SUPERINTENDENT Magazine - 10.11.04
If you're looking for additional ways to increase the water retention for problem areas on your golf course (and who isn't?) consider Pozzolan.
The name sounds a little like a puzzle, but it isn't at all. Nor is it an Italian dish. Rather, Pozzolan is a naturally occurring substance that's mined from the earth. It absorbs water and holds it until the roots need it. Pozzolan can greatly slow down the percolation rate, especially if you're dealing with soil that is mostly sand. It allows the soil to keep water in the rootzone where it can be utilized.
"Pozzolan is a natural mineral that's often used as a cement additive," said Steve Beck, president and CEO of Western Pozzolan. He explains that deposits of Pozzolan occur where volcanoes have erupted and the ash has been deposited into freshwater lakes. Such lakes contain great numbers of protozoa called diatoms, and it is these porous, absorbent, tiny organisms that make up Pozzolan. Beck's company sells a Pozzolan product called Lassenite, which comes from a surface mine in Lassen County, Calif., 31 miles North of Reno, Nev. The deposit originated 26 million years ago.
He said that unusual plant growth in the vicinity of Pozzolan deposits had been noted--the kind of growth you don't see elsewhere in the area. The reason, they judged, was the unusual absorbency of the Pozzolan material. They added it to potting soil, with remarkable results. When Malcolm Beck, an organic gardener from San Antonio, Texas, added it to an organic soil mix, he saw yields increase by 30 percent.
Steve Beck (no relation to Malcolm) said that his company has shipped large amounts of Pozzolan to the United Arab Emirates, where the soil is largely sand. Users of Pozzolan have been able to decrease their water consumption by 50 percent.
Up to now, Pozzolan has been largely used on golf courses as a solution for problem areas, such as walk-on areas or landing zones. Dry spots--areas that require a lot of hand-watering--are also likely places for Pozzolan, as are other hard-to-maintain areas. Because it reduces the need for water, it saves money and time. An additional benefit is that it reduces the need for fertilizer, because it doesn't percolate down and away.
Initially, the product was used on specific spots on the course--local dry spots and hard-to-maintain areas. "Recently, we received samples back that indicate we can place it in USGA greens," Steve Beck said, noting that it meets USGA specs for California. Its use on golf course greens started this year.
He, personally, has gone around to golf courses and given superintendents product samples. "They like to see for themselves," the CEO said. He predicts visible results in six to eight weeks. Beck spent 20 years in the environmental industry prior to his work with Western Pozzolan.
"It's our fourth year of drought in the West," Beck said, "so it's definitely a good time to produce this product." Pozzolan is distributed through Simplot Partners, located in Southern California. Western sales have been strongest, as one might expect, but other areas are catching on to the wonders of Pozzolan.
Anne Morris is a freelance writer and regular columnist for SUPERINTENDENT. She resides in Austin, Texas.
This article originally appeared in the October edition of SUPERINTENDENT Magazine and is used with permission. For more information,
visit www.mrpllc.com or call 800-422-7147.