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SFMA BMPs
Cultural Practices for Athletic Fields: Fertility
Turfgrass fertilization is one of the most important cultural practices needed to maintain a healthy, dense stand of turf. The practice is especially important given the amount of traffic and intensity of use of many sports fields. However, as with any practice, there are limits to how much fertilization is required, and excessive fertilizer applications can be detrimental to the turf, to the environment and to your budget. The basic principles of fertilization are introduced here, and below you will find a wide range of publications, presentations, and podcasts regarding principles in sports field fertilization programming developed by SFMA.
Regular Soil Testing is Critical
Each nutrient required for plant growth and development is critical to establish and maintain healthy turfgrass. We divide the nutrients into two categories in terms of their use requirements: macronutrients (those required in relatively large amounts, listed in Figure 1) and micronutrients (those required in relatively small amounts, listed in Figure 2). While sports turf managers focus mostly on nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) in developing a fertility program, each of these nutrients plays a critical role in the performance of your playing surface and if deficient (or excessive) in availability to the plant, can result in a failed turf. Given its importance as a nutrient and its variability in chemical form that can be found in a soil from one day to the next, N programs without soil testing are developed on the basis of the grass, its use and the season. However, the only way to really know how much of other nutrients should be applied almost always comes down to taking a soil test. The test results ensure that the nutrient is applied in levels to maintain the health of the plants and to also eliminate excessive or unnecessary applications of nutrients. Soil tests will also give you a pH measurement and unless pH’s are appropriate, nutrient levels in the soil are a moot point for the plant. Soil tests should be conducted on a routine basis – every one (for sand-based fields) to three (for native soil fields) years is recommended.
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Figure 1. The macronutrients essential for turfgrass growth and development.
Macronutrients
Gained from air / water
• Carbon (C)
• Hydrogen (H)
• Oxygen (O)
Gained mostly from the soil
• Nitrogen (N)
• Phosphorus (P)
• Potassium (K)
• Calcium (Ca)
• Magnesium (Mg)
• Sulfur (S)
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Figure 2. The micronutrients essential for turfgrass growth and development.
Micronutrients
These elements are obtained primarily from the soil
• Iron (Fe)
• Manganese (Mn)
• Zinc (Zn)
• Copper (Cu)
• Molybdenum (Mo)
• Boron (B)
• Chlorine (Cl)
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For soil testing services, contact your local Cooperative Extension office/ university soil testing lab or consult with your fertilizer suppliers/product vendors regarding licensed private labs that they can recommend. SFMA also has the bulletin Utilizing Soil Tests in Nutrient Management for Sports Fields available for reference:
Fertilizer Programs – Cool-Season Turfgrass
With active growth occurring in the spring and fall, the best time to fertilize cool-season turfgrasses with nitrogen (N) is from March to June and September to December, with the specific dates obviously varying based on geographic location. A good rule of thumb regarding timing fertilizer applications is ‘if it needs mowing, then it is growing’. When grass is actively growing is the ideal time to optimize the turfgrass response to a fertilizer application, particularly of a nitrogen source. How much do you apply? The soil test results will tell you how much fertilizer to apply for nutrients other than N, and while many soil test reports will not contain soil N levels, they will provide a recommendation for how much N to apply and when to treat. As a rule of thumb, most state extension recommendations recommend readily available N (water soluble) should be in the range of 0.7 to 1 lb N per 1000 sq ft per active growing month.
March – May: One to two applications may be necessary in the spring. This application assists with greening up the turf but can be detrimental if there is a late frost.
June – August: Heavy fertilizer applications in the middle of summer should be avoided due to heat and drought stressing the plants. If fertilization is necessary to promote turf recovery on heavily trafficked fields, spoon feeding (periodic applications up to 0.25 lb N per 1000 sq ft) during the summer months will maintain turfgrass health.
September: The best time to fertilize is in the late summer/ early fall. As temperatures cool and day lengths shorten, coolseason grasses not only initiate a lot of new shoot growth, but also produce more roots, rhizomes and stolons, and stored food (carbohydrates). Fertilization promotes recovery from drought and heat related injury sustained during the summer months. Appropriate fall fertilization is likely more important for the spring performance of a cool-season field than spring fertilization!
October – December: Fertilization in the late fall is advantageous because most nutrients are used for root growth. There is not much vertical growth. Late fall fertilization can also be beneficial to early spring green up. One thing to consider that is very important from an environmental perspective: do NOT apply fertilizer to frozen soils. These nutrients will likely end up in a nearby water source by way of surface movement across frozen soils.
Cool-Season Grasses
Excerpted from SFMA’s Knowledge Center: Cultural Practices.
Editor’s Note: For additional information, NE-SFMA’s Best Management Practices Chapter 4 “Nutrient Management” is a good reference. Available to members free of charge at NE-SFMA.org
