By Darryl Davidson
Water and heat haven’t been a real big problem the past couple of years, especially with the east coast of Australia breaking records for rainfall and devastating flooding.
With most community sports fields around the country being on heavy clay you may notice when it gets hot and there is no rain the grass changes colour from green to brown very quickly.
That’s because the higher the clay content the quicker the soils moisture is unavailable to the plant as it dries out compared to sand.
For example, clay soil is at its field capacity at about 44 per cent moisture meaning you will start to see water pooling on top of the surface, but at around 22 per cent moisture you will start to see the grass or plant die as it’s at its permanent wilting point.
Then you look at sand that has a field capacity of around 15 per cent but a permanent wilting point of around six per cent.
As soil evaporates from the ground, and is not replaced by rain fall or irrigation, the plant is at risk of drying out. In heavy soils it’s harder for the root system to get down nice and deep compared to a sand profile meaning the plants life support is a lot shorter than the same plant grown in a sandier soil.
The good thing is that all this can helped by adding a wetting agent to help hold the moisture in the profile. Some wetters can help you take advantage of every drop of water hitting your site so it can infiltrate the profile instead of running off into a drain, especially on slopes.
There are many different brands available but there are two main types, ones a liquid which needs to be watered in with rain or irrigation pretty much straight away to get the full benefits or a granular wetting agent which is popular on sporting fields and turf areas that have no irrigation or irrigated watering times are limited.
By using a wetting agent before the heat and dry kicks in, then continuing to top it up during the warmer months, you will not only save money on water but also keep your grass and plants looking greener and healthier for longer.
For more information contact International Greenkeepers on the different products available to suit your site.
internationalgreenkeepersfh@gmail.com
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