Greens Aerification

  All righty folks, we officially have the first aerification to the greens completed and past us. I have to say I'm quite pleased with the outcome. Even during the aerification I could tell that there was a solid root structure in place below the putting surface. Knowing that, the outcome should be good!
  The first week after aerification we'll continuously roll greens as much as we can. Along with this, we'll fertilize with a granular fertilizer. This year we used a 4-5-4 (chicken s_it) and man did it smell like it to. Chicken s_it is very high in carbon and turf loves it. Usually speaking the third day after aerification we'll mow greens, keep in mind at a higher HOC (height of cut). By the mid part of the second week HOC will start to be lowered and the ball should begin to roll without a whole lot of bouncing and by the end of the second week the greens should be back on track.
  Agronomically speaking; When we aerify we should be removing some 11% of the product, multiply that by 3 aerifications and you get 33%. Research has shown it is necessary to remove 30% of the product per year to control organic and thatch buildup, so we should be right on track.
  As of now, the next greens aerification is scheduled for Monday July 18th.

90 Degree Rule

Folks,

 The golf course is drying out big time. next time your out playing take a look around and notice all the tire tracks through out the course. that's from driving through areas that are smoking and burning up. Think about this, how many times do you drive the cart just past the ladies tee box and turn the cart towards your golf ball? Exactly what degree is that you are traveling to the ball---120 degrees?
 There are a number of courses around town considering to restricting golf carts to cart paths only until some rain begins to fall. This helps in eleiminating turf damage and/or kill from golf cart tires.

 I would like to propose to the membership;

Let's follow the 90 degree rule

 Lets help the golf course out by practicing the 90 degree rule! Simply travel down the cart path till you come to where you and your partner hit your shot and then 90 degree out to the ball. After your shots are hit 90 degree back to the cart path. I realize you and your partner are not going to be side by side every shot, if your not picture how you can get to the first shot as quickly from the cart path then to the second shot and then return to the cart path.

Here's your benefits:

  * Less compaction along the cart path--leads to better quality turf!

  * Fewer cart tracks--leads to better quality turf!

  * Improves the condition of the golf course--which leads to better quality turf!

  * When you see an area that is dry-drive around it--which leads to a better quality turf!

Let's follow the 90 degree rule

Why is it necessary to aerify greens

 Superintendents been asked by golfers;

                        Why is it necessary to aerify greens?

  Aerification is needed when the soil beneath the putting surface becomes compacted. When the soil becomes compacted the grass roots begin the struggle to breathe.
  Think about how many footsteps are on any given green on the course. The average golfer will take 45 steps on any green. So to get a number of steps on a green any given day, we need to multiply 45 times the foursome that is playing in that group. That makes 180 steps per foursome. Now, multiply 180 times the amount of foursomes that play on the course per day (about 72 foursomes), that is 12,960 steps per day on each green. To the extreme, multiply that times 365 days, that equals over 4.7 million steps! WOW! Now think about all the equipment that is used in maintaining the greens throughout the year. Some of these pieces of machinery can weigh over half a ton. Run a riding greensmower over a green 365 days a year and that is an addition 365,000 pounds of compression per year, compacted! I would say, it's a wonder greens survive as long as they do.
  If aeration is not performed on the greens, numerous things could begin to happen to them; Worst of all they could die, then there would be no reason to have a golf course around. Secondly, as the soil becomes compacted the bermudagrass is the first to go and then species such as poa annua, crab grass, goose grass, and kylinga sedge will take over because they can tolerate lower levels of oxygen. That would be a nightmare!
  As ironic as it could be, the best time for aerification is when the grasses are at their strongest. This is also when golfers love the greens the most. When bermudagrass is at its strongest is also when they are able to heal at the fastest they can.
  This is just one of the many maintenance practices that helps improve the quality of the course. It is also the despised by golfers. While the activity of maintenance is performed at times, it is nonetheless crucial to protecting the plant species on our greens.

No golf course superintendent enjoys aerifying greens, why?

