Arizona Croquet Club

ACC Lawn Rebuilding

Kraft court rebuilding:

The Kraft croquet court is under repair to restore the health of the Bermuda grass. Over the period of about a decade, the soil becomes compacted, the root system weakens and the grass is easily attacked by numerous diseases. One of the most difficult to control is Pearlscale. This bug lives 3-5" below the surface, periodically surfacing to feast on Bermuda grass in late spring. For the past few years, the Bermuda grass was heavily attacked along the west side of the lawn.

The rebuilding process involves agressive chemical treatments, turning the soil over, releveling and letting the Bermuda grass regrow from the left over roots turned over in the process. The timing of the chemical treatments correspond with the emergence of the Pearlscale. Merit was applied prior to and during the soil turning to work the chemical into the soil. Ideally the soil turning and releveling is accomplished in the same day, but in our case, this took 3 days to complete. Some of the roots may have dried out during this extended period of exposure.

The next step in the process is to let the grass re-establish its base. The grass will spread laterally through the root complex.