Greens Aeration Woes

Mother nature has struck again!  Yesterday afternoon we closed the front 9 holes around 3 pm in an effort to get a jump start on the aeration process.  We were able to aerate greens 1-6.  The plugs are currently laying on the greens surfaces.  With rain falling today we do not have any plans to work on the cleanup of these greens or to start any additional plugging.  We feel that already going into the aeration process with soft playing surfaces we are unable to push the cleanup of these greens in fear of creating even the lightest of rutting on the greens tops with heavy equipment.  

The following are the steps for this springs greens aeration:
1) Pull cups, fill holes with sand to prevent cave-ins, mark all invasive irrigation outlets as to not be damaged by the aeration process.
2) Aerate the green
3) Clean up all plugs using blowers, rakes and scoop shovels
4) Topdress with sand
5) Brush sand thoroughly
6) Remove all excess canopy sand with the power broom
7) Roll the green
8) Change the cup
9) Water the green

As you can easily see, this is a time consuming process that has to be repeated for every green.  This is why these poor weather conditions can be detrimental to our plans as almost every step is dependent on somewhat of a drying process.

Taking all variables into account we still are not able to predict an exact time frame for the opening of the front 9, the start of this process on the back 9 or the completion of the entire process.  We do plan to keep 9 holes open to our members at all times this week and will continue to work hard on constant evaluation and moving forward to return your entire course to you as quickly as possible.  Thank you for your patience. 

Recent Developments

The Stillmeadow Turf and Maintenance team has been working on a variety of projects that include:
-Aeration of the practice green
-Construction of new stone walkways in landscape beds
-First mow of all bentgrass tees and fairways
-The re-introduction of course supplies (benches, ball washers, tee markers, flagsticks, etc.)
-The addition of a new practice tool for members (the little cup)
-Drainage work
-Tree Work
-Underbrush clearing in native areas

With better weather on the way, you should come out to see the progress that has been made even when it is too cold or too wet for golf!

New Dates Again: Greens Aeration

The dates for spring greens aeration have been changed yet again:
Front 9 Greens- Monday, April 14
Back 9 Greens- Tuesday, April 15
Rain Date-Wednesday, April 16

These changes have been made due to poor weather conditions pushing back our entire turf maintenance plan so far this season.  The other variable that has also come into play has been the spring scramble.  It is our goal to not have fresh aeration holes for this tournament.  We will start aerification the Monday after the tournament.  We will update you on any further changes.

The First Mow and Roll of 2014

Yesterday we finally had the opportunity to put a couple pieces of equipment on the greens.  Until this point in 2014, the greens had either been ice covered, snow covered or too wet to work on. The first step was to roll the greens.  This was done to level out any imperfections from winter freezing and thawing plus a variety of other factors such as foot printing.  The next step was to mow all of the greens.  Lastly, we changed all of the cups.  It was nice to get out there again!

Establishment Of Uniform Collars

Beginning in the fall of 2013 the Stillmeadow Turf and Maintenance crew has been working on the establishment of uniform greens collars throughout the golf course.  In all actuality, this project started long before that but on a smaller scale.  Even since the day we walked through the door over two years ago we noticed that there was no real reasoning behind the width of the collars.  Some were 68'' wide, some were 32'' wide, some were somewhere in between and most of the time you would see a variety of different widths all on the same green.  This is not the look we wanted, as we desired a uniform and predictable width throughout the golf course.  

The first season we decided to maintain the collars at whatever width they were already at.  We won't get into the minor details but the point is that the non-uniform collars created a lot of maintenance issues for us.  At the beginning of last season we decided to dedicated ourselves to growing the collars to a uniform width of 60''.  This required some areas to be cut back, while others needed to grow out into the green.  This technique was never our first option but we felt it was the only viable one given all the variables last season.  Upon completion of this goal we still were not happy due to the visual concerns of these wide collars on some of our smaller greens.  The collars just looked too big and we felt as though we were missing the boat on delivering an added level of maintenance.

So last fall we decided to tackle the real problem that probably has been the biggest cause of the non-uniformity all along.  The irrigation sprinkler heads.  There were around 15 heads that needed to be dug up, sometimes repaired and moved to be able to have the collars at a uniform width that was anywhere under 60''.  It took a little time but we moved them all.  Now with all the problem sprinklers out of our way, we are currently in the process of cutting back the width of the collars.  Currently, we have completed the front 9 along with the practice green.  We are very excited about the new look!  It will take some time to completely return some of the collar height turf to greens height.  However, when we get through these minor growing pains we believe that we all will be much happier with the overall look, playability and uniformity of our greens and collars.

