A Foundation Course for Lawn Care and Greenkeeping.
A comprehensive introduction to the identification, selection, culture and management of turf for commercial, recreational or home use.
Skills gained:
- Weed Managment
- Pest management
- Turf maintenance techniques
- Irrigation
- Turf for sports fields
- Care of ornament turf
You can:
- Work in the Turf Industry -this can be a great starting point
- With an understanding of lawns and lawn care; start your own Lawn Care Business
- Seek employment with a golf course, sports ground or other turf facility
Taking approximately 100 hours to complete it is suitable as a basic course for people working with turf, such as on a golf course or bowling green, or for keen amateurs who wish to make the most of their home lawns.
This course provides a solid foundation for establishing and managing turf for any or all of these situations.
Course Content
There are eleven lessons as follows:
1. Introduction
- Benefits of Turf
- History of Turf
- Turf Varieties
- Lawn Mixes
- What Lawn to Grow Where
2. Turf Grass Physiology
- Scope and Nature of Grass
- Morphology of a Typical Grass Plant
- The Grass Flower
- Identifying other Distinguishing Characteristics
- Grass Roots
- Grass Shoots
- Root Shoot Ratio
- Recuperative Potential
- Ways of Identifying a GrassKey to Common Turf Grasses
- Identification Tips for Rye grasses, Bents, Fescues and others
- Descriptions of Major Warm Season Grasses; couch, zoysia, carpet grass
3. Turf Establishment
- Introduction
- Soil Preparation
- Seeding; seed quality, planting method, after planting care
- Sodding or Instant Turf
- Other Techniques; plugging, stolonizing, sprigging, chitted seed
- Work Scheduling
- Estimating Costs
4. Soils
- Understanding soil, introduction and texture
- Soil Blends
- pH, Buffering
- Improving SoilsCalculating Quantities of Soil Needed
- Nutrition
- Fertilizing Turf
- Drainage
5. Turf Weed Problems
- Introduction
- How Weeds are Spread
- Non Chemical Weed Control in Turf
- Chemical weed Control in Turf
- Effective and Safe Herbicide Use
6. Turf Pests and Diseases
- Introduction
- Chemical and Non Chemical Control
- Dry Patch
- Heat Scals
- Algae
- Mosses
- Chemical Contamination of Turf
- Damping Off
- Brown Patch
- Fairy Rings
- Dollar Spot
- Rust
- Smut
- Pests occuring in Turf Grass
- Review of Commonly Used Pesticides and Fungicides
- Spraying Equipment
- Domestic Lawn Care Program
7. Turf Maintenance Techniques
- Introduction
- Turf Mowers
- Mowing Guidelines
- Length of Cut
- Getting a Clean Cut
- To Catch or Not to Catch
- Pattern of Cutting
- Cutting Steep Slopes
- After Mowing, and lawn clippings
- Mower Safety
- Other Turf Maintenance Techniques
8. Irrigation - An Overview
- Water and Plant Growth
- Managing water retention and loss
- Understanding movement of Soil Water
- Types of Soil Water
- Testing for Soil Water
- Estimating Water Needs
- Irrigating Turf
- Rate, Timing and Period for Watering
- Cyclic Watering, Pulse Watering
- Irrigation Equipment
9. Playing Fields and Bowling Greens
- Gradients for Sporting Facilities
- Dimensions for Sports Facilities
- Construction Procedure for a Playing Field
- General Specs for Golf Course Preparation
- Cricket Wicket Construction
- Maintenance and Repair of Turf Wickets
- Marking a Wicket
- Treatment after Play
10. Managing Established Turf
- Introduction
- Golf Course Care and Maintenance
- Mowing
- Watering
- Renovation
- Fertilizing
- Weed Control
11. Establishing Ornamental Turf
- Introduction
- Turf in Shade
- Establishent of Ornamental Turf
- Planning and environmental auditing
AIMS:
- Identify the range of grasses and other species available for turf culture.
- Explain the management of soils for growing turf.
- Identify methods for the establishment of turf.
- Explain the management of problems in turf including weeds, pests and diseases.
- Explain maintenance practices used in turf management.
- Plan the development of different turfs used for sport.
- Develop plans to establish a turfed area.
- Develop management strategies for the care of established turf.
Duration: 100 hours
There are three main reasons for which turf is created:
- Functional
- Recreational
- Ornamental
FUNCTIONAL turf is used to control soil erosion, reduce dust and mud problems, reduce glare, noise, air pollution and buffer temperature fluctuations. Turf along a roadside or surrounding a factory are examples of functional turf.
RECREATIONAL turf is used for sporting activities, such as bowling greens, golf courses and football grounds, and other outdoor recreational activities such as surfacing a children's playground or picnic area.
ORNAMENTAL turf is primarily intended as a decoration, for example the front lawn of a home or office building or high quality grassed areas in public parklands.
