Good afternoon!
We had a very happy thunderstorm come through the Twin Cities last night. A nice rain, beautiful lightning with not too much wind. There was a bit of hail but I didn’t notice any damage.
You ask, “What does this mean for property managers?” I assume many of you know this but it never ceases to amaze me that lightning makes grass greener! This time of year is when it is most evident. Why does this happen?
Green Grass in Kansas City
Turf is a very needy plant. You have to perform a lot of maintenance on it to keep it green and looking great. The nutrient in the soil that is most responsible for the green in your grass is nitrogen. Nitrogen makes up 78% of the Earth’s atmosphere (and nearly all of Pluto’s atmosphere.) However, nitrogen can not be used by plants simply as nitrogen, it needs to be fused with oxygen as a nitrate in order for a blade of grass to utilize it to make more chlorophyll and go green.
Nitrates are actually tough to create. Plants like soybeans, peas – members of the legume family – pair with a bacteria to create them. WWI bomb-makers created nitrates with high temperatures and high pressure and along the same process lightning creates nitrates by combining nitrogen and oxygen in the air with its extremely high temperatures. The nitrates are formed and then rain to the ground, helping green your grass.
UPDATE 4/13: Just recorded how
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Have a great day!
Brad
Quercus, Inc. 