First frosts

Today was the first day we've had frost since the end of last winter. In fact it was so cold this morning that the bunker sand in most bunkers had a frozen crust.

Bunker repair

Some bunker edges have been damaged throughout summer and we have started repairing these using upsidedown turf.

Greens and Aprons

Puffball

Saw these alongside a seldom used tee box.

Mushrooms seen in the rough areas

Mowing pattern

Wet conditions means that today we changed the mowing pattern on the fairways. By adopting this pattern, the mower need not turn around after cutting each line. Instead it needs only to drive in a clockwise direction thus limiting turf damage caused by wheels turning on a muddy surface.

Spiking the greens

This week we spiked the greens with 1/2 inch tines to a depth of approximately 3 inches using a  Procore 880. No top dessing was added afterwards, but the greens were rolled with the turf-iron.

With constantly wet weather at the moment and warm temperatures (10-15 degrees Celsius), we have been experiencing a high incidence of Microdochium nivale (fusarium patch) putting the turf under extra strain. Hopefully this cultural practice will encourage stronger growth and also disease resistance.

Busy course setup this morning

Stump-grinding

This afternoon I went around some of the tree line's with the stump-grinder to get rid of some protruding tree stumps.

Autumn drainage project

This drainage  project was carried out on one of the very wet aprons of the course. The hole wad closed to golfers gor tge duration of the project.

Method:
A survey was done (by the head greenkeeper and myself) of the area with a dumpy level. This revealed a fall of >1m from the lowest point on the apron to the point where the water would be draining (<50m away).

We then used rope placed on the apron to help visualise where the pipes should be installed. This was a very worthwhile exercise as after placing out a perfect herring-bone design the head greenkeeper csme up with a design that was going to be less disruptive to the apron but achieve the same drainage coverage (see diagram).

We used 80mm perforated pipe spaced at 3m centres. Trenches were dug to a depth of 450mm in order to miss any irrigation pipes or wiring, but to also avoid the chance of damage by future tining or verti-draining.

A team of 4 carried out the trenching, piping, and backfilling with gravel. Thereafter a team of 5 added an intermediate layer of finer gravel, then a rootzone soil mixture and then reinstated the turf.

The  work was completed over two days with dome tidying up needed on the third day.

All-in-all a successful installation with a small section still left to do.

Hydraulic oil burn

Leather jackets on tees

Iron and primo

Chelated iron with primo maxx and not sulphate of iron because iron closes the cell wall and primo needs to enter it.

Burn marks

These pictures show what has happened after a granular fertiliser was applied to the fairways. The  burn marks were unexpected as on the day of application the weather was overcast. It  should be noted though that the fertiliser was not watered-in after being  applied. Perhaps these marks would not have appeared if post application watering was carried out.

Fairways and semi-rough

Yesterday we sprayed Everris Iron  on the fairways and semi - rough areas at a rate of 15kg/ha in 284l of water.

Fairways, semi-rough and surrounds: selective herbicide

Today we sprayed Relay Turf (Dicamba, MCPA, mecoprop-p) to control the broad-leaf weeds within the turf playing areas.

http://www.headlandamenity.com/products_chem_relay.html

Summer course work

Yesterday we carried out some work on the greens and aprons. This included the following:
- brush turf
- bi-directional verti - cutting
- blow debris away
- top dressing (greens only)

Tees - Fertiliser & PGR

Today we applied 1l/Ha of Primo Maxx PGR and 15kg/Ha of Everris high N fertiliser

Greens and Aprons: wetting agent and fertiliser

This morning we rolled the greens with a turf iron, cut the aprons and then sprayed Turfcomplex fertiliser and Tricure AD wetting agent to both greens and fairways. Both of these products are from the Headland product range .

It is essential to note that after each application, the area was irrigated with a four minute cycle. This is in order to assist the surfactant (wetting agent) to enter the soil profile wherein it should assist in reducing any hydrophobic areas (dry spots), by minimising the surface tension between the water and the soil.

Fairways - fertiliser & plant growth regulator

Yesterday we applied Primo Maxx PGR at a rate of 1l/ha and Everris high N fertiliser at 15kg/ha to all the fairways and semi-rough turf. 

