Course Update

57 degrees this morning and my jaw is starting to hurt from smiling so much. The recovery over the past week after the heat wave is slowly beginning. The turf seems to leave us much faster then it returns but new shoots and germinating seed are beginning to appear in many of the struggling areas. The greens and struggling fairway areas were all vented last Monday and Tuesday and weekly foliar applications of fertilizer have been applied to help all the new seedlings and emerging shoots gain ground while the weather remains normal. Areas on greens that are not filling in are being plugged out using our nursery green and large fairway areas have been seeded for a second time. The greens will be dry-ject aerated on Monday August 5th. This process uses high pressure water jets to inject sand into the greens to the tune of around 28,000 pounds with virtually no waste and good playability after the process is complete. The dry-ject is a very safe and golfer friendly way of opening up the rootzone to allow oxygen to the roots and increase the greens ability to move water off the green surface. The dry-ject also firms the surface of the greens and allows for dilution of the thatch layer. The greens will be over-seeded following the dry-ject with two bentgrass varieties, 007 and Crystal Blue Links. 007 is the variety that our nursery greens is comprised of and if anyone has walked on the nursery you can see how great of a putting surface 007 provides. Crystal Blue Links is a new variety of bentgrass that only needs 4 hours of sunlight to grow which will be a great help on our shady greens. The same seed combination will be sued again after our big core-aeration at the end of September.

First Tee Monday Morning

USGA Update

“Offense Sells Tickets, But Defense Wins Championships.” Bear Bryant By Adam Moeller, agronomist, Northeast Region
July 23, 2013

This putting green was syringed about 30 to 45 minutes too late because the golf course was very busy with play. This severe wilt damage is a clear example of the limitations with annual bluegrass putting greens in the summer.

Golf courses maintenance staffs throughout the region have been on high alert over the past two weeks because of extreme heat and oppressive humidity. The dew point remained above 73°F, heat indices exceeded 110°F, and soil temperatures were over 95°F for several days last week. To put things into perspective, cool-season turfgrass grass roots begin to decline when soil temperatures exceed 80°F, let alone 95°F. The recent environmental stress has resulted in grass decline at many golf facilities in the region, particularly on putting greens with limited air movement, shade, and/or poor soils. Heavily trafficked fairways have also experienced problems. Decline has been most severe on golf courses with high amounts of stress-intolerant annual bluegrass (i.e., Poa annua) and those with irrigation limitations (e.g., old systems and/or insufficient labor to hand-water and syringe). Damage observed has been as minimal as slight discoloration (i.e., yellowing) and minor thinning to severe grass loss requiring temporary putting greens.
Many facilities have held up well to the extreme heat by employing defensive management programs geared to keep grass alive. Defensive management programs are all about promoting healthy grass and alleviating stress; with less emphasis on maximizing playing conditions. When the weather is severe, even the most highly regarded golf facilities must back off and temporarily lower expectations for golf conditions to preserve grass health. The article Playing Defense is a Strength, Not a Weakness provides useful information on defensive management practices.
A key reason why many facilities have held up well to the heat is because they’ve previously addressed concerns with limited air movement, shade and tree root competition. Tree removals to improve sunlight and the use of oscillating fans to generate air movement are very helpful to improve grass performance so it can survive environmental stress. The Green Section Record articles Man’s Friend or Golf’s Enemy and Using Turf Fans in the Northeast are good references for examining putting green microclimates.
The environmental stress and subsequent decline of annual bluegrass putting greens has inspired many facilities to begin discussing the potential for regrassing to creeping bentgrass. Regrassing is not a simple project and improvements to the golf course infrastructure (i.e., increasing sunlight, improving drainage and addressing traffic concerns) are needed for creeping bentgrass to be successful, but the results will be well worth the effort. The Green Section Record articles Putting Green Regrassing and So Much More and Regrassing Greens at New Haven Country Club are great resources for facilities considering putting green regrassing.

Course Update

Following one of the most difficult weeks of my superintendent career the weather as given us a small break. Last week the golf course took a real beating will temperatures and humidity at their highest levels so far for the 2013 season. During extreme weather periods like the past 10 days we are in a defensive mode of action including raising mowing heights, reduce mowings, diligent water management, and preventative plant protectant sprays but sometimes that is just not enough and the turf suffers. I have switched gears now that we have a small break in the weather implementing practices to help the turf recover. Monday the greens were vented on the tightest spacing followed by a soil spray containing a wetting agent, nitrogen, calcium, potassium, and manganese to help drive away the sodium from our irrigation and feed the roots. Our defensive mowing practices will remain in place until the greens have recovered. The fairways were also sprayed with a balanced fertilizer and a wetting agent helping drive growth of the remaining plants to fill in the struggling areas following the venting. Tuesday the fairways will be vented in certain areas were large sections of turf have died including the second, fourth, fifth, and sixth fairways. These practices should begin the recovery process if the weather stays in the normal summertime range of mid 80's with some rain. The sixth men's tee will also be vented and seeded.

The picture below is an ugly patch of Poa in the fairway but look at the the green dots in the lines across the area. A good sign that aeration on the fairways is working but remember that we didn't aerate the fairways for two seasons returning back to aeration on fairways just this spring. The budget reductions of years past have showed up in a big way with last weeks soaring temperatures but looking forward we have budget for both spring and fall core aerations of the fairways for 2013 and