Zeolite is a substance incorporated into golf greens to enhance their physical characteristics. This soil amendment enhances the capacity to retain nutrients, increases the solubility of phosphates, minimizes leaching, decreases the need for fertilizers, improves the coloration of the greens, and, when applied to dense soils such as push-up greens, facilitates better drainage owing to its porous nature.

Root zones for turf-grass need to have specific properties to contribute to a high-quality playing surface and to provide the perfect growing medium for turf, some of these properties include:

• High water infiltration rate
• Good moisture retention
• Minimum compaction potential
• Good aeration
• High cation exchange capacity (CEC)

Because of the heavy foot traffic on playing surfaces, sand is often the main component of turf root zones. The right sand provides good aeration, good water infiltration, and low compaction potential.

Sand-based root zone media for golf greens or soccer pitches hold less nutrients and water than soil-based root zones, as in push-up greens. This can lead to more leaching into groundwater and increased use of fertilizers and irrigation water.  Zeolite can reduce compaction, improve drainage, and retain sufficient water when mixed with sand.

Usually, root zones are a mixture of sand plus some organic material, like peat. The organic material added will increase water and nutrient retention. But with time, organic material naturally decomposes, and layering could cause an issue with the quality of the green.

Zeolite is a material that you can add to the mix to greatly improve its physical properties. This soil amendment will increase the nutrient-holding capacity, the moisture retention and is very stable. When added to heavy soils like in push-up greens, it will improve drainage due to its porosity.