Soldier Field looked terrible in the preseason
The Chicago Bears played on terrible grass at home this preseason. The field conditions at Soldier Field were already messed up before the Bears played Week One of the preseason versus the Kansas City Chiefs. It was expected the Bears’ home turf would have more wear before the regular season as the venue hosted multiple concerts.
Fortunately for the Bears, the City of Chicago put down new sod this week.
Laboring on Labor Day, it’s what we do. Happy to be providing #GameOnGrass at Chicago’s Soldier Field. First time bermuda installed in this historic venue. #Tahoma @CarolinaGreenCo @pccarlson59 @GreenSource_USA pic.twitter.com/vBOa5Jm48T
— Chad Price (@CgcChad) September 6, 2022
It’s the first time Soldier Field will have Bermudagrass.
Bermudagrass is made for the summertime and sports
Casey Reynolds, Ph.D., who wrote about Bermudagrass on Texas A&M’s AggieTurf, claims Bermudagrass is made for the warm season. Bermudagrass’ weakness is that it’s shade adverse. But it’s popular on athletic fields:
Bermudagrass is a warm-season, fine-textured turfgrass that spreads laterally by rhizomes and stolons. It is an extremely drought-hardy, durable, and versatile turfgrass that can be used in many settings included golf courses, athletic fields, home lawns, and as utility turf. It is relatively quick to establish by seed or sprigs and is most notably known for its superior traffic tolerance and quick recuperative potential. These facts, combined with its tolerance to low mowing heights, make it ideal for golf course and athletic turf as well as any other areas that may be heavily trafficked.
The Bears need grass that is easy to fix. Bermudagrass seems to be up to the challenge of repairing efficiently. What is concerning about Soldier Field having Bermudagrass is that the stadium isn’t located in the Deep South. Soldier Field gets a lot of shade in the “Windy City.” Per Pennington, a grass seed company, Bermudagrass turns brown quickly in the cold.
Bermudagrass is more sensitive to cold temperatures than warm-season Zoysia grass or cool-season grasses such as turf-type tall fescue. This lack of cold tolerance limits its use north of the grass-growing region lawn pros call the “transition zone.” South of that region, from the Atlantic across southern states into California, Bermudagrass is a leading lawn choice.
Bermuda grass flourishes in sites with full, direct sun and good drainage. It has superior heat, salt and humidity tolerance…
In frost-free climates, Bermudagrass stays green all winter. However, in much of its growing region, it spends winter dormant and brown.
Transition zone waived for Chicago?
Soldier Field could look ugly again soon
Choosing grass made for sunny conditions is an interesting choice for Soldier Field. Cold temperatures will likely affect Chicago by late October or early November. The grounds crew will have to work hard to maintain the field. Soldier Field might look brown here again shortly.
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