Gotta Love The Weather

Weather like this is probably a Superintendents dream. The heat is only in the upper 70's to low 80's, the humidity is very low, and though we do need rain it is much better then being too wet. So I hope everyone is getting a chance to get some rounds in and enjoy the summer we are having.

Short and sweet - the curb is in on #11 and will be graded/sodded on Wednesday. Also on Wednesday a curb will be installed around the turn-around on #7 green. That one should be buttoned up by the weekend...

Enjoy the course...

Projects, Projects, Projects

Well we have a lot of this and that going on right now. Josh with Hartman is in for the day putting the finishing touches on the new 11th tee and also grading out the area for drainage. One of the directions we have started to go with tees and other construction type projects is getting the professionals in to do the job right. Not that we could not do the job in-house mind you, but there is added level of detail and finishing work that we can not do with our equipment. The laser level you see in the picture can make the tee perfectly flat, 1/4" slope one way or another, or put in any other slope you may want for surface drainage. The precision is a lot more exact then the simple level we use for our in-house projects.

All the sod we stripped from the area is being put to use on those eyesore spots around the cart paths and behind #16 green on the hill side. The areas we have left when we use up all the sod created will be handled with purchased sod or from the back of the driving range where we have been taking sod for various projects. The entire area around the 11th tee will be sodded along with the tee box itself, the sod coming from the beginning of the fairway.

Some of the bunkers needed a little attention so we are currently getting some weeding and edging done. Sand will also be added to a couple of bunkers where it is getting a little thin. We are also getting a much over due paint job on the #6 shack. We stripped all the loose stuff some time ago and have not had a chance to get the fresh paint on until now. When that building is done we will be moving on to the pump house and then perhaps the starter shack.

The area to the right of nine tee will also be getting a make-over soon. We need to regrade the area around the evergreens to get the standing water out of there, and also have plans for a set of steps to be installed. The current idea is to remove the planting and wall block and place the steps there where the path is already expanded. The flowers would be added to the area to the right of the path where we will be grading along with some hosta and perhaps other plant material.

There has been some talk about steps for the forward tee on #13. I would rather see golfers drive around the 12th green and past the water cooler to get to that tee. It keeps people on top of the hill rather then having to park below and climb up. We need to do a little tree trimming on the tree next to the teebox to open the area up a little, but I would guess the amount of traffic should not be a problem along the teebox. I hope this solves any problems associated with climbing the bank if it is wet and slippery.

The List...

I mentioned the new rolling units we purchased this season, here is a picture of Micky rolling number five green this morning. So far things are working great with them, and the greens have been very smooth for the most part. It's nice to be able to keep them rolling between 10 & 11 without having to drop our height of cut below a 1/8".

There is always a list. Whether I keep it or Dave keeps it, we are always working off a list. The one thing about working on a golf course is there is always something to do. I swear every time we take one thing off the list we add 2 or 3 things to it. And this does not even include the normal routine maintenance we do on a daily basis. What is included is stuff like spraying weeds, watching/spraying for crabgrass, cart path edge renovation, irrigation analysis to make sure water is where we need it, tree trimming, drainage work, painting course buildings, weeding bunkers, edging sprinkler heads, edging yardage markers, cleaning the deck and clubhouse area, trimming around fences and other areas, adding sand to bunkers, edging bunkers, the hand mowing and watering lists are just that - more lists, spraying other pests such as ants, branch and brush clean-up, parking lot cleaning, better positioning tee signs, improving target greens on driving range, improving overall condition of driving range, tree inventory, checking "hot spots" for disease or other issues, keeping thistle out of the no-mows, various things that need to be done around the shop (another list), trimming back overgrowth on #15, making sure drains and tiles are cleaned out, light bulbs in the cart shed, exterior lights on the clubhouse, deterring muskrats from the ponds (they tend not to like a .22), deterring geese (they don't like being chased by a golf cart or mower), cart control options for various areas, this area or that area needs a little TLC, keeping an eye out for the beaver to see if he is going to take any more birch trees with him, & I could continue but I think you understand...

