Minimizing Thatch and Mat Development in a Newly Seeded Creeping Bentgrass Golf Green

Abstract

gressive horizontal growth quickly develops undesirable excessive thatch-mat layering. Excessive (Ͼ1.3 cm) thatch and mat layering of turfgrass is consid-Thatch, a tightly intermingled layer of living and dead ered undesirable because it reduces hydraulic conductivity, water infiltration, increases localized dry spots and pest problems, and reduces stems, leaves, and roots of grass, develops between the pesticide effectiveness and turf tolerance to temperature extremes. green turfgrass vegetation and soil surface. It is formedThe objective of this 2-yr study was to determine the efficacy of primarily from periodically sloughed roots, intact fitopdressing alone and in combination with several mechanical and brous roots, horizontal stems (stolons and rhizomes), biological methods to control thatch-mat accumulation in a newly nodes, crown tissue, and vascular strands of stems and established 'L-93' creeping bentgrass [Agrostis stolonifera L. var palleaf sheaths (Engel, 1954;Roberts and Bredakis, 1960; ustris (Huds.) Farw.] sand-based golf green. Mechanical and biological Hurto et al., 1980). Thatch accumulation occurs when methods included vertical mowing at various depths and timings, core the production rate of organic matter exceeds the decultivation, grooming, a biological thatch control agent (Thatch-X), composition rate (Beard, 1973). Any climatic, edaphic, and combinations of core cultivation with grooming, core cultivation or biotic factor that stimulates excessive plant growth with vertical mowing, and core cultivation combined with grooming and vertical mowing. No treatment prevented thatch-mat accumula-Center; J.J. Camberato,

Creeping Bentgrass Color and Quality, Chlorophyll Content, and Thatch–Mat Accumulation Responses to Summer Coring

“…Three other coring studies evaluated the thatch-mat layer of creeping bentgrass maintained as putting green turf (Murphy et al, 1993;McCarty et al 2005McCarty et al , 2007. McCarty et al (2005McCarty et al ( , 2007 cored in March and September with 1.6-cm-diam.…”

“…Spring-plus-summer coring resulted in increased chlorophyll levels as well as improved turf color and quality in late summer. Eggens, 1980;White and Dickens, 1984;Murphy et al, 1993;McCarty et al, 2005McCarty et al, , 2007. Murray and Juska (1977) observed that coring reduced total organic matter in the thatch of Kentucky bluegrass (Poa pratensis L.), but the eff ect was short-lived.…”

“…× C. transvaalensis (Burtt Davy)]. The most extensive coring studies in creeping bentgrass were reported by McCarty et al (2005McCarty et al ( , 2007 and Murphy et al (1993). Murphy et al (1993) investigated the eff ects of hollow-and solid-tine coring on thatch-mat in a 'Penneagle' creeping bentgrass green.…”

“…They found that total organic matter content as well as the thickness of the thatch-mat layer increased with hollow-tine coring; however, the concentration of organic matter decreased with hollow-tine coring (Murphy et al, 1993). McCarty et al (2005) evaluated coring, grooming, and vertical cutting regimes in immature creeping bentgrass grown on a sand-based rootzone and reported that none of the treatments prevented thatchmat accumulation. Thatch-mat depth in plots subjected to only coring was slightly greater (i.e., 2.5 mm) than that found in untreated plots at the end of the 2-yr study.…”

“…Hereafter, this organic layer will be referred to as thatch-mat. Excessive thatch-mat layers can have numerous negative eff ects on turfgrasses as outlined by McCarty et al (2005McCarty et al ( , 2007. In addition, creeping bentgrass stems and roots become elevated in thick surface organic layers, and plants can be rendered more susceptible to injury from summer stresses and disease (Dernoeden, 2002;Turgeon, 2008).…”