Getting caught up (Finally!)

Well, two great things happened today.  1 - it didn't rain and 2- there was no Monday outing.  That's a combintation to get some things done.  Along with our usual chemical and pesticide applications to greens and fairways, we were able to get to some tasks that the bad spring weather had put off.  On mondays when the course can rest, we do not mow the greens to give them a day of rest and also free up some man hours to get some other tasks completed.

Fertilization of the rough was finished.  This will really help continue the recovery from all the spring damage.  Things are already looking a little greener in the areas completed last week. 

Also, things finally dried up enough to topdress our greens lightly with sand.  This will help us control organic matter and keep the greens healthy and firm.

With no play on the course, Savory Tree service came out to clean up our arbovitae along 18 tee/erie street fence.  Several large limbs had lodged (fallen over) and will be banded together, trimmed, and made to look like a proper screen bed again.  It drives me nuts to see those ugly things all bent over and untidy.

We did some of our own tree trimming through the course and most noticably along #2 fairway.  The maples on the right side had limbs that we couldn't mow under, and the shade was making the grass very thin in an area frequented by slices.

Now that we have started our topdressing program, we will continue every 1-2 weeks through the rest of the season.

The arbovitae were getting too heavy to keep themselves up.  They will be banded to stand back up and continue to be a great and attractive barrier for #18 tee.

There are lots of 'danglers' hanging out over Erie St. as well that will be banded back up.



After a little trim, the top line will be uniform and the entire hedge will look much better.  See the difference in the first few that he completed versus where he is working in the picture.





Lifting the drip line on #2 right side maple trees.

Odds and ends, and BEES!

We are still working to get the course put together from the spring damage.  We have been out sodding, punching, seeding, and just cleaning up to get the course in shape for the busy summer months.  The stumps left behind by the spring storms were ground and cleaned up today, and we continue to do what we can to grow as much grass as possible leading into the hot, humid summer. Every day we get mild temperatures and a little rain, the course seems to get a little greener.

Also, we have decided to mow down the area between the driving range floor and #9 fairway to see if it would be a viable practice tee for lessons, short game practice, or additional hitting area on busy days.  We are just mowing it down and growing it in to see if anyone will use it before considering any construction/leveling. 

Finally, we had several calls about the bees behind #6 green last friday.  This was not a hive, but a swarm of honeybees!  Generally harmless when amassing like this.  I called Mike from Fitkins Greenhouse, who happens to be a hobbyist beekeeper.  He was happy to come out and take the swarm home to stoke his hives.

New sod on the left of #14 fairway in the low area.

Down in the flooded area by the creek, a little fresh fairway sod on #10.  The other thin areas will be left alone for now to recover on their own.  We will reevaluate in the fall if we need to sod these areas also.

Finally polishing off the remnants of the spring wind storms behind #3 green.

The 'scalped' tee between #9 and the Driving range.  Will you use it?

Mike donning his gear assuring me that we won't get stung.  (Then why do you need the bloody gear?) 

I stood well back while he collected the bees.  Nobody got stung after all.

Recovery and New sand

We seem to have stumbled into some perfect late-spring weather.  The golf course is humming again, and the dry, mild weather has gotten us up and working again. 

As mentioned in previous posts, we had some turf burn out from all the standing water and subsequent heat around the week or so after Memorial Day.  Now that things have calmed down, we have been out trying to get these weak areas to recover on their own as much as possible.  Hopefully, we can get some recovery, but we will definitely be sodding and seeding some areas that took the brunt of the heat and wet.

Also, as we do every spring, we have loaded a handfull of the worst bunkers with some fresh sand.  #14, #8, and the practice bunker have all seen new sand.  Every year we purchase sand to address our worst greenside traps.  The next loads are headed to 8, 11, 15, and 9.  We will continue to spruce traps up to combat the highly contaminated sand that sits in them now. 

Bunker sand piled into #8 'propeller' trap.

All smoothed out and hand raked.

Punching the damaged and weak areas in the fairways will help us break the 'crust' that developed after these areas were innundated with water and then 'cooked' by the high temperatures.

  

Working with Junior Golfers on Care of the Course

This USGA Green section record has lots of great information. First of all, natural buffer areas for water features is a great idea to reduce pesticide runoff and create habitat for critters. Also, the Greater Pittsburgh GCSA is working with the first tee to educate young golfers in how to care for the course.

Click below to check it out:
http://myemail.constantcontact.com/USGA-Green-Section-Record--May-27--2011.html?soid=1103157499740&aid=wJsXR51FK1U

Early Summer heat wave brings a little early season stress

After what seems like months of cold, sopping wet conditions, the golf course has been smacked by days in the low to mid-90's and nights near or above 70 degrees.  While it did help the course finally dry up, the shock to the grass (Poa annua - not what's left of our bentgrass) on the greens has brought about a little off-color turf on some of our weaker greens, namely 8, 15, and the right half of 4.  Also, areas in the rough and fairways that were smothered with water for days are struggling to grow.  With these unseasonably hot and humid conditions, we have been forced into a little defensive turf management far earlier in the year than usual. 

Most of the greens are doing fine, but we will be cautious and extremely diligent for the next couple of days until we get into some more seasonable weather.  Hot weather such as what we are experiencing can bring disease, stress out the turf, and make it difficult to recover from the day's traffic. 

Tomorrows high is going to be between 93 and 97 depending on who you listen two.  With the humidity, high skies, and the length of the day to consider, we will have to be on our toes.




Another puddle area on a fairway edge.  We will aerate these areas to loosen things up and hope to get some grass to come back.

The rough on 10 not feeling the love.

Bottom of 10 fairway where the flood waters sat for a few days.  Since I've been at HMGC, I think we've re-sodded this about every other year.

This rough on #3 was wet for days.  Between rain, traffic, and heat, this area will be slow to recover.  Drainage needs to be installed in this area in the worst way.

More former puddles struggling to keep alive.

A little more damage from the Memorial Day Storms

After a day and a half of just getting caught up mowing the golf course, we started to address the mess left behind by the Memorial Day Weekend storms.  Many crew members spent the whole day picking up sticks, limbs, and raking up messes.  There is much more to be done, but at least we have a start.

Once we dug into the big mess behind #3 green, closer inspection revealed two more trees that were partially uprooted during the high, straight-line winds that blew across the course Sunday.  They are both fairly large and currently in a precarious, partially uprooted state. 

We have used yellow tape to alert players to the area of danger, and just ask that you obey the signs and stay out of this area until we can get a tree company in to clean up these dangerous trees.  While we can do tree work in-house, the dangerous nature of these particular trees force me to err on the side of safety and have professionals with the proper equipment handle the job. 

And to all those that have been asking, while the tree company is here we will trim the hanging limb on #8 tee.

The worst of the two is very near falling over.

The larger of the two trees is leaning and just starting to uproot.  It is a very large linden.

Keep out!  Wouldn't want anyone to get squished.