A new
turf improver with roots in traditional green keeping is arming Course Managers
with a natural alternative to ever restricted fungicides and chemical
fertilisers.
Carbon
Gold’s Enriched Biochar Soil Improver is a horticultural form of charcoal
blended with optimum levels of fungi, bacteria and trace minerals, and is
approved by EU certification bodies for organic growing.
It was
common practice a century ago to use charcoal to keep greens porous and firm,
and to improve the appearance and colour of turf. Now, innovative Greenkeepers
are ‘rediscovering’ the benefits of biochar – using it to eliminate fungicides
completely, and reduce chemical fertiliser use significantly.
David
Chammings, Amenity Specialist for Sherriff Amenity, a division of Agrovista UK,
has been the Chairman of Greens at Okehampton Golf Club for the past three
years.
His
position and experience allow him to trial innovative techniques on different
areas of the course, and he approached Carbon Gold, keen to be the first to
trial biochar on golf course greens.
The club,
established in 1913, has been through significant changes in the last 5 years,
adapting to an ever-evolving industry and stricter demands, such as the
revocation of insecticides and the withdrawal of many fungicides under ever
tighter EU regulations.
In 2016,
Stuart Entwhistle joined as Course Manager, and together he and David devised a
trial outline to test how Carbon Gold’s enriched biochar would perform on
specific areas of the course, in the hope of finding a new solution to old
problems.
Enriched
Biochar Soil Improver was applied in March 2017. Both greens were 13mm hollow
tined to a depth of 100mm. 1kg per m2 of Carbon Gold’s Enriched Biochar Soil
Improver was brushed in – in the same way sand is commonly brushed into turf –
over an area of 100m2 per green.
They
continued to fertilise the trial areas, at the same rate as the rest of the
greens, but found that in the summer the 5th green looked healthier and was
holding nutrient a lot more efficiently so decided to miss an application on
this area. Three weeks later it was not evident that a feed application had
been missed, and the trial area looked as healthy as the rest of the green.
There is a definite increase in nutrient holding capacity in the sandy
rootzones, and a 20% reduction in fertiliser use overall.
The
fungal disease being treated in the Okehampton Carbon Gold trials is fusarium
patch (Microdochium nivale) – common to
golf courses across the world. They currently apply fungicide to all of the
greens on the course twice a year, sometimes up to four times a year. To treat
the whole 7000m2 course costs £700 per application – Okehampton’s annual
fungicide bill alone can reach £2800.
No
fungicide was required on either of the trial areas for the whole of the year,
meaning Carbon Gold’s enriched biochar delivered an impressive 100% reduction
in fungicide use.
Water
retention and drainage was another factor that David and Stuart were keen to
address. Summer 2017 was relatively wet, however the treated greens performed
well. The trial areas drain better and faster than before when needed, but also
hold on to the moisture in prolonged hotter weather.
The trial
greens were more resilient over the course of the year – whatever the seasons
threw at them – during the hot dry periods they held onto the moisture better
and were visibly healthier. In wetter periods they did not flood, were firmer,
dryer and remained playable. This is a great advantage for the club during the
wet months – if there is too much rain the course can flood and the greens
become un-playable, which leads to closure and loss of revenue. With the use.
David is
keen to step up his trials to cover two entire greens which they will monitor
throughout 2018. Application of the product would normally take place
during the maintenance times of spring and autumn. Due to significantly reduced
requirements of fungicides, fertilisers and irrigation, he believes they would
soon see a return on investment.
These
enlightening trials show an optimum application rate of 1kg/m2, which equates
to £1 per m2. As enriched biochar is a one-off application that remains in the
soil indefinitely, and has proven to deliver up to 100% reduction in fungicide
and 20% reduction in fertiliser inputs, it’s a hole in one for any discerning
Course Manager.
David’s
has great confidence in his new discovery - he says he would “highly recommend
the use of Carbon Gold’s enriched biochar to all Greenkeepers & Groundsmen
for the wider benefits of the product.” He even goes so far as to say, “I
believe that biochar will be used throughout this industry in the not too
distant future.”
