June 23, 2010

You may have seen the aerators out on the greens this week!

We are doing what is termed “venting the greens”. This is a process where we use tines that are one quarter inch in diameter, and four inches long, to punch needle sized holes into the green.

We do this procedure approximately every four to six weeks to open up the greens. Over the course of this time period, the greens become sealed at the surface from the traffic of play, mowing, rolling, etc. When this occurs, water cannot easily penetrate to the root zone, and the gases that build up in the soil cannot escape or be replaced with fresh air. The result is dying roots, and that leads to turf loss and green failure.

These tiny holes that barely can be seen, and do not affect ball roll, reverse this condition, allowing the soil to breathe and drink again, and sustaining a much better environment for the turf grass roots.