Here are some photos of the mowing process:

Course Update

While I realize that with the recent warmer weather conditions there are probably many people who have the itch to get out and play golf.  However, the Stillmeadow Turf and Maintenance Staff has to consider all variables before allowing play to return the golf course.  The following are just a few of those variables:

• Excess water from snow melt and predicted rain in the forecast
• Player safety
• Below freezing overnight conditions causing slick, iced cart paths
• Frozen ground conditions causing a lack of subsurface drainage everywhere
• Frozen ground conditions plus surface water causing sloppy conditions everywhere including greens
• Frozen ground conditions causing sheared turf roots with the combination of minor thaw, water and any kind of traffic
• Cups (what condition are they in??? Will they have to be changed??? Haven't been able to see them in over a month...Can't change them with frozen ground conditions.)
• Freshly seeded areas in the fall (We definitely don't want traffic on these areas along with sloppy conditions)

Now as you can see this is just a small amount of what we have to judge when making the decision on rather to allow play on the course on any given day during the winter months.  That being said, here is a photo of the course that was taken on Wednesday morning.

I realize that with warm rain on the way, much if not all of this snow could dissipate.  However, then we are left with swampy, muddy and dangerous conditions.

It is for all of the previously mentioned reasons that we plan to remain closed for the rest of this week but will continue to monitor the course on a daily basis.  Please check back on this blog for updates or changes.  If we can get you out to play, we will.

Thanks for your patience,
Klint Ladd
Golf Course Superintendent

Winter Projects Continue

While we would like to be continuing on with the large quantity of tree removals we still have left, the weather has had a different plan for us.  Even though we may have had a wrench thrown into our plans we choose to use this time to be productive in other areas.  As previously mentioned, mechanic Rick Evans has been busy with reel and equipment maintenance.  The current weather conditions have given us turf guys a chance to give him a helping hand.

We have also used this time to restore some of our course supplies such as bunker rakes and the out-of-bounds post that run along the right side of #12.  To achieve this we are using vinyl sleeves that are heat shrunk onto the existing material.  The manufacturer of this product is a company called vinylguard (vinylguardgolf.com). 

O.B. Post-Before

O.B. Post-During

O.B. Post-After

Bunker Rakes-Before

Bunker Rakes-After

Lastly, we have been working on some much needed shop organization.  This involves the construction of shelving to give us the room to store our parts and supplies in an orderly fashion.  We still have a lot of work to do in the organization department but much progress has been made.

Protecting Turf In Extremely Wet Conditions

Rain and thawing has caused the course to become extremely wet over the last couple of days.  These types of conditions are ones where we try to restrict or avoid traffic, especially where greens are concerned.  If we were to allow play today we would be excessively contributing to turf wear, compaction and rutting.  One day of play when the greens are too soft and the foot printing alone can ruin ball roll for the entire winter or until it is firm enough to bring a piece of equipment back on them.  We don't know when this will be which means we need to attempt to be as careful as possible.  Tee boxes also need to be protected.  One day of foot traffic and divots on wet turf in January can wear out an area 10' x 6' that will not completely heal for 4 to 5 months.  One footprint or cart tire track on wet turf can cause that area (as small as it may be) to be over-compacted resulting in the death or thinning of that area in the summer months.  All of these factors contribute the decision to remain closed while the majority of the course is soggy like it is today.  We apologize for any inconvenience while we take the steps we believe to be necessary to maintain our course at a high level.  Let's continue to make our club one that we can be proud of for many years to come!

Winter Projects

While the latest round of frigged temperatures have slowed our progress a little, we have still been actively working on dead tree removals throughout the course.  This is a huge project and has required the majority of our resources over the last couple of weeks.  Besides tree work we have also been busy with equipment repair and maintenance with an emphasis on reel and bedknife sharpening and rebuilding.  

Future winter projects include:

-Removal of approximately 30 more dead trees

-Stump removals

-Addressing major engine issues with two of our maintenance vehicles

-Repair and maintenance of around 35 traction vehicles and maintenance vehicles

-Enlarging the putting surfaces by reducing the collar width.  This is to be achieved with a dormant mowing.

-Tying up loose ends on #1 drainage project and #13 drainage projects.

-Sod work around cart path edges

-Drainage work on #2 and #9 fairways

As you can see, we have a large list of issues that we would like to address before this upcoming season.  This list is only the tip of the iceberg in relation to what we would like to get done.  This can be extremely difficult when dealing with undesirable winter weather as well as reduced payroll and expense funds which is normal winter practice in the business of golf.  However, we will continue to work hard in an attempt to accomplish as much as possible prior to the return of warmer weather.

The Latest Happenings

Thus far this winter we have removed a total of about 15 dead trees from several locations around the course.

Along with tree removal projects we have also been busy with continuing to make improvements to areas with drainage issues.