Overview
TurfDress Compost is specifically designed for turf topdressing applications. This fine textured topdressing is light and friable and spreads easily through most topdressing machines. TurfDress Compost is STA Certified and tested regularly through the United States Composting Council’s STA (Seal of Testing Assurance) Program. Think of our TurfDress as the first round draft pick for sports turf managers and superintendents who require only the best.
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Ingredients
TurfDress Compost is made through the process of aerobically windrow composting our very own post-harvest mushroom compost. Mushroom compost is made from ingredients that include a majority of hay and straw with smaller proportions of horse manure, poultry litter, corncobs, cottonseed hulls, cocoa bean hulls, lime, gypsum and sphagnum peat moss. We add some proprietary carbon sources to improve the carbon to nitrogen ratio as we formulate our windrows. We also add a bulking agent that increases the oxygen content and temperature of the windrows. After six to nine months of composting the now aged and stabilized compost is moved into large cover-all buildings to cure for several additional months. The end result is a fine yet slightly granular texture that is nice to work with and provides a balance of fertility and biology.
Analytical
TurfDress is STA Certified, has a rich brown black color, a fine particle size, and a nice granular texture. It has a broad spectrum of essential nutrients and beneficial soil biology and a near neutral pH. This light and spongy compost is screened to 1/2″ and weighs 1100 to 1600 lbs/cubic yard. STA Certified Technical Data Sheets provided upon request.
Benefits
TurfDress is a fine textured mature compost with a great balance of organic matter, fertility and biology. Very friable, it moves smoothly through most topdressing machines without bridging or clumping, dispersing a nice even spread pattern. Compost topdressing on its own or combined with aeration and overseeding is the best way to increase the organic matter content in the soil for established turf. This is extremely important for high use sports fields and public spaces with lots of foot traffic. Organic matter strengthens the soil’s structural matrix, helping to reduce compaction and improve the root zone performance. OM promotes healthy deeper rooting turf by lightening up soil and creating pore spaces that improve infiltration in heavy clay based soils and water holding capacity in lighter sandy soils. The organic slow release nutrients provide long lasting fertility benefits while the biology improves disease resistance. TurfDress Compost has a near neutral pH thus reducing or eliminating the need for other pH treatments.
Benefits at a Glance
- Organic Matter
- Nutrients
- Biology
- Water Holding Capacity
- Improves Soil Structure and Porosity
STA Certified
Applications
Existing Turf: Topdress between 1/4-1/2″ or as much as you can without smothering the turf. It is always nice to aerate prior and then groom the compost and soil cores so they mix together. This also creates a nice seed bed for overseeding.
New Turf: Depending on the results of your soil test, apply a one to three inch layer of compost to the soil and incorporate it to a depth of five to seven inches. Applying at these levels will equate to a twenty to thirty percent inclusion rate of compost volumetrically. Increasing the organic matter content of the soil to 5% by weight is a good rule of thumb. Apply seed to the amended area, rake in, straw and water.
Topsoil Upgrade: The US Composting Council recommends “Strive for Five” meaning a good target organic matter content for an ideal soil should be 5% by weight. When amending depleted or shallow soils, depending on the results of a soil test, mix in several inches of compost. Depending on the condition of the existing soil, adjust the mix accordingly to aim for a blended end result of 5% organic matter content by weight.
