The
concept of one metre deep aeration, to relieve compaction and improve drainage,
really needs to be seen in action to appreciate the long-term benefits.
A long and
very hot summer with little rain will, without doubt, lead to compaction and
drainage problems on the sports pitch, the golf course and bowling green and
inevitably in amenity areas and gardens.
Terrain
Aeration have produced a new video that shows precisely how to alleviate the
problem, using the proven Terralift system that has been in operation for over
twenty-five years. As soon as the heavy rains come areas of turf compaction and
panning become self-evident with large stretches of standing water.
Normal
aeration and scarifying are of course essential to promoting a healthy sward
but the penetration isn’t deep enough to get to where the real problem lies. Go
down a metre with a hollow probe, using a JCB breaker gun to penetrate the hard
compaction in the soil, and release compressed air up to a maximum of 20Bar
(280psi). This fractures the soil, creating and opening up the fissures that
will allow the water to drain. Repeat the process on a staggered grid pattern
at two metre spacings and you ensure each air blast interconnects the
underground labyrinth of cracks and fissures.
As you can
see on the Terrain Aeration video, that is how the Terrain Aeration system
works but it doesn’t stop there. Dried seaweed is injected on the tail end of
the blast and this sticks to the walls of the probe hole and cracks. Over time
it expands and contracts with the moisture content and maintains the drainage
when the heavier rains fall. Water storing polymers can also be added at this
stage as an extra insurance with water retention.
The
interconnecting system created also allows oxygen and nutrients to get to the
roots, while the grass pushes them down to reach the deeper water supply and
help promote top growth. The probe holes are back filled with porous Lytag
aggregate and finished with the usual top dressing to encourage grass growth
over the probe holes. In the case of the golf green, tee or sports pitch
play can resume immediately.
Once
treated, the area will benefit for many years to come as has been demonstrated
by Terrain Aeration over the years for thousands of sports venues, golf
courses, parks and amenity areas.
The deep
penetration process is used to great effect around trees, especially where the
ground has become very compacted due to foot traffic. The Terralift system has
treated such notable areas as the Royal Parks, Sir Harold Hillier Gardens and
many National Trust properties.
But it is
equally beneficial in relieving compaction and creating drainage on formal
lawns and even small gardens as well as sports pitches and golf greens.
