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Deep Roots:How Important Are They?by Tony Koski

D'··uring any visit to a sports-facility, the tumman.agerand I inevitably touch upon the issue of rootingdepth. In some cases the soil is probed t9 reveal

deep, healthy, massive root development-of which the·~po;t~ turflllan::l~er i~justifiably proud. In other ~nstancesthe field manager laments the shallow root development inhis.()r her field, Interestingly, I have found that deep:rooting dces not necessarily guarantee excellent (or evenaverage) playing conditions. And some of the best playing)surfacesPQsses$ root systems of only average depth.Which begs the question: How important is the develop-ment of deep roots to .the production of high quality sportsturf?

'WIlafwelearned in.'schoolE~e1)' turf textbook ever written emphasizes the importanceof deep, Healthy roots to the production of high quality

turf grass. In turfclasses we talk abouthow, ....... mowin~,fertilization, irrigationands~ilcompactioI). 'lllinfluence rooting. .Weare conditioned-rigHtly so, I mightadd-to do everythingpossible to encourage The weight of thick -cut sod, not deep,the development of a established roots, make it immediatelydeep and healthy root usable for play. Courtesy: Tony Koskisystem. After all, rootssupply the "top" with water and nutrients and they anchorthe turf to the soil. There is no question that an extensive andhealthy root system makes it easier to produce good qualityturf. But do "good roots" guarantee that a sports turf surface

For better seed establishment, regardless of weather or soil condition, use PennMulch. Just call your

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will be safe and playable, in terms of traction, smoothnessand resiliency?

When rooting depth doesn't matterA few years back I visited a new football field in Colorado.The sod had been down for approximately six months andit had yet to see a game, or even a single practice. Schoolofficials were concerned about the safety of the field andwanted me to evaluate it. As we approached the field, itsvisual appearance was excellent. However, I had takenonly a few steps onto it when I knew there was a seriousproblem. Despite its age and excellent appearance, it feltlike we were walking on quicksand! School officials wereperplexed, to say the least. They were especially mystifiedby the fact that the roots on their new field were 14 to 15inches deep-down to the very bottomof their new sand root zone. It seemsthat neither the architect nor the con-tractor knew anything about sportsturf root zone construction ("Sand issand. It's all the same-isn't it?"). Themixture of coarse sand and gravelallowed tremendous rooting to occur,but at the expense of stability. Theentire field had to be rebuilt; an expen-sive lesson learned.Consider another situation when

deep rooting is non-existent: whenone uses thick-cut sod. At most, you

have a rooting depthof 1.5 to 2 inches,depending upon howmuch soil is cut withthe sod. This sod istypically cut in bigrolls. It is the weightof the sod, combinedwith its large size,that makes it immedi-ately usable for use as asports turf. All efforts should certainly be made toencourage rooting into the underlying root zone to makeit easier to care for the grass, but deep rooting is obvious-ly not necessary in this scenario to provide a functional

and safe playing surface.

Figure 1

As fields mature, they are able tosustain greater levels of use.Photo courtesy: Tony Koski

The age of the fieldRooting depths on new sand-based fieldsestablished from seed can be impressivelydeep, often down to the gravel drainageblanket. At the same time, these newfields can only sustain minimal amountsof use before they begin to show wear.Obviously, rooting depth in itself does notdetermine resistance to traffic damage.As the field matures it is able to with-stand increasingly greater levels of use.

Continued on page 26

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August2000 25

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Greater traffic tolerance results fromthe development and maturation ofthe turf at the surface: stems, shoots,rhizomes and/or stolons, crowns androots (Fig. 1).All of these plant parts combine to

form a matrix, with the root zone, thatis better able to resist damage causedby sports turf traffic. This explainswhy a sodded field (assuming amature, good quality sod) can beused sooner and with greater inten-sity than a seeded field, all other fac-tors being equal.

SpeciesDifferencesWe know that some turf species, liketall fescue and perennial ryegrass,tend to form significantly deeperroots than Kentucky bluegrass. Yetmost players and turf managerswould contend that, all other factorsbeing equal, traction is better onbluegrass. The rhizome networkformed by the bluegrass creates astability that the bunch grasses (rye-grass and tall fescue) cannot achieve.Bermudagrass provides even greaterstability and wearability than blue-grass because it forms both rhizomesand stolons.The scourge of athletic fields

everywhere, annual bluegrass,presents a special problem for thesports turf manager. Its tendency toform very shallow roots, combinedwith its habit of growing as a bunchgrass or by stolons (the perennialtypes), creates patches that are easi-ly torn and divoted by larger,stronger athletes. Deep rooting canprovide an acceptable level of stabili-ty for bunch type or stoloniferousgrasses, but rhizome-forming grass-es with average rooting depth willgenerally exhibit greater sports turfstability than a deeply rooted bunch-type species.

Encouraging deep roots isstill importantThe purpose of this article is not todiscount the importance of healthyroot systems. Rather, it is to pointout that overall rooting depth isprobably not the most important fac-tor in producing a smooth, stable,fast and safe athletic surface. Moreimportant are such factors as rootzone composition, species growthhabit (bunch vs. creeping) and matu-rity level of the field. The production

sports TURF • http://www.sporsturfonline.com

of a great athletic surface depends onthe development of a stable surfacematrix of shoots, stems and roots-and not on striving for 14 inches ofhealthy roots.Of course, successful sports turf

mangers are often able to accomplishboth goals. Deep, healthy rootsmake it easier to develop the high

quality playing surface, but by them-selves are not the reason that a fieldis safe and playable.

Tony Koski is assistant professor / exten-sion with the Horticulture Departmentof Colorado State University, FortCollins, Colo.

Great Fields Get Noticed.Turfco offers you a strong team of turf building equipment. They're the fastest and most

versatile equipment to let you build hardier and healthier turf. Your sports fields becomesafer to play on and easier to maintain. Originators of Mete-B-Matlc" top dressers in 1961,Turfco's professional equipment gives your field a look that gets noticed.

Pro Turf Edger Economy Aerator PrecisionTop DresserSpecial design makes it Now you can afford to breathe Fast, uniform, versatile.easy to follow any edge. life into any sports field. This Patented chevron belt letsEliminates spade work low cost, 62" aerator has no you handle top dressing,around the diamond. hydraulics or mechanical lime, crumb rubber, gypsum,Oscillating blade action linkages for easy use and low calcine clay, compost andcuts fast and clean. Leaves maintenance. Hooks up to even overseeding withno mess or no thrown any vehicle in seconds. precision. Level fields anddebris to clean up. amend soil consistently.

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Circle 115 on Inquiry Card

August 2000 27

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