Overseeding Athletic Fields. Grady Miller NC State University

Transcription

1 Overseeding Athletic Fields Grady Miller NC State University

2 What Are Your Questions/Concerns?

3 Outline for Discussion Varieties, procedures, transition Picking the grass Preparation Do s and Don ts Planting Post planting During the season End of growing season Thinking about the next year

4 On-site at Golf Course

5 Turf Research Field Lab

6 2006 Perennial Ryegrass Recommended List based on 2004 NTEP and NCSU Regional Trails Accent II Allstar 3 Apple GL Brightsar SLT Caddieshack II Charismatic II Citation Fore Dart DCM Derby Extreme Fiesta 4 Fiji Goalkeeper II Grand Slam 2 Homerun Inspire Keystone II Line Drive GLS Manhattan 5 GLR Monterey 3 Nexus Palmer III Palmer IV Panther GLS Paragon GLR Pentium Phenom Pianist Pinnacle II Pizzazz Premier Primary Quilksilver Repell GLS Revenge GLX Secretariat II Silver Dollar Transformer Top Gun II Zoom

7 Core aerify at least a month before overseeding to reduce compaction.

8 Can spray Primo MAXX to slow down Bermudagrass. Apply before vertical mowing and 1-5 days before seeding. Rate: 0.5 oz/1000 square feet

9 Vertical mow 1 to 2 days before overseeding to remove thatch and open the turfgrass canopy to ensure good seed-to-soil contact.

10 Mow or use a sweeper to remove debris and use sufficient irrigation to wet the soil surface.

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12 When to Seed? Daytime temperatures are consistently into the 70 s for 4 to 5 consecutive days. So, about mid-september to mid-october for most of NC.

13 Overseeding Rates? Perennial ryegrass at a rate of 6 to 20 lbs per 1000 square feet (260 to 870 lbs per acre), depending on desired appearance and/or budget constraints. Around pounds a good rate to target if you have no experience. Split rate and seed in two different directions. Afterwards go over area with a drag mat to work seed down into canopy.

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15 Very poor seed distribution. When bermudagrass goes dormant, it will tell on you.

16 Calibrate

17 Topdressing with 2 cu yards per 1000 sq ft is beneficial for establishment.

18 First Mowing

19 Mowing Can begin as soon as seed does not come up when you pull on leaf blade. Regular schedule (weekly in winter, twice weekly in spring) Height: around ¾ inch height up to about 2 inches. Baseball infields may be mowed a little lower. Reel mower preferred Always keep blades sharp!

20 Fertilization Do not fertilize bermudagrass heavily just prior to or during the overseeding process. Concentrate most of N & K and soil sample for other nutrients. Apply K at a rate and schedule similar to N. Gear nitrogen application schedule to grass, field use, and environmental conditions. May need to force growth and recovery in high traffic areas with additional nitrogen. Do not ignore soil ph in fertility program.

21 Fertilization Rates During overseed growth, a normal rate may be ¼ to ½ pound per 1000 square feet every two to three weeks. Ammonium Sulfate (21% N) Equivalents: 50 to 100 pounds per acre 2 to 4 bags per football or soccer field 2.5 to 5 bags per baseball field

22 Irrigation With automatic systems, the controllers should be programmed to operate at set times. Calibrate your systems so that you can relate run times to precipitation rates. The clocks and systems should be monitored weekly and any adjustments will be made accordingly. The turf/soil water status should be monitored daily. Irrigation schedules should be adjusted as necessary to accommodate insufficient or excess rainfall.

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27 Diseases Temperatures >65 F Excessive soil and leaf moisture (rain, dew, or consecutive foggy days) Fungicide coated seed can help After plants established cut back on watering so soil is not soggy. Fungicides (Aliette, Banol, Fore/Dithane, Insignia, Heritage, Koban, Terrazole, Subdue, etc) can help prevent outbreaks.

28 Winter Management Proper watering Fertilization practices Traffic control Routine mowing Proper disease management

29 Spring Transition Some think it s holding on that makes one strong; sometimes it s letting go. ----Sylvia Robinson

30 Spring Transition Influences Temperature (50-60s bermudagrass begins to grow) Mowing height (get it down to ½ inch, slowly) Fertilization practices (low rates until bermudagrass shows up) Cultivation (spike or slice) Vertical mowing (light and frequent) Soil moisture (don t cut the water off) Herbicides (the other talk!)

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32 Sprayed Overseed to Remove Competition

33 Chemical Transtion Products Kerb (Pronamide) Dow AgroSciences Manor [or Blade] (metsulfuron) - Riverdale TranXit GTA (rimsulfuron) Griffin LLC Revolver (foramsulfuron) - Bayer Monument 75WG (trifloxysulfuron) Syngenta Corsair (chlorsulfuron) [label for fields?] Riverdale Certainty 75 DG (sulfosulfuron) - Monsanto [foliar applied, foliar (and some root) absorption]

34 Why Athletic Fields Sometimes Fail?

35 Basics that a turf plant needs to stay alive and grow Light to drive photosynthesis (shade, clouds, covers, overseed competition) Water uptake (irrigation distribution or application, lack of rainfall, compacted soils) Oxygen for respiration (saturated soils, compacted soils) Carbon dioxide to assimilate carbohydrates (not an issue) Absorption of mineral nutrients (lack of roots, lack of nutrients/availability, antagonistic nutrient or ph situations, lack of light, extremely dry soil) Suitable temperature (too cold or too hot) Space (generally not an issue for overseed)

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37 Tarp Damage

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