1. Its labor intensive

2. A time consuming process

3. Should be done 2 to 3 times a year.

  However this process allows the grass to stay healthy! The primary goal during Aerification is to relieve soil compaction, thatch control, and organic matter, which consist of decaying roots and grass stems and thatch control.
  Excessive organic matter acts like a sponge and when it gets thick it will hold to much water near the surface. This type of condition leads to limited root growth, increases in disease pressure, and causes other problems. Other problems include water filtration (perk rates), excessive thatch build up, lack of proper air and water which will lead to trapping gases which will lead to severely damaging and/or kill existing roots.
  Aerification holes allow excess water to evaporate and oxygen air to better penetrate the green, the results lead to a better root system. A better root system leads to good quality turf which leads to a high quality putting surface.
  The next Aerification is scheduled July 18th, this Aerification is pending. I will decide if the turf has completely healed out of the first Aerification. I plan to let Jerod and Mike know in the first week of July. The third and final aerification is on August 22nd.



Ponds

 I'm sure most all of you are seeing the water levels are down in the ponds. Mother Nature has denied us our normal rainfall for some time now, In fact we are some 10 to 12 inches behind in rainfall. Let's all hope it will start raining soon.
 Some of you may be questioning why we are not filling the ponds now. When the course opened in 1990 there was no cost using groundwater so therefore it was never a problem to use whatever we needed. So in this case yes, we filled all of our ponds to the rim year round. Well unfortunately times have changed, today the water authority are now charges us for groundwater usage. As an example, in the year 2000 The Subsidence district formed a Water Regional Authority to regulate groundwater usage. The Authority had to come up with a plan on how to supply gray water to all non potable water users, such as golf courses, right aways, baseball & football fields. The Authority started charging for groundwater usage to start; from there studies were developed in planning how to supply this water to the needed facilities.
 In 2000 Willow Fork paid .12 p/1000 gallons of water, which led to around $5000 to $8,000 a year in water. In 2011 the Authority charges $1.20 p/1000 gallons, which leads to around $50,000 to $80,000 a year.
With this type of weather we're experiencing meaning no rainfall; means increase in water cost dramatically therefore there are areas that we had to cut back on, lakes will no longer be filled by well water and watering the course in non golfing related areas. The greens and tees will be watered as needed they are the top priority for us to keep maintained at a consistent level. The fairways and roughs will be watered as needed in order to maintain a green color. Once the rain begins to fall again, the scheduled watering will get back on a consistent basis and I can fertilize the course to help improve the quality of the turf. Bottom line is It needs to start raining! Thanks to everyone for your understanding.

#11 Pond

The pond at #11 has been full treated. In 30 days a follow up treatment will be applied from there treatments will come as needed. The decaying process will take some time and expect some smell of not to good to happen. Hopefully within 60 to 90 days we will begin to see more water than vegetation. Thanks for your patience it was a process we had to do in order to treat this particular species.

Member/Member Tournament

 I hope everyone enjoyed the Member/Member Tournament in 2011. Y'all got to enjoy the first two days of the new flags, the feedback from the surveys led me to replace them to a brighter color, I hope there good. I know for sure I could see the flags, they were whipping on both days.
 For myself, I was pleased with the way the course shaped up for the tournament. As you all could see the course is extremely dry, no rainfall for sometime know and there's not any presently in sight. This is one of those times we would like a tropical depression to move in and give us 8 to 10 inches of rain.
 The greens were rolling nicely, the stimpmeter reading were ranging from 11.5 to 12.0. Let me put it this way if you were above the hole, down grain and you missed the hole HASTA LUEGO SENOR, It was pretty much guaranteed your putt coming back was going to be longer than the last one.

Update on the greens

 Recovery is well on the way for the greens that suffered through the winter months, particulary speaking of Putting Green, #2,4,5,7,14. In my view these greens are looking better every day, the turf in these thin areas have now began to take a root structure down into the seed bed mix and that is certainly a good sign. Our April fungicide was applied today for root rot diseases, additional Potassium, Phosphorus and micro nutrients are consistently being applied to speed up the recovery time at the same time the greens that are in good shape are receiving the same loving. Hope you all enjoy them for the Member/Member Tournament.

Thanks
Willy Plowman
Golf Course Superintendent