Greens Aerification

We core aerified greens on Monday and Tuesday of this week.  Core aerification has many benefits, the main one being the removal of unwanted organic material in the upper part of the rootzone.  Other important benefits include: reduction of compaction, improved soil/gas exchange, stimulation of new root development, stimulation of microbial activity, and improvement of the plant's ability to withstand stresses.  I have included an outline of our aerification process below.

Here is a video of the aerifier in action.  We used .5" inside diameter tines on 1.6" x 1.75" spacing, which removed approximately 7% of the surface area of the greens. 

We use blowers and plug pushers to move the plugs to the edges of the greens.  We are careful to minimize the amount of holes that we seal off on the surface while removing the old material.

We then load the plugs in carts and haul them off.

Next, we apply sand with a pull behind topdresser.

After the sand has dried, we brush the greens with a pull behind brush and hand brooms as needed to get the sand into the aerification holes.  The sand in the aerification holes will help the soil retain air space, which is vital to the health of the greens.

Here is an up close view of a finished green.