Decline of the Field

Patches of annual bluegrass (Poa annua L.) and other weeds began appearing and Helminthosporium leaf spot disease and associated thinning of the turfgrass stand were evident despite the supposed resistance of the Kentucky bluegrass (Poa pratensis L.) cultivars to that disease. In mid-summer following a rock concert , the field manager noticed that the recovery of the turf from physical damage was slower than expected. In probing the playing field, he noticed an unusual soil profile: a 0.75-inch thatch layer had developed above the 3-inch muck layer (from the sod); this, in turn, was situated above the sand medium installed with the PAT system.

Soil Profile