Green health – a little dangerous thing?

Green health is, next to member health, the most important asset for an outdoor bowls club.  But how many members know what makes for a healthy green?

Every club has its greenkeeping staff or team, and it’s hard to start a conversation with them from a base of little or no knowledge.  A little knowledge, a dangerous thing according to the popular saying, can nevertheless be a useful ice-breaker if you want to engage your green-team in conversation over a pint at the bar.

So here are some uncontroversial casual comments about caring for your bowls green that can get you chatting, and perhaps learning more about the work the green team does. Who knows, you may even end up joining in!

 

Casual conversational opener Number 1:  What about top-dressing?

A little dangerous knowledge Number 1: An annual cycle of hollow-tining followed by top-dressing will, after several years, create layers of material in which the actual problems of in a green are being buried year after year. These layers build, making access to the root system by air and particularly oxygen even more difficult.

Casual conversational opener Number 2:  What’s our root depth?

A little dangerous knowledge Number 2: A healthy root depth is 10-12cm, and a green which is dropped below 4cm of root depth needs a program to restore healthy roots within 3 or so years.

There is a temptation on a slower green to cut too short in the summer (4mm) in an attempt to get more speed into the green. In fact, this simply reduces the gap between grass and thatch and makes green performance more spongy and slow, not fast.

The ideal in-season cut height is 5.5 mm and this, combined with correct moisture management of the surface will markedly reduce spongy thatch and moss accumulation and result in a faster green.

Winter cutting should be set at 10-12mm so that moss/thatch accumulation, which in winter increases due to leaf and debris fall, doesn’t exceed the grass height. Should that happen, then the grass cannot photosynthesise sufficiently, and the slower winter growth is seriously jeopardised.

Casual conversational opener Number 3: Do we have a big banana? 

A little dangerous knowledge Number 3: A big banana, also known as a dew switch, is an essential tool for bowling green moisture management. Correct moisture management has more impact on green quality than any other single activity.

Moisture needs to be able to arrive at, and penetrate through, the surface of the green. The more daily switching/brushing that is carried out, the better the green will become. This disperses moisture/dew on the grass blades down to the surface where it can be absorbed, unless the green has a particularly hydrophobic soil surface.

Hydrophobic soil occurs when a waxy residue builds up on the soil particles resulting in it repelling water rather than absorbing it. You can identify hydrophobic soil by watering it. If water runs off or pools on the surface leaving the soil underneath dry, you’ve got Hydrophobic soil.

On a green that is not found to be hydrophobic, use switching when the surface is moderately or very damp, as brushing will tend to smear worm casts.
Use brushing when surface wormcasts are dry, this is better for breaking down the worm casts and standing the grass upright.

Additionally a wetting agent treatment such as Dewcare can be used on a 4-week application cycle. A wetting agent will break down any waxy soil surface to allow moisture to penetrate, and also create water retention sacs around the roots so water is retained and available to the root for longer.

Moss killers should not be over-used. They contain iron, and when over-used they create an ‘iron pan’ and roots cannot grow through it.

If meadow-grass in the bowls green starts producing little white seeds, it means one of two things, either overwatering, or the adult plant is forecasting that there will be too little water in the weeks ahead so it is preparing to survive to the next generation!

Casual conversational opener Number 4: Do we fertilise with organics?

A little dangerous knowledge Number 4: Organic fertilisers are usually preferred to man-made ones: the latter have a high salt content (20%) and this is bad for grass roots. Organics have lower salt (4%) which is not harmful. Seaweed applied monthly is a good organic fertiliser low in salt and preferable to applications of synthetic fertilisers.

Fertilisers are described (on the packaging or in the specifications) according to parts of Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Pottasium (the N-P-K ratio, e.g. 7-0-7). Nitrogen promotes leaf growth. It’s part of the chlorophyl molecule which gives plants their green colour and is involved in creating food for the plant through photosynthesis.

Phosphorus is involved in the metabolic processes responsible for transferring energy from one point to another in the plant. It’s also critical in root development and flowering. Because phosphorous moves slowly through the soil, it’s important to work it into the soil, where it’s needed by the roots.

Potassium helps regulate plant metabolism and affects water pressure regulation inside and outside of plant cells. It is important for good root development. For these reasons, potassium is critical to plat stress tolerance.

To identify the correct specification for your green a soil analysis might be necessary.