Browse the Questions and Answers most commonly discussed by our Greenkeepers.
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1. What length do you cut your Green ?
A. 6mm during playing season, 8-10mm in close season. If you have good even growth, thickness regulated by verti cutting combined with little thatch 6mm will give you plenty of speed without stressing the plants. Do not be tempted to leave the grass long in the close season. Shorter grass dries out quicker and helps minimise disease.
2. What type of Mower do you use ?
A. We use Dennis with interchangeable cassettes (verti cutter, scarifier, sorrel roller, brush and more).Perhaps not the best cutter on the market but a very versatile all round machine. It is also quite heavy so acts as a roller as well.
3. How often do you Verticut ?
A. This entirely depends on the health of your green and the type of chemical program that you use. Essentially the more growth you have, the more you need to verti cut. We normally do it every 3 weeks but we will add an additional one a few days prior to a big tournament to speed up the green even more. In very dry spells be cautious as to the amount you verti cut as it will stress the grass. Remember verti cutting should barely be skimming the soil surface, it is not a thatch removal process, it thins the grass allowing air to circulate and cuts lateral growth.
4. When should I Scarify and How deep ?
A. Any scarifying will disrupt the playing surface for probably at least 2 weeks and will put stress on the plants. For that reason, it should be avoided during the playing season. Prime time for thatch reduction is after play has finished but with at least 6 weeks of good growing temperatures left in the year. Depth of scarifying depends on 2 factors. How much thatch do you have and what is the capability of your machine. You always want a little thatch, as in a healthy soil it is turned into humus which feeds the plants. Anything less than 12mm is good with probably 6-9 mm as the ideal ( not easy to achieve!).
I believe several passes is a better approach than trying to go too deep on one pass. If you have a good deal of thatch, be brave and keep going as long as thatch is coming out! Overseed and it is astonishing how in a few weeks it looks like nothing ever happened! We had about 10-12mm of thatch last year, we still took 100 barrows out in September!
A light scarify in early April once good growth has started will remove winter debris and get some air into the upper root zone, so about 3-5mm into the thatch layer.