Emerald Isle Turf Product Answers

Soils Management

Using Sand-Aid before Season Ends

Last Chance to Improve Your Soil and Seedbed Before the Season

Benefits of Using Sand-Aid after Core Aerification and Verticutting -

• Highest cation exchange capacity of any soil amendment
• Improves soil fertility availability and utilization
• Extraordinarily rich source of micronutrients and trace elements
• Holds and releases moisture for better germination

Application Alternatives -

• AFTER CORE AERIFICATION: Pre-mix 20 bags/load of topdressing, or apply 1 bag/green (10 lbs/1,000 sf) two days after aerification when the topdressing has settled; topdress lightly and drag to fill the holes
• AFTER VERTICUTTING: Pre-mix 20 bags/load, or apply 1 bag/green immediately after verticutting, topdress, drag, and irrigate

All Organic Soil Amendments are Not Created Equal. Ask for SAND-AID by Name.

SAND-AID Increases Fertilization Efficiency.

SAND-AID's natural emulsifiers will improve your soil's holding capacity so it can retain more of those major nutrients (like potassium) and micronutrients which are most susceptible to leaching in sand-based systems. It also has a higher CEC than any other organic amendment. That means more exchange sites for cations, meaning better fertilizer uptake.

In tests conducted at Southern Illinois University during 1993 and 1994, SAND-AID significantly improved organic fertilizer performance. SAND-AID not only increased overall average quality ratings for the entire season but also increased every monthly quality rating.

Product quality of Amendments has everything to do with product performance.

Reasons to consider the superb Soils Management product SAND-AID:

• 95% bioactive ingredients. SAND-AID's extremely low moisture content (5%) means you're getting more material for your money. Handling, storage, and shelf life are also better.
• SAND-AID's C:N ratio is 20.8 to 1, well within the ideal range for an organic matter source.
• All particles coarser than an 11 mesh screen and finer than 40 mesh are removed to optimize blending and spreading.
• It won't layer or create localized dry spots. In fact, when combined with a good wetting agent, SAND-AID can often help improve hydrophobic areas.
• It's safe, natural, non-toxic, consistent, predictable and reliable.

Sand-Aid - Why is it special?

1. What is it?
       Granular sea plant meal

2. Why is it special?
       --High CEC
       --Rich source of minor nutrients and trace elements
       --Holds and releases plant-available moisture

3. Why should a supt use it?
       --improve soil CEC
       --improve germination and establishment of overseeding

4. When should a supt use it?
       --1-3 days after core aerification (when the topdressing has settled)
       --right after verticutting, esp the verticutting that occurs 1-2 weeks before overseeding (apply, topdress lightly over the Sand-Aid)

5. Application rate?
       --20 bags/load of topdressing (saves a step) or
       --1 bag/green (10 lbs/1,000 sf)

6. What will a supt see if he/she uses it?
       --after two apps, a soil test should show a 1 pt increase in CEC
       --better germination, faster establisment, esp if used in conjunction with the pre-overseeding verticutting

7. What's the proof?
       --Extensive University Research (U of AR, Michigan State)
       --Specified by most architects in new "California" greens for better germination and establishment

SAND-AID Improves Tolerance

SAND-AID significantly improves tolerance to senescence and wilt due to high temperature and drought stress and improves tolerance to cold temperature stress.

Studies at Michigan State University showed a significant improvement in turf quality as well as stress tolerance when SAND-AID was used as an additive in topdressing and aerifying programs. SAND-AID's effectiveness increased over time and the more intense the stress, the more obvious the differences between treated and untreated areas.

Build the soil and boost turf health through organic matter management

Problem: Sand-based greens have many desirable physical characteristics, but they have very low CEC, which makes nutrient management constantly challenging. Plus, the low sterility in sand-based greens makes disease prevention difficult.

