To establish new turf it is usually necessary to apply fertiliser and also to water regularly. A greater amount of fertiliser and water is required to establish new turf than to maintain existing turf. The type of fertiliser used and the manner of irrigation will affect the rate of turf growth, the structure of the soil and the root structure of the turf as it grows.
Appropriate fertilisers for turf advantageously comprise a source of nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium. These nutrients may be found in an inorganic or synthetic fertiliser, or in an organic fertiliser.
While inorganic or synthetic fertilisers are often utilised, over application of such fertilisers may be toxic to turf, due to their water solubility. This may also lead to damage to the environment, through leaching of the fertiliser into waterways.
In contrast, over application of organic fertilisers is not usually detrimental to turf, as the water soluble content of such fertilisers is normally quite low. Organic fertilisers may also biodegrade over an extended period of time, improve moisture retention and promote microbial and earthworm activity.
The water applied to turf may be lost through evaporation, transpiration (emission of water vapour from the leaves of the turf), infiltration and percolation of water through the soil, and water runoff. Due to variations in climate and soil structure, the exact amount of water that must be applied to establish or maintain turf will vary. If the consumer applies too little water, the turf may fail. However, excessive watering will lead to waste.
New turf should be watered each day for adequate establishment. The amount of water required may be substantial, and in some cases 4 mm of water may be required per day in the first five weeks after laying to establish new turf. Australian turf production per annum is 6500 hectares (65 million m2), and therefore to bed all of this turf would require on the order of 9.1 mega liters in the first five weeks after laying.
To decrease the amount of water required, products such as water absorbent polymers (water crystals) or soil wetting agents are often used. Soil wetting agents help soils to absorb water by decreasing their hydrophobicity. In contrast, water absorbent polymers absorb and retain water for the roots of turf to use. When these polymers are present in soil, it is not necessary to water as frequently as water loss is diminished.
Substantially more fertiliser is generally added to soil to establish new turf than other products, such as water absorbent polymers or soil wetting agents. Accordingly, it can be time consuming and difficult to apply the correct proportions of each product to the soil.
A traditional method of applying multiple products simultaneously would be to simply mix the products together to form a “salt and pepper” mixture. However, during the course of production, distribution and/or application, settling may occur, which in turn limits the ability of each product to be applied at the correct rates due to phase separation based on particle size.