Sports Turf Agronomy Advice - February 2025
The weather is predictably, unpredictable! That’s certainly how it felt coming back after the Christmas period to snow events and all the usual disruption that comes with it. Depending on where you’re located in the UK, the level of disruption will have been significantly different.
From south of the Midlands, it went as quickly as it came, whereas further north, the following freezing temperatures meant that there was snow cover for a prolonged period. For turf managers in this situation, there is always the thought of, 'what’s the turf going to be like once it’s thawed?' The sites that I have seen came out of this period well, although the freezing temperatures and wet stormy weather have halted any ideas of making much progress on turf in January, which has created a slow feel to the month.
BTME fell in a week where there was an improvement in the weather and I wonder whether some turf managers took the opportunity to make the most of this change in conditions. The halls were busy throughout periods of the day with turf professionals and volunteers alike and it’s great to see the latest developments in the industry. There is so much to experience at BTME, I’m sure everyone had their own key take-aways and highlights from the week. For anyone new to the industry or who haven’t yet had the opportunity to visit BTME it is definitely worth the trip to see what our industry has to offer.
Before we look ahead to the forecasted weather for February, let’s look back at January’s average figures. The rainfall figures highlight how the month was split, with the snow and freezing conditions early on not leading to much, but then in weeks 3 and 4 there was a total of nearly 60mm that fell. Which has created those soft, tacky surfaces. Temperatures at the start of the month were clearly low with the frosts which obviously had a big impact on any potential growth. Temperatures stayed consistent through the month once there had been the thaw. This is reflected in the GP figures and the base nitrogen requirements for the month. Essentially, there was a minimal requirement for nitrogen and GDD rose once the freezing conditions had passed. When calculating GDD, it is worth noting the difference that using a different base temperature will have. Syngenta have provided a useful breakdown of this here.
Click here to review weather data in your region for January. To keep up to date with the weather throughout February visit https://academy.agrovista.co.uk/category/weather
The forecast for early February is a continuation of the dry weather we had in the last week of January, which will mean a further improvement in ground conditions, meaning some maintenance practices could be carried out if conditions are suitable. However, following the first week of the month, the weather is to take a turn and most of the month has rain forecast. Temperatures remain mid single figures throughout the month, rising towards the final week to around 10 °C. At this point, there may be some growth starting to materialise, however, if the rainfall has been significant, it may be difficult to and damaging to carry out maintenance work.
A key change that happens in February is the amount of available light. Day length on the 1st February will be 8 hours 54 minutes and the sun's altitude from the horizon will be 11.65°. At the end of February, this changes to around 10 hours 47 minutes and the sun's altitude from the horizon will now be 20.46°. That’s a difference of 1 hour 53 minutes and an altitude difference of 8.81°.
This means from the start to the end of the month you gain approx. 2 hours of sunlight and a large increase (around 57%) in the height of the sun at mid-day, which is vital for gains in photosynthetic rates, which is clearly important for early season grass growth. It also highlights why it’s important not to try and force early growth as the conditions won’t be near their optimum to make use of what is applied. Unless you have the means to artificially stimulate growth via grow lights, under soil heating etc… then it’s a waiting game to a certain extent. Data is increasingly being used within our industry to track and as a predictor of what is to come, and it is an excellent tool alongside practical experience to help us make more informed choices.
February is a good time to carry out soil sampling of key areas and go through the results, comparing against previous assessments and making any adjustments required to nutritional input plans and maintenance practices. When making plans, it is essential to retain a degree of flexibility in relation to applications and overall input requirements. As so much is dependent on weather conditions and fixture lists etc… ultimately it is only a plan, and plans can and should change in line with changing conditions to get the best results in turf performance.
Nutrition
As January and February tend to be the colder months of the year, the nitrogen requirements for the plant are at a lower point now than in December. Which seems somewhat counter intuitive, given that we are starting to look at getting the grass plant growing and ready for the season ahead. Again, this emphasises the need to only make applications that are necessary and that are going to provide results, this can be informed by the data that’s available, anything else will be a wasted application and time.
Similar to last month, you may decide that there is a requirement for an application to replace any nutrient loss, therefore using a suitable nitrogen source that is available for immediate plant uptake will ensure that when conditions are suitable, growth will be supported. This will support recovery and repair from wear through play.
Tom Wood
B.Sc (Hons) | BASIS | FACTs