Germany
Meetings in Starnberg and Fürth
Agrostis/Festuca dominance on greens was the title of the two workshops organized by the Greenkeeper Association Bayern e. V. together with the Stomata Group. For this purpose, 22 greenkeepers met on June 8th at GC Stanberg and on June 22nd at GC Fürth to exchange experiences. Since large conferences in closed rooms are hardly possible in times of the pandemic, we were very grateful for Norbert Lischka's suggestion to organize an exchange of experiences on the topic of Agrostis/Festuca-dominant greens. He was also the one who moderated the day. At both facilities, the head greenkeepers Andreas Matzner at GC Starnberg and Alexander Bayer at GC Fürth presented their work on the greens over the last five years. Both initially had to reduce the excess organic material in the top layer of soil. Thanks to significantly lower nitrogen doses in the following years, they escaped the cycle of thatch buildup/breakdown. High discipline is important to them when it comes to water supply. Continuously measuring soil moisture and supplementary watering by hand is essential. This was the only way they were able to significantly change the Poa annua dominant grass stands in the direction of Agrostis. Their program includes regular reseeding, including Festuca. They also achieved a firm putting surface through regular topdressing. In this context, N. Lischka pointed out the advantages of Festuca-dominant greens.
The narrow, vertically growing Festuca grasses can make a huge contribution, particularly in reducing the dollar spot risk. Using the example of GC Chieming, Andrew Fojle reported on his successes in switching to Festuca-dominant greens. All of the philosophies surrounding the creation and maintenance of greens that are practiced by the participants in the “Stomata Group” are primarily aimed at establishing long-term, healthy grass populations. The resource-saving strategy reduces costs because less fertilizer, PSM and water are used. The number of mechanical care measures can also be significantly reduced in the long term. This is described in particular in the “Disturbance Theory”.
Summary: Raise the cutting height / firmer putting surface / fewer pitch marks, driving and foot marks, resource consumption, illnesses, but above all, much less stress for head greenkeepers in the long term
Participants in both northern and southern Bavaria were equally interested in exchanging their experiences on the way to better greens. Seve Schmitz, with his huge wealth of experience, was a welcome guest in Bavaria
We spent most of our time at the facilities until well into the afternoon. We only retreated to the machine halls at lunchtime. The respective greenkeeper teams took care of the physical well-being. At the same time, thank you very much again!
We look forward to your
CONTACT
Your contact person
Dear interested parties,
as your contact person for the Stomata group, I would be pleased to answer any questions you may have, I would be happy to contact you by e-mail, thank you.
Very best regards
Norbert Lischka
