For Immediate Release
November 7, 2011
Contact: Kelly Farrell
Phone: (239)250-0990
Email: kfarrell@geoponicscorp.com PRmediadirector
Environmentally-friendly golf course, lawn care products firm adds multimedia director
NAPLES, FL, November 7, 2011: Geoponics Director of Multimedia Kelly Farrell Geoponics Corporation added a multimedia director, Kelly Farrell, to their firm based in Naples, FL this week.
She will be sharing stories from golf course superintendents, lawn care operators, green municipalities, future-minded businesses, environmentally conscious retail consumers, as well as turf, landscape and lake management industry professionals about how Geoponics Corporation’s environmentally-friendly products and services, which are sold worldwide, are helping them reach their goals.
Kelly Farrell began a career in journalism 15 years ago and most recently worked at the Naples Daily News. Her background in public relations, writing and photography, offers her the ability to create quality, engaging content to help people learn how to get the results they are looking for with the best possible impact on the environment.
Soil Redox Potential
By Lee Berndt Ph.D., CPAg, CCA-FL
Two things make great turf: genes and the environment. From my perspective the job of a turf manager is to manipulate the turf environment to allow turfgrasses to express their traits to the best of their genetic potential. Most people know this means, for example, aerifying with the proper tine at the right depth at the right time. Consider that core aerifying changes the turf environment because it relieves soil compaction and allows air to enter into the soil, releases CO2, and thus stimulates root development. Coring also removes surface organic matter. Most would agree that these are positive outcomes. But core aerifying can also soften turf surfaces, something most superintendents don’t typically strive to do. And it can be disruptive to golfers both physically and mentally. It’s what I call a member unfriendly cultural practice. The point is cultural practices have consequences, both good and bad. And sometimes employing management strategies for their perceived positive impacts can hinder management objectives.
As an example, consider that certain nutrients are less available in soils having a high pH. Lowering pH to a more favorable point makes these nutrients more available. Applying elemental sulfur is a cultural practice that has been recommended for years for this purpose, and is frequently done. Sulfur (S) lowers the pH of soil solution by reacting with available oxygen (O2) to produce acidity (H+) per the following reaction:
S + O2 + H2O ? SO42? + H+
However, one consequence of applying sulfur to lower pH is depletion of soil oxygen, reducing the amount available for the respiration of plant roots and microbes. This is because oxygen bonds to sulfur in a chemical reaction to produce the acid. Reduced levels of oxygen can then have an impact, for example, on nutrient uptake because ion transport across root membranes is directly related to root respiration rate which is in turn directly related to oxygen concentration. That sulfur can deplete soil oxygen is illustrated in Figure 1. As sulfur is increased from zero to three pounds per 1,000 sf the pH of the soil is reduced from 7 to 4.5. But note how soil redox potential is also reduced. Redox potential is one way aeration status (aka oxygen content) can be measured. Low values indicate lack of oxygen hence anaerobic conditions.
And because sulfur can lower redox potential it can also initiate development of the dreaded black layer. Figure 2 shows redox potential is low in anaerobic soil having low levels of sulfur yet little sulfide (aka black layer) is produced. Adding sulfur depresses redox potential and increases the level of sulfides. Note that applying nitrate fertilizer with the sulfur keeps redox potential high and keeps the level of sulfides low. This occurs because nitrate is an oxidizer; it increases redox potential. In other words the addition of nitrate has the same general effect as adding oxygen.
Fertilizing with natural organic sources of N such as Milorganite or ammonia-based N carriers can also deplete soil oxygen and reduce redox potential. This is because a process called nitrification takes place. This is analogous to the sulfur reaction. Nitrification is the conversion of ammonium (NH4+) into nitrate (NO3?), just like sulfur (S) is converted into sulfate (SO42?):
NH4+ + O2 ? NO3? + H+
Note that, as with the sulfur reaction, oxygen bonds to nitrogen. As a result the level of oxygen is reduced. It becomes tied up with creation of a new molecule. This is called an oxidation reaction. Incidentally, both processes contribute to lowing soil pH; these oxidation processes release H+ ions (aka acidity) directly to the environment.