Also noticeable in the picture is that we have started mowing in the striped pattern again, thanks to teh drier weather and the increased growth rate of the turf. Soon the 50/50 split of the fairway will no longer be visible and all tht one will see is the neat stripes.

Amino acids, Anthracnose and Fusarium

Last week Thursday we fertilised the greens with some amino acids.  In the beginning of the week there were slight signs of Anthracnose and Fusarium but nothing too serious but by Thursday the conditions had worsened.
On Friday we then applied some Instrata fungicide as the head greenkeeper didn't want to risk it flaring up more over the weekend.

Coursework week 2

In the last two weeks of February we carried out some cultural practices on all the greens and aprons. 
The procedure was as follows:
1. Bi-directional verti-cutting with a Toro triplex with boxes fitted and clearing any remnants with backpack blowers
2. Hollow-coring with a Toro Procore
3. Picking up cores with a Jacobsen core-harvester fitted to a John Deere pro-gator and clearing any remnants with snow shovels and backpack blowers again
4. Verti-drain with 4mm solid tines
5.  Rolling the greens with a turf iron
6. Top dress with kiln dried sand
7. Drag the top dressing in with trailer mounted brushes
8. Brush  topdressing in further with a Toro triplex with fitted brushes

Active Fusarium

Today whilst carrying out morning course preparation I missed the clear signs of active Fusarium on one of the greens.  Our head greenkeeper took me to the green to show me what was quite clearly an infected turf surface.

From this I have learnt that it is important firstly to be on the lookout for disease and secondly to immediately report any signs of active disease to the head greenkeeper.  As an assistant it is important to be an extra set of eyes as the head greenkeeper cannot easily inspect every area of the course every day.

Tree pruning and thinning out growth in the rough

Thinning out growth in the rough

This week we have been carrying out tree maintenance by lifting the crowns as well as removing shrubs and trees where it required thinning out a bit. See the before and after pictures below.

Light snowfall

Yesterday morning we had a very light bit of snowfall. It was not sufficient to warrant stopping play however and quickly melted away.

Bunker renovation

The head greenkeeper has initiated the renovation of all the green-side bunkers on the course. This is being carried out by an external contractor. Their team currently comprises three men who all live on the course in caravans.

The renovation includes the removal of all the sand, right to the base and the top of the drainage. Once they reach the base they also remove a layer of gravel on top of the drainage. It appears that this layer is usually contaminated with layers of silt and/or clay. This inhibits free movement of water into the drain and results in flooding in the bunkers.

Grass colour after Iron application

In this picture you can clearly see the wheel marks of where the spray technician need to make a return pass to get a section that may have been missed. This in turn has caused the iron solution to come off the leaf blade of the turf.

This has given us the opportunity to see what colour the grass would have been if it were not sprayed with iron, a much lighter shade of green. It also shows how important it is to get full coverage and the impact of doubling back over an area that has already been sprayed.

Drainage ditch clearing

Since last week we have been focusing on clearing all the autumn leaves from the drainage ditches.

This is quite a labour intensive job and very time consuming and our head greenkeeper believes that the drainage ditches should actually be piped and covered. I understand this point of view, but I also believe that these ditches provide habitat for certain fauna, particularly frogs and dragonflies. They also provide an opportunity to create ponds around the course that could enhance aesthetics, create added challenge and interest to the golfer and possibly invite biodiversity.

Iron on greens and aprons

Yesterday we sprayed the greens and aprons with an Iron fertiliser, Everris Sierrasol Iron Soluble Fertiliser < http://www.pitchcare.com/shop/soluble-iron-and-turf-hardeners/scotts-sierrasol-iron.html > and today all the treated areas are quite noticeably darker green in colour.

Disease on the tee box

This appears to be rust that has quite severely affected one of the tee boxes on the course.

Frost and ice

The course has been very frosty over the past weeks, so much so that the ground has become frozen. As a damage-preventative measure we have placed 'frost holes' onto the aprons. These holes are only in play when the flag is placed in them as we did this morning even though there was no sign of any frost. Our deputy head greenkeeper mentioned that the most damage occurs if the turfgrass carrirs traffic while the surface start to thaw. He elaborates on this by saying that the traffic can cause the soft upper surface to tear away from the frozen layer beneath it.