Keep the ideas coming and we will keep checking things off and adding things on.

Have a good 4th of July and I hope your all enjoying the golf course...

Clover!

From a distance our fairways are looking green and lush, but once you start walking them you realize we have quite a bit of clover out there. Specifically we have White Clover (Trifolium repens L.), often associated with low fertility and moisture. I can tell you it is not from lack of fertility in our fairways, but I know some of our rough areas do not see as much food as they probably need. Last year, with fertilizer prices going through the roof, we did not fertilize a lot of the rough areas and concentrated on just the main playing turf (tees, greens, & fairways). This year we have switched that tactic a little and our now using some of the least expensive fertilizer to at least give our rough areas a little nitrogen and potassium. We have not changed much of anything in our other fertilizer programs, except for fairways where we are trying a different poly-coated fertilizer we have used on a limited basis in the past.

Clover is pretty easy to whack down, a little 2,4-D, dicamba, triclopyr, MCPP, & MCPA are just a few of the chemicals one can use to kill the little beast. In the rough areas we have been spraying most of the areas we can get to. In the fairways I tried a little different tactic and spot sprayed the first couple hundred yards of #10 and a little bit on #11. I'm glad I did not go all out yet because of what I am seeing on #10. Sure enough the clover is checking out but unfortunately where it is a thick patch there is nothing underneath it to take over. And the heat of the summer is not exactly the best time to be seed/soiling large patches in the fairways. So we will knock down the smaller/thinner patches with spot spraying and leave the rest for this fall when we can get out and treat all the fairways and take advantage of the right time of year for seeding.

The Beaches Are Open

The bunker renovations on #12 and #13 are now open for play.

You have been warned.

Testing New Chemy

So last week I sprayed fairways with the usual plant protectants. One of the chemicals has a side effect of deterring worms, so hopefully we will see a decrease in their activity especially since all the rain we have had recently. The rest of the mix had growth regulators, fertilizer, and another fungicide. It normally takes 8 full tanks to spray all 24 acres of fairways, so I typically spray them all over two days. This year I am trying a brand new chemical on a limited basis. All of number one fairway and half of number two fairway have this new chemical in the mix. The rest of the fairways and the other half of number 2 do not. I will be evaluating performance over the summer and see how it may differ from our normal chemical program.

So why mention all this? One of the effects of this new chemical should be a better looking turf overall, and so far you can see the difference in the two halves of number 2. So if you notice that half of two is a bit greener and darker in appearance, that is the reason. We will be continuing this test through our next fairway application in about 3 weeks, so it is possible it may become a very stark difference in shades.

Just an FYI.

Image is from Google Earth...

Well the bunker work is done and all the loose ends resulting from it are completed also. Now we can get back to addressing the collars, approaches, and tees where the turf is a little lacking. The rain was a huge help and now it looks like warm weather is very near. A couple of eighty degree days and things will explode... Most of the landscaping around #16 tee is in, there is still a little more to do, and it looks great.

FYI on the imminent coming of the Emerald Ash Borer... We are starting our tree inventory, 4 of 18 holes are complete. To give you all an idea of how many ash trees we have, there were a total of 262 trees counted and just over 47% of those trees are ash. I would guess the rest of the course is going to follow suite and we are going to find out about 50% of all the trees on the golf course are ash trees. There is a new chemical option for tree injection that is giving 2-3 years of control for EAB, so there is a option for the ones we do not want to lose. At $30+ per tree to treat we would be looking at over $3,700 for just the ones we have counted so far ($1850/year). Some very rough numbers on the idea of treating - 18 holes ~ 1300 trees ~ 750 ash trees ~ $22,500 treatment every 2 years ~ $11,250/year. It is safe to assume we are not going to be able to treat every tree on the golf course. But it is reasonable to choose a fair amount to treat, since we have so many ash trees there are a lot that come into play and perhaps we do not want to lose them.