Are there other oxidation-reaction related cultural practices being used? The answer is yes. Some turf managers have applied sugars like molasses to turf to stimulate microbial activity. The sugars are oxidized by the microbial communities via respiration, which consumes oxygen.
C6H12O6 + O2 ? CO2 + H2O
And as the populations feed on the sugar they grow in size using more and more oxygen.
Does all of this mean that sulfur, ammonium fertilizers, and sugars should not be used? No. Manipulating pH of soil with sulfur and fertilizing it with materials like ammonium sulfate can be positive practices in the right circumstances. Stimulating microbial activities can also be positive. But be aware that if the soil tends to have a low redox potential to begin with then such practices would be contra indicated.
Keep in mind that organic matter is always oxidizing in soil consuming oxygen when it is available. Soil can become more anaerobic and attain a lower redox potential when it gets saturated with water during prolonged rain events. This is because water greatly restricts the rate of oxygen diffusion into soil. And if soil then becomes compacted there is less air-filled pore space, which means a grater percentage of the pore space contains water further restricting the rate of oxygen diffusion. And then if sulfur, ammonium, or sugar is applied the redox potential falls ever further and boom, the black layer happens, or maybe something even worse. This is why avoiding the application of sulfur and fertilizing with nitrate-based N carriers, which increase redox potential, is a BMP for managing anaerobic soils and the black layer.
The redox potential of the soil is a highly important component of the turf environment that managers influence through their cultural regime every day whether they know it or not. It’s a prime determinant of turfgrass health and quality, and something turf managers need to learn more about. Having a better understanding of how each cultural practice can influence the various components of the turf environment can result in a better chance of successfully fulfilling management objectives.
SEE HOW YOU CAN INCREASE THE REDOX POTENTIAL OF YOUR SOIL
SOIL AIR or SOIL AERATION is a vital process in SOIL MANAGEMENT because it controls the soil level of BIODIVERSITY and life sustaining gases:
With regard to growing plants in soil and soil profiles many Sports Turf Managers, Landscapers, Gardeners and Golf Course Superintendents focus on the amount of plant nutrients needed to grow healthy plants. However, it is very important to take into consideration air, water and soil variables that largely increase or decrease fertilizer or plant nutrient yields. There are significant differences with respect to the amounts of Oxygen and Carbon Dioxide available when comparing the soil macropores and the atmosphere. Unlike the relatively static changes in the atmosphere, soil air spaces are much more susceptible to change. These changes in soil gases can have positive or negative effect on fertilizer efficiency and plant health.
Oxygen (O2) and carbon dioxide (CO2)
Unlike the relatively low percent change in atmospheric Oxygen and Carbon Dioxide, Soil gases are much more dynamic in their susceptibility to variables. This can have a profound effect on the functionality and productivity of the soil eco-system. Note the percent change in CO2 levels with regard to the atmosphere when compared to the percent change in the soil. If oxygen is the key to a healthy soil ecology one must define the variables which are relative to soil oxygen and Carbon Dioxide fluctuation.
What controls the composition of the soil atmosphere with regard to soil management referencing anaerobic and aerobic conditions and the breakdown of organic material?
organic matter (sugars) + oxygen ? carbon dioxide + water + energy
Respiration?? Photosynthesis
Variables affecting SOIL AIR or aeration (oxygen availability) are:
Consumption of Oxygen (O2),from Microbial activity and production of Carbon Dioxide (CO2) in the form of cellular respiration for energy production
Soil Make up relative to soil texture, structure, density, compaction, make up (clay or sand), etc.
Soil and water content are major variables relative to gas movement through soil pore spaces. Soil filled with water one must consider the amount of dissolved oxygen within the ground water (relative to temperature and atmospheric pressure)
Mechanisms of gas exchange:
Pressure differences between soil air and the atmosphere
Flow of gas molecules due to differences in gas concentrations (Chemical Oxygen Demand, COD)
Arrangement of empty, continuous pores (primarily macropores)
Compaction-high clay content and high water content hence altering the amount of available oxygen.
