Why Early-Season Surfactant Applications Matter More During Drought Conditions

As drought conditions continue to expand across portions of the United States, turf managers are once again facing a familiar challenge: how to maintain healthy, consistent playing surfaces while managing increasingly limited water resources.

The reality is that summer turf performance is often determined long before summer stress actually arrives.

By the time localized dry spot, inconsistent turf response, or excessive hand watering become visible, the plant and soil profile are already operating from a deficit. Turf managers are forced into a reactive position rather than proactively building a healthier, more resilient rootzone.

That’s why early-season surfactant applications are one of the most important management decisions turf professionals can make.

The Most Important Moisture Window Is Happening Right Now

Spring and early-season conditions establish the foundation for how turfgrass will respond during periods of summer heat, drought stress, and high traffic.

During this period, the goal is not simply to “wet the soil.” The objective is to create:

• Uniform soil moisture distribution
• Improved plant-available water
• Consistent infiltration throughout the profile
• Reduced development of hydrophobic soil conditions
• Stronger, deeper rooting before stress intensifies

When these conditions are established early, turfgrass is better prepared to withstand environmental stress later in the season.

Waiting until visible symptoms appear often means the soil profile has already begun developing water repellency and inconsistent moisture movement.

Understanding Hydrophobic Soils and Localized Dry Spot

One of the biggest challenges during drought conditions is the development of hydrophobic soils.

Over time, organic coatings and lipid layers accumulate on soil particles, reducing the soil’s ability to uniformly accept and retain water. Even when irrigation is applied, water movement becomes inconsistent, leading to:

• Dry areas next to overly wet areas
• Reduced infiltration
• Poor moisture retention
• Increased hand watering
• Greater plant stress
• Firmer, less resilient turf conditions

This is the foundation of localized dry spot (LDS).

Many turf managers attempt to address these symptoms after they become visible, but by then the profile has often already lost uniformity and plant-available moisture.

Why Starting Early Changes Everything

A proactive surfactant program helps establish a more stable and manageable soil-water relationship before summer stress peaks.

Early applications can help:

• Promote consistent infiltration throughout the rootzone
• Improve moisture uniformity across the profile
• Enhance plant-available water at lower volumetric water content
• Reduce moisture extremes within the soil
• Encourage healthier rooting and improved stress tolerance
• Minimize the need for reactive hand watering later in the season

Instead of chasing symptoms during July and August, superintendents can create a more resilient moisture management program from the start.

Building a Complete Moisture Management Strategy

Effective moisture management is not simply about adding more water.

It requires understanding how water interacts with:

• Soil structure
• Organic matter accumulation
• Salinity and water quality
• Soil chemistry
• Root development
• Plant stress physiology

This is why many superintendents are shifting toward season-long moisture management strategies that focus on optimizing plant-available water rather than simply maintaining higher volumetric water content.

When moisture distribution improves, turf can often maintain performance and resilience with fewer extremes in the soil profile.

The Value of Early OARS^® Applications

Early-season applications of products like OARS PS and OARS HS can help address the underlying causes of soil water repellency by targeting organic coatings that contribute to hydrophobic conditions.

Rather than only managing symptoms, these technologies help improve the soil-water relationship itself.

This creates a more uniform and functional moisture profile as environmental stress increases later in the season.

Don’t Wait Until Turf Shows Stress

Every year, drought conditions reinforce the same lesson:

The best moisture management programs begin before the stress arrives.

Early-season surfactant applications help turf managers build consistency, improve water-use efficiency, and better prepare turfgrass systems for the environmental challenges ahead.

Because once visible stress appears, the recovery process becomes significantly more difficult.

The most important time for the plant is right now!