Can you identify this turfgrass problem?
Problem: Rectangular areas void of grass
Turfgrass area: Collegiate multipurpose field
Location: South Central U.S.
Turfgrass variety: 419 Bermudagrass
Answer:
These rectangular areas that are void of grass on this multipurpose collegiate field are the
result of training. This field, located in the south central United States has a 419 bermudagrass base that is overseeded with ryegrass in the winter to allow green grass for practices and games. This particular college coach used to like to run practice drills on the same area of the field. Despite requests from the sports field manager to move the drills around, the coach kept the drills in the same areas. It seems that as you move down the age groups or levels of play, professional level coaches almost always move around their drills, college and university coaches sometimes move around their drills, and high school coaches seldom move the players around on the field. Despite the increased wear to these areas, the sports field manager did a good job, applying additional overseeding as needed and keeping the overseeded ryegrass growing through the winter. When the ryegrass transitioned out, you can clearly see the rectangular wear areas that were totally void of bermudagrass.
Photo from John Mascaro’s collection.
John Mascaro is president of Turf-Tec International
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