ARS | Publication request: SOIL WATER RETENTION CHARACTERISTICS OF SAND-PELLETIZED DIATOMACEOUS EARTH MIXTURES USED FOR GOLF GREENS

Submitted to: Agronomy Abstracts
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: September 19, 1995
Publication Date: N/A

Technical Abstract: Golf course greens made from sand have distinct advantages over greens made from soil (i.e., better aeration, less compaction, better water flow characteristics and less incidence of disease). One disadvantage is that sand retains relatively little plant-available soil water, and must be amended to increase the water holding capacity. The purpose of our study was to characterize the water retention of different mixtures of san and pelletized diatomaceous earth. We used Tempe cells and pressure plate extractors to measure the water retention at several pressures. In this paper we compared the measured retention for the different sand- diatom mixtures and we discuss the implications for their use in building golf greens. We recommend that a follow-up study to include a field trial of the most promising mixture be initiated.