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Acrossl . A measure ofengine strength2. Resistance of a fluid to shEer fbrce. ie oil

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March/April2004

Movement of Nitrogen: Fertilizer in a Tirrfgrass System

From the January 1999 issue of Sportsturf - *by University of California-Riverside Research Team

Nitrogen (N) aids many plantprocesses and components. I t 'snecessary for growth and development,appearance, and recuperative abil ity of allturfgrasses. However, its mobil ity makesN a ootential environmental hazard. Innitrate form, N won't bind with soil ororganic colloids. It can move from theapplication site to ground/surface wateror the atmosphere by leaching and runoff,or by volati l ization. Our study monitoredN movement below the root system ofcool-season turfgrasses. We looked atsituations where N was applied at highrates and frequent intervals.

MethodsTurfgrass Research Project at the

Agricultural Experiment Station of theUniversity of Califbrnia (U.C.) - Riversideprovided study plots of mixed Kentuckybluegrass and perennial ryegrass.

We applied N at 2.5 lbs. per 1000sq.ft. to Hanford fine sandy loam soil,and reappl ied every eight weeks. We

sampled the experimental plots throughtwo consecutive application periods, andperformed ni t rate analyses with aTechnicon Autoanalyzer II.

We used a randomized, completeblock of 4- f t . by 6-f t . p lots, andperformed three repl icat ions. Weeklymowing maintained a2-in. height of cut,and cl ippings were col lected to l imi tthatch. Sprinkler irrigation replaced soilmoisture according to estimates of naturalevapotranspiration.

Our ni t rogen sources includedgranular urea (46-0-0), sulfur-coated urea(SCU: 37-0-0), and blood meal ( l3-0-0).These sources are classified as soluble,s low-release, and natural organic,respectively. They represent a range ofnitrate-leaching potential. An untreatedcontrol balanced the study.

We col lected two samples f romeach plot every week using Irrometerlysimeters. Samples of tap water fromthe irrigation source and deionized water

accomoanied each batch of leachatesamplei.

ResultsGranular urea provided the highest

concentrat ion of n i t rate sampled. Theconcentration peaked l0 to l4 days afterapplication. At no time did nitrate leachateexceed federal salety l imits.

Sul fur-coated urea treatmentsdemonstrated significantly less leachingof nitrate than urea during peak leachingt imes. SCU regular ly showed moreevidence of leaching than blood meal andthe untreated control, but there was nosignificant diff 'erence among the threetreatments at any rating date during thestudy.

Even at very high N f'erti l izationrates, there was l i t t le probabi l i ty ofsignificant nitrate leaching from any ofthe tested sources. Only urea gave levelsthat were above tap water content, butthese readings st i l l fe l l below federalguidel ines.

DiscussionOther studies found simi lar ly low

levels of N leaching. A Michigan StateUniversity researcher recovered less than0.2Vo of applied N below the turfgrassroot system. The N he detected was wellbelow the drinking water standard.

A Nevada study reported a totalleachate loss of | .0% or less for tall fescueand bermudagrass turf', and another studyat Cornell University tound minimal Nleaching.

In contrast , a Washington StateUniversity study found that nitrates couldleach from newly constructed sandputting greens in golfcourse applications.In this creeping bentgrass study, leachingwas strongly tied to N application rate,and was strongly modified by rootingmedium and application frequency. Nleached more from pure sand than froma sand-peat medium.

Leaching was much greater in thefirst year ofthe study than in the second,possibly due to more extensive rootingin the second season. Modif ied-sandrooting medium, moderate levels of totalannual N, and frequent appl icat ionsproduced the lowest leaching loss (3-5%annual ly) .

Studies show further that. saseousloss of N can be minimized by a-pplyingwater immediately after application. Thisionizes ammonia that can be produced

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by rapid mincral izat ion, and prcvents i tl ' rom escaping in lo lhc air .

Gaseous N loss can also resul t whenmicrclor-eanisms chemical ly reducenitrate. This produces elemcntal nitro-uenand ni t rous oxidc gasscs. Furtherresearch is necessary to explore th isDnenomen()n.-

Ferti l izer nitro-een applied to a dense,mature, wel l -maintaincd turf is normal lyused rapidly by the turfgrass plant andsoil microor-eanisms. There appears to bcl i t t lc chancc of downward movcment ofni t rogen other than on pure sand withimmature tur f prcsent. The fol lowin-ecul tural pract ices hclp minimize potent ia lleachin_q:

. Watcr- in l 'er t i l izer immediatelytbl lowi n-e application.

. Do not over-apply N.

. Use low appl icat ion rates orslow-rclcase sources on sands.

. Avoid ovcr- i r r isat ion direct lval icr appl icat ion.

x Uni vcrsi ty of Cal i forni aResearchers Victor Gibeaul t . MarylynnYates. Jewe l l Meye r , and MathcwLeonard contributcd to thc study. Theircomplete report is publ ished by theUniversi ty 's Cooperat ive Extension inCalitornia Turfgrass Culture Vol. 48, Nos.land2.o

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Marclr/April2004 t3

Ask the CSFM

Jim Hermann, CSFM is a Certified Sports Field Manager.Ask Jim questions concerning your baseball/softball fields. E-mail him at hq@sfmani.org

In the long term, I would begin todevelop a proactive aeration strategy.which anticipates the affects of trafficand seasonal weather patterns. .

Question: We just acquired a deeptine aerator last fall. We purchased both%" hol low and Vz" sol id t ines. Theproblem is that the field is so hard andcompacted we were not able to aeratebelow about 3". What should I do?

Answer: In the short term I wouldsuggest deep solid tine aerating as earlyin the spring and as deeply as possible.In doing so you willbe taking advantageof the natural compact ion rel iefprovided by the heaving action of thedeep frost we have maintained thiswinter. This wi l l a l low for the mosteffective deep tine aeration possiblegiven your situation. You may have toacquire larger diameter solid tines toachieve maximum depth wi thoutbending. Be sure to wait until proper soil

conditions persist before attempting youraeration program. Use your soil testprobe to pull core samples to confirmproper soil conditions. The soil shouldbe moist but not so moist so as to ribbonwhen rol led between the thumb andforefinger. It should have the ability tocrumble or separate into individualaggregates when pressure is applied.

If timing and usage permit, I wouldrecommend follow-up core aeration inlate May. By then, game play will haverecompacted much of the playing area.Depending on the depth of your topsoil,I wouldn't recommend core aerationmuch below 3" or 4". Pulling cores frombelow this depth wi l l typical ly br inginferior soil to the surface. Compactionfrom foot traffic normally does notimpact on soil below this depth.

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Marcl/April2(X)4 15