per acre).
- Reduced rates of Captor (88 oz/1000 square feet for the initial application, followed by 30 oz/1000 square feet for subsequent applications) had no significant effect on turf quality when compared to the non-treated check.
- No phytotoxicity was observed, even when the rate of Captor was doubled to simulate spray overlap.
Full print version of report (77 KB)
Investigators: Wendy Gelernter, Ph.D. and Larry J. Stowell, Ph.D., CPPP, CPAg
Cooperator: Ron Nolf, Vista Valley Country Club
Sponsor: Roy Hardison, Best Sulfur Products
PACE presentation featured on agronomy website
The American Society of Agronomy recently selected our presentation, “Temporal Variation in Golf Course Soil Chemistry: Case Studies from the Arid Southwest” to showcase on its website. The presentation, one of three selected from over 800 given at the recent Agronomy/Crop Science/Soil Science of America meetings, is being made available to the public, free of charge and allows the viewer to both see and hear the presentation. Visit the Agronomy Society’s Recorded Session website and go to the bottom of the page to select the PACE presentation.