Conditions effected by low soil oxygen (anaerobic -low to no oxygen content)
Reduction of root growth and activity
Form of inorganic elements (Denitrification or Sulfate Reduction )
Root rotting organisms or anaerobic decomposition are often associated with poor aeration
Reduced organic matter decomposition rates
Types of microbial production (aerobic nitrogen fixation?Usable Nutrients to plants or gram negative sulfur reducing bacteria ? FeSo4?FeS?Black Layer)
Soil color (Oxidized transition metal Fe3+ red color? Reduced Fe2+ blue/green found in anaerobic soils)
Soil Management for Sustainable Aerobic Ecologies
Proper irrigation and drainage
Stable soil structure (good pore spaces)
Reduced amounts of compacted layers
There is no one set way to manage all of the above variables as a life sustaining treatment with one type of Best Management Practice (BMP), however the management of moisture and relative balance of carbon dioxide and oxygen is critical to the beneficial aerobic functionality of plant nutrients and plant health. Products like Agriox (Agriox.com) work in conjunction with soil air quality management relative to the water resources available considering pH of the soil and groundwater temperature. As carbon dioxide increases in the soil the relative pH will increase acidity.
CO2 + H2O ?H2CO3
The increased acidity of the soil’s water forces the solubility of Agriox releasing molecular Oxygen into the soil profile and creating a more sustainable environment for aerobic microorganisms. Moreover, the solubility of oxygen in water is based on temperature and atmospheric pressure. Likewise the solubility of Agriox is based on temperature as well. As the temperature increases so does the solubility the life-giving product.
It is also noted that the energy of water movement should be taken into consideration. In soil that is laden with a higher bulk density such as that of clay soils, water is hindered by the lack of pore space or non polar regions (thatch and the like). In order to manage moisture correctly, it is important to choose tools such as that found at SoilSurfactant.com. Penterra and HydraHawk would be examples of such soil penetrants. The use of these penetrants increases the movement of water and increases the exchange of oxygen in areas that are laden with Carbon Dioxide CO2.
For more information about how you can increase your soil’s health contact us for a one on one consultation.
Agriox is a soil oxygen product which is time released, boasting valuable nutrients that promote overall soil health and remarkable productivity in an environmentally friendly way. Working with the solubility of oxygen, Agriox’s release of oxygen is based on ph of a soil (water) and soil temperature.
Agriox’s soil oxygen process is essential to plant roots for water and nutrient absorption during photosynthesis. During this stage plants are metabolizing macro and micronutrients, as well as enzymes, hormones, organic acids, and other beneficial components that fuel growth. Plant friendly microbes require a constant supply of oxygen in order to survive. Without a good supply of oxygen, anaerobic microbes explode in population, thus leading to a host of problems including nutrient deficiencies and root disease secondary to the release of hydrogen sulfide (toxic to roots, foul odor).
Agriox is indispensable when growing high-performance turf because of its unique slow release oxygen technology. This continuous supply of oxygen is essential in plant production. More importantly, Agriox will break down more rapidly with increased temperatures and decreased pH (found in black layer and heavy organic soils), making it an ideal product for turf producers, arming them with “response aeration” when needed the most.
Coupled with its unique slow release oxygen process, Agriox increases buffering capacity, thus reducing the effects of nutrient toxicity. In heavily laden organic soils, Agriox can provide a source of oxygen and improve hydraulic conductivity, permitting more efficient movement of nutrients, water and oxygen through the soil. The Agriox treated soils show increased total microbial populations and species diversity. Increasing species diversity suggests the ability to degrade a wider range of chemical contaminants that are found in the soil profile. This in itself helps our environment…What to expect from Agriox in soils:
Agriox in SOIL A new approach
Increased total soil microbial population
Increased enzyme diversity
Restoration of aerobic and biological activities at high moisture and temperature conditions
Healthier roots secondary to enhanced symbiotic fungi growth
Well maintained and protected healthy plant roots
Improved hydraulic conductivity, facilitating more efficient movement of oxygen and nutrients
Turf has the ability to absorb more water and nutrients while increasing their efficiency
