Golf Irrigation Is a MUST!

The irrigation of lawns and fields for the sports industry requires qualified and recommended professionals who can guide and save the client thousands of irrigation dollars and thousands of hours. The cost of a golf irrigation system averages from $650,000.00 to $1,500,000.00. Golf irrigation and sports field irrigation are the predominant areas where this type of service is critical. The design, equipment, installation and eventual maintenance is a significant investment on the part of the client. Time well spent researching and evaluating the best source of advice will save the client untold stress and financial hardship down the road.

Sports field irrigation is a critical feature of effective sports field maintenance and best management practices. A golf course receives much less direct assault on its turf than does a natural-grass football field, of course, but golf course turf also has to meet higher standards on a consistent basis. Most golf courses are located near urban populations and offer expanses of green oasis where there might otherwise be expanses of asphalt instead. The green oasis will not remain green for long without proper golf irrigation, of course.

Water Management For Golf Irrigation Systems

Water management has been an issue for golf irrigation for decades. In areas where there is a high degree of environmental awareness, a common public perception is that a large amount of water is used for golf irrigation. In the past, that has been true. The practice has been known to create public relations difficulties, particularly in those areas where drought can be problematic. In recent years, however, turf managers have been learning the many benefits of deeper and less frequent golf irrigation.

Golf Irrigation Environmental Concerns

There is evidence that in several areas, supplies of fresh water have been declining over time. The decline was crushingly obvious recently, even in the normally wet and humid Southeast portion of the country. Prior to the drought year of 2008, Atlanta and many much smaller cities had been growing rapidly but not attending to increasing municipal water capacities. Where water use is restricted either as a matter of course or as a temporary measure, effective golf irrigation becomes even more imperative. Further, turf health gained through effective golf irrigation reduces the need for chemical pesticides and fertilizers. Runoff of golf irrigation water containing these chemicals has caused local problems for golf courses in the past. Eliminating that issue with effective golf irrigation provides an added benefit.

Cost Issues

Because so many courses are near larger population centers, many also must use municipal water sources for golf irrigation. Virtually all new golf courses now are designed with water features specifically intended for golf irrigation use. These water features add challenge to the courses and they are aesthetically pleasing, but they also are highly effective in reducing both the cost of water used in golf irrigation and demand on municipal water supplies. Older courses have been adding golf irrigation water features as well. Typically, these new features are lined with a barrier that prevents water from seeping away through the soil, and are designed so that any runoff from golf irrigation flows back into the water feature. This approach supplies natural water recycling and reduces direct water costs.

The old approach of watering daily regardless of turf needs or environmental conditions largely is dead. The better approach to golf irrigation is to water deeply and more infrequently. Effective golf irrigation encourages plants to send their roots deeper into the soil where they can take advantage of soil moisture over a greater depth. It also discourages plant roots from lazily languishing at the surface, making turf grass much less susceptible to drought and heat stress. Effective golf irrigation practices achieve more than only keeping courses green. Effective practices serve to improve public relations, reduce costs and reduce the need for chemical inputs.

 

Golf Irrigation

Alexandria Irrigation
5400 Oakwood Road
Alexandria Va 22310
571-482-8834