Fiber
stabilizes soil for turf by imitating root network
Can soil be stabilized for turf without slowing the turf’s growth? Yes. Just add more roots. StaLok® Fiber is a synthetic fiber that looks and acts like a natural grass root (a fancy name for this kind of root is fibrous, what a coincidence). StaLok Fiber stabilizes the soil and helps natural turf grow better by strengthening its root system. The fiber is mixed into the soil before grass is planted. It does not blend into the pore spaces like Stabilizer; StaLok Fiber creates its own pore spaces. Forget the chaperon; this is the bouncer at our party. An increase in pore space and air filled porosity means the grass can drain water and breathe better, leading to happier grass that recovers quicker. More importantly, this new pore space bounces our villain of grass growth, compaction, out of the party.
But how can you increase strength without increasing compaction? By flexibility. The fiber is very strong and very flexible. You can bend the fiber without breaking it.Many fibers intertwined with the grass roots creates a network. With this flexible strength multiplied across the network, impact can be dispersed among the entire network. Thus, spreading the load and increasing the turf’s load bearing capacity.
What can a hammock teach us about grass growth? A single strand of rope can bend without breaking, but wouldn’t be able to support you. Compare that to a hammock, when more and more strands are weaved together it is possible to support your load. It is harder to bend or damage the rope, even with plenty of open spaces between strands. Ropes and nets works great when no other factors are involved. The only way to carry out this method within a soil is to imitate and improve the existing root network. This is essential in sports turf. The network’s strength must be activated upon impact, rather than having a permanent rigid structure always in the way, with or without impact. Meaning the strength is there when a foot hits the turf, but you still maintain the ability to grade the soil and re sod when necessary.
What happens when a frost hurts your grass and leaves your roots weak? A soil relies on the grass roots to stabilize the surface for traffic. StaLok Fiber maintains the network structure despite frost, rain, drought or disease, and provides resistance to the surface where impact occurs. It may not look pretty on top, but the athlete still gets the support he needs to perform.
Stabilizing the soil is better for any turf with traffic, whether its for professional football, international soccer, and horse racing, or parking and fire lanes. Find out how far StaLok Fiber can take you in the application pages.