Solution: Apply Sand-Aid (pre-plant and after core aerification) to increase CEC and beneficial microbial activity while maintaining favorable physical characteristics—macro-porosity and water retention. Sand-Aid has the highest CEC of any soil amendment available.

There is no doubt that sand-based rootzones are here to stay. There is also no doubt that the reasons for building sand-based rootzones have much more to do with moving water, than creating a biologically diverse and healthy growing system.

Milliken Turf Products and Emerald Isle Ltd. have conducted extensive research on the use of organic amendments in sand-based root zones, as well as the use of organic based fertilizers and their impact on the attributes of sand based systems, including:

• Use of Nitrogen – quantities and rates
• Carbon / Nitrogen ratios of amendments and their effect
• Availability of Carbon – quantities and rates
• Moisture and Nutrient holding capacity
• Cation Exchange Capacity
• Improved tolerance to cold temperature stress
• Tolerance to senescence and wilt due to high temperature and drought stress

The research conclusions provide important reasons for including an organic nutrient and amendment program in an overall sand-based root zone management scheme. So, while the organic fraction may be small, it is vitally important and requires sophisticated and sensitive management.

Golf Course Superintendents are rapidly discovering that better organic matter management is key to producing superior sports turf under intense maintenance conditions. It’s clear that better organic matter management can dramatically improve turf’s tolerance to a broad range of environmental stresses including high temperatures and drought. In a three-year study at Michigan State University, SAND-AID significantly improved tolerance to high and low temperature stress in high sand content tees and greens. In addition, SAND-AID “jump-starts” microbial populations, thereby increasing resistance to certain soil-borne disease pathogens. It also dramatically reduces moisture and nutrient losses, decreasing irrigation and fertilization expenses.

Now that high sand content root zone mixes are the generally accepted media for golf course greens and tees, and high sand content topdressing programs are the rule rather than the exception, precise and sophisticated organic matter management is even more critical. While conventional slow decomposing materials like sphagnum peat and reed sedge peat can provide important long-term benefits when they are incorporated as organic constituents in root zone or top dressing mixes, they have some serious limitations.

Turf Diagnostics & Design, Inc. conducted a comprehensive series of tests evaluating SAND-AID™ as an organic amendment in USGA sand based root zone mixes. The results were really quite extraordinary.

To summarize, the results confirm that SAND-AID can add a significant dimension to better organic matter management.

What makes SAND-AID so uniquely useful is its ability to dramatically increase the organic matter content, cation exchange capacity, and moisture and nutrient holding capacity of root zone mixes without disturbing the mixes’ desirable physical properties such as soil porosity.

One of the most serious shortcomings to peat as an organic amendment is that you must incorporate a considerable volume of peat (10% to 20%) to sand mixes in order to reach even the minimum (1% to 1.5%) organic matter levels specified by the USGA and others for greens and tees. It’s often not possible to reach optimal (1.5% to 2%) organic matter levels using peat because the amount needed would overload the system and degrade the physical performance characteristics, especially the infiltration rate of the mix.

Following are a few highlights from Turf Diagnostic’s report “Concerning Physical Evaluation of SAND-AID in USGA Sand Based Root-Zone Materials.”

• Adding SAND-AID at the recommended rates increased the organic matter content of the sand/peat mixes and pure sand in all cases
• Adding SAND-AID increased the organic matter content of the 80:20 sand/Canadian sphagnum peat mix by 60%
• SAND-AID increased the organic matter content of the 90:10 sand/Dakota peat mix by 53.8%
• ‘The pure sand mixes were improved physically by the addition of SAND-AID…”and “The pure sand treatments indicate improving physical attributes with increasing amounts of SAND-AID.”
• The data generated by this series of tests show no negative impact on the physics of the greens…SAND-AID’s ability to significantly increase organic matter content without layering is “a positive attribute.”
• As a companion amendment for peat, the increase in organic matter produced by SAND-AID without any adverse effects on the physical properties of the mixes is highly beneficial.

SAND-AID appears to have no negative impact on infiltration rates, and it improves water-holding capacity. On the other hand, adding the amount of peat it would take to equal the increase in organic matter produced by SAND-AID would have a significant negative impact on the mix’s physical properties.

How to ensure a successful renovation and grow-in

Problem: Owners and members want to play on new turf before it has had an opportunity to reach full maturity. Turf that hasn’t had an opportunity to mature properly won’t survive stress, won’t meet expectations for quality, and is likely to become a future problem area.

Solution: Use GroWin at pre-plant and a combination of PanaSea Plus and True Foliar P 6-12-6 at post-plant to promote a vigorous root system and speed maturity.

There are a lot of ways to define a successful renovation. Clearly the most important thing is the finished product. Whatever the renovation or construction objective—rebuilding problem greens, expanding tees or reworking bunker banks, a Superintendent is generally judged by the quality of the work itself. However, he or she is also judged by whether or not the renovation is done on budget and on time. The people who play the course pay the bills, and they are also the ones who are the least tolerant of cost overruns and schedule delays.

The Emerald Isle two-step approach to renovations and new construction has been developed, tested, and refined through more than twenty years of research and real-world feedback. In order to ensure your success we recommend the following program:

Step One: Incorporate 25 lbs of GroWin in the top inch of soil or mix
Optimize the growing media—by incorporating GroWin you can achieve the following proven and tested results:

• Faster establishment
• Significantly better rooting
• Significantly better stress tolerance
• Turf that is ready for play sooner

By incorporating GroWin into the top of our sand mix, we can have a playable tee in 30-60 days. Without the GroWin, the tees take one month longer to be ready for play.”
Robert Steinman, CGCS
Beekman Country Club
Hopewell, New York

Step Two: Strengthen the Turf with True Foliar Nutrition
Once there is enough coverage to begin spraying, apply 4 oz. of PanaSea Plus and 4 oz of True Foliar P 6-12-6 every two weeks for the next 8 weeks, in addition to a pre-plant and post-plant fertility program. This part of the program provides the following:

• Increased root mass and depth
• High temperature stress tolerance
• Foliar absorption to provide uptake under a wide variety of conditions
• Promote increased physiological fitness

Dr. Roch Gaussoin at the University of Nebraska tested this grow-in Program, and it resulted in excellent turf quality and faster establishment (than plots with conventional fertility) with much lower nutrient inputs. The payoff from the lower nutrient inputs was that the EI plots were disease free, while Pythium attacked the plots grown in conventionally.

Independent research conducted by Dr. Gaussoin of The University of Nebraska and Dr. Kevin Frank of Michigan State University on the effects of Emerald Isle products on creeping bentgrass during establishment also indicated that,

“the cell wall content of bentgrass treated with Emerald Isle products was significantly higher than bentgrass treated with conventional grow-in procedures. A higher cell wall content has been proven to indicate higher traffic tolerance.”

Our strategic grow-in Program enables Superintendents to build better turf faster in a more environmentally responsible way with less disease than conventional methods. Whether you are trying to establish cool season or warm season grasses—and whether you’re seeding, sprigging, or sodding—using our Program will help you do it better, faster, and more cost efficiently.

“We use GroWin whenever we enlarge greens back to their original size. After scalping the turf, we double-aerify and topdress with seed, GroWin, and sand. GroWin is a fantastic tool.”
Patrick Daly, CGCS
Framingham Country Club
Framingham, Massachusetts

Organic matter matters

Organic amendments are among the most important factors that determine the physical and biological characteristics of sand-based root-zones. SAND-AID Granular Sea Plant Meal is the ideal amendment to enhance any sand-based system because it boosts organic matter without negatively impacting the physical performance characteristics of the soil.

SAND-AID produces benefits quickly without degrading percolation or infiltration rates.* It favorably affects the dominant microbial population and the available nitrogen content of the root zone. Its rapid organic fraction provides a far more readily available organic substrate for microbial activity than any other amendment. Nothing can match SAND-AID for 'jump-starting" microorganisms in high sand content systems. That means higher carbon release rates which in turn means more raw material for building turfgrass plant tissue.

*From reports to Emerald Isle concerning physical evaluation, mineralization, and bioactivity of SAND-AID in USGA sand-based root-zone materials by Turf Diagnostics and Design.

Causes of Soil Structure Breakdown

What is going on at your course that causes compaction and soil breakdown? First, we know that foot and equipment traffic are a constant problem. Compaction causes hard soil when there are no macropores to absorb physical impact. Secondly, constantly saturated soil or a buildup of fines causes the loss of air availability. Third, salts can break down the soil into finer particles increasing the clogging effect. The layering of these fines can totally stop water movement.

Layers that have no air content and have completely clogged -- can go anaerobic causing a black, odorous appearance. The lack of roots below the layer (even the ones that get through have no root hairs) cause a turf stand to be particularly vulnerable to stress.

In a new soil profile, or a green of high sand content, layering may occur just below the surface as organic matter slowly increases through topdressing or other inputs. This can cause a decrease in the effectiveness of the root zone, as evidenced by the lack of long roots and root hairs. This turf has very limited access to subsoil water as a result.

Soil Structure Explained

Soil Structure -- What is the Deal?

A typical good structure would be 50% solids, 25% air and 25% water. For sand greens, the solids may be 65-70% and most of the pore space will be macropores for air. The macropores, in addition to holding air for respiration, are responsible for the movement of gravitational water after rain and irrigation, and for pathways for root growth.

We can get a good idea of when we have good structure by looking at what poor structure does in soils. What would be visible signs of poor soil structure, especially the loss of macropore and micropore spaces? These signs would be poor drainage of water after rain or irrigation, standing water, hard pan and bare ground, thinning turf and anaerobic soil conditions.

What causes this poor structure? First, compaction of the soil causes a physical collapse of the macropores responsible for holding air, for root growth and gravitational water movement.

Second, breakdown of larger soil particles into fines can fill the macropores with solids that replace air and stop gravitational water movement. These fines can build up into layers at the depth of water penetration, completely clogging the soil.

Standing water is a very visible problem where constant drainage to a low area has caused a breakdown of the soil structure. The fines that are deposited in the area clog the pores and stop all gravitational flow. The soil below stays saturated and has no air for aerobic respiration. This may stay wet for days and cause serious problems for the stray golf shot, producing a dissatisfied customer.

Sand traps that hold water are another example where loss of pore space for gravitational water flow causes problems for the golf course. These holes cannot be played as intended. There is nothing worse than taking a drop in a sand trap due to standing water, for an amateur golfer who is already disappointed at being in the bunker.

SAND-AID decreases expenses by increasing capacity.

SAND-AID increases moisture content and reduces water losses. The naturally-occuring carbohydrate, aliginic acid, which makes up about 25% of SAND-AID's dry material analysis, is an emulsifier. It absorbs, holds, and then releases water gradually, thus making moisture and nutrients available to roots at a more uniform rate. Tests show that SAND-AID produces 5-12% increases in the moisture content of USGA type sand/peat mixes; 30% in all-sand mixes.*

*From reports to Emerald Isle concerning physical evaluation, mineralization, and bioactivity of SAND-AID in USGA sand-based root-zone materials by Turf Diagnostics and Design.

Importance of the C:N ratio in fertilization and soil conditioning

A narrow C:N ratio is essential to supply sufficient carbon to stimulate microbial activity without depriving plants of Nitrogen. Milorganite's C: ratio is 7:1. Sand-Aid's is 21:1. Blended together in Optimil™, the C:N ratio is 12:1, creating an ideal organic amendment that provides both fast and intermediate food sources for microorganisms, while minimizing nutrient leaching and run-off.