Greens Aeration, The Full Story

Our fall greens aeration is our most concentrated project each season which requires using every staff member to complete this task. It is our most important project because it helps to improve the health of our greens more than anything else we do to them besides watering.

As mentioned in the past, deep-tine aeration provides the following benefits:

• Drainage through and improves water's ability to penetrate into the profile both to get through it and into the areas where water is needed by the root system.
• Gas exchange, oxygen into the soil and the release of harmful carbon dioxide which can build up in the soil.
• Space for roots to grow, expand and improve.
• Allows us to modify the sand profile with a coarse sand that provides improvement in all the areas listed above.
• Improves the biological health, good microbes in the soil.
• Thatch reduction by mixing sand with the thatch helping to dilute or break down the thatch.

Our process included:

1.  Placing the sand on the greens. Approximately 1-2 tons per green based on their size.
2.  Aerating punching about 110,000 holes 8" deep, 5/8" channel in each green.
3.  Applying a soil amendment product to the green. Earthworks Renovate Plus
4.  Blowing the sand in the holes
5.  Brushing the sand in the holes and helping to spread the sand uniformly across the surface. .
6.  Rolling to close over the holes and smooth the surface as best we can.  
7.  Applying organic fertilizer. Earthwork Replenish 5-4-5
8.  Changing the holes since they were damaged during the process.

We will need to brush the greens again to help work excess sand into the profile. We will roll regularly to help smooth the surfaces until we mow again which will be in a few days once the sand has settled.

https://youtu.be/EfN_wRm3CpA

https://youtu.be/a39NRgzGHJc