Hollow Coring

Hollow Coring

 

Once the season had finished we embarked on the process of hollow coring our greens. The reason for doing this is for soil exchange. We take out the thatchy material which holds moisture and replace it with a more free draining sandy topdressing.



 

Dried sand added to green

 





 

Holes Filled

 

In order to achieve the best results we have had the sand dried before delivery in order to remove all moisture. This way when applied to the green the sand simply falls down the holes making hundreds of little drainage holes all over the green.

It is important to remember that although we hollow core all over the green, we are actually only taking out around 5% of the thatch in one go.

 

Obviously carrying out this operation earlier in the season, ie August/ September time would mean that recovery would be much faster. However it is better to do it than not at all. The greens are thatchy and continuous works are in order to make them the best they can be. Aeration work such as solid spiking and slitting will continue throughout the winter.

March 14: The remaining greens have now been cored and sand filled. Recovery of these greens will be far quicker due to the increase in temperatures. Also we had a demonstration of a brilliant piece of kit called the Sweep and Fill brush. This set of rotating brushes flicks the sand into the holes and moves the sand where it needs to go.

 

 



This machine can also be used to groom the grass, i.e. stand up the grass blades to provide a better cut. This would allow for smoother and faster surfaces. It can be used after topdressing or on its own as a stand alone brush. It also can be used to stripe rough grasses for improved presentation.