Don’t Stress the Stress: Proactive Turf Protection for Summer

You’ve probably heard the saying, “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” While Ben Franklin coined the phrase when writing about fire safety, it also applies to turf maintenance.

As temperatures rise and rainfall amounts decrease, summer stress becomes a major threat. Being proactive and putting down inputs before those conditions arrive is much more efficient than making rescue applications. Plus, getting out ahead of visible decline helps you avoid complaints about the turf’s appearance.

There are several Foliar-Pak products that can help you form an effective line of defense against summer stress.

The Stress “Trifecta”

CSi L is a great option for fighting drought and traffic stress. It provides a foliar-absorbed form of silicon that strengthens cell walls, leading to a more robust stand that can withstand wear and tear. CSi L can also help turf recover from mechanical practices like aeration, which often make turf more susceptible to disease and thinning. It also contains a unique amino acid that acts as an osmolyte, which enhances the turf’s ability to maintain proper hydration.

Osmolytes help turf function better under stress, and Purdue University research has shown that Foundation Forty loads more osmolytes into cell vacuoles and stomatal guard cells. Foundation Forty also delivers high levels of amino acids that increase nitrogen fixation, chlorophyll production, and carbon fixation, which builds energy reserves. With healthy energy reserves, turf can withstand stress better. Many Foundation Forty users note improved color and increased stand density.

Gold Standard 45 is another excellent addition to your arsenal. It keeps turf properly hydrated by rapidly metabolizing amino acids into osmolytes, which keep vacuoles full and maintain turgor pressure in cells and grass blades. The amino acids in Gold Standard also combine with phosphate to form phospholipid membranes, strengthening cell walls during stress.

Two Helpful Nutrients

Potassium helps turf tolerate heat and drought. Plants burn through a significant amount of potassium, though, as they work overtime to respire under high heat and humidity. It’s crucial to keep the potassium flowing to maintain vitality and performance. Armament K, absorbed through leaves and roots, will make sure turf plants receive potassium where and when it’s needed most. Plus, Foliar-Pak’s Armament technology supplies extra benefits. Armament technology frees up nutrients in the soil, namely nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, and micronutrients from the soil reserves.

Calcium helps turf grow and reinforces cell walls. It also plays a vital role in ensuring the healthy functioning of cell membranes, which regulate protein production. This is critical for growth and recovery. Foliar-Pak Calcium is engineered for maximum uptake to make sure turf receives the benefits as soon as possible.

Two Underdog Nutrients

Two often-overlooked nutrients, manganese and magnesium, can also help turf endure stress.

Manganese keeps energy production steady under extreme light and temperature, preserves color, growth, and recovery, even when stress chokes normal metabolism. It also helps turf resist disease pressure and limits heat-induced tissue damage. Foliar-Pak Manganese provides a readily available source of manganese to support these key plant functions under stressful conditions.

Magnesium protects the green color and photosynthetic capacity of turf, keeps nutrition balanced when nutrient availability or absorption are compromised, and improves resilience to and recovery from traffic, drought, and heat stress. Foliar-Pak Magnesium provides a readily available source of magnesium to help turf maintain color, photosynthetic efficiency, and stress recovery.

Foliar-Pak’s AminoPrecise technology enhances these nutrients by fully chelating each ion with targeted amino acids, which supercharges uptake and flow within the plant to improve performance at peak stress.

As summer approaches, it’s a good idea to prepare and protect turf. Contact your Foliar-Pak or distributor rep to learn more about how these products can help turf thrive, even under stress.

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