THATCH AND SOIL MICROBIAL ACTIVITY IN RECENTLY CULTIVATED TURFGRASS

摘要

Mechanical cultivation procedures are commonly employed to improve soil physical conditions,manage surface organic matter and maintain or restore turf quality.Little is known however,about how these practices affect microbial activity.The objectives of this study were to determine the effect of hollow tine cultivation and vertical mowing on thatch and soil microbial activity,and to correlate the moisture and organic matter content of both media to microbial activity.The cultivation practices were imposed on mature stands of Zoysia japonica Steud.and Agrostis stolonifera L.with microbial activity being measured by fluorscein diactate hydrolysis.A consistent enhancement in thatch microbial activity was observed 13 to 15 days after performing hollow tine cultivation.The enhancement in activity was associated with higher moisture levels within the thatch samples collected from the hollow tine cultivated plots compared to noncultivated control plots.Vertical mowing had no consistent effect on thatch or soil microbial activity or on the organic matter content in either media.Hollow tine cultivation had little effect on thatch organic matter content over the 13 to 58 day evaluation period.Thatch moisture content was more highly correlated with thatch microbial activity than was thatch organic matter content.Neither moisture content,nor organic matter content was highly correlated with soil microbial activity.The results of this study indicate irrigation management will have a larger effect on thatch microbial activity than will turf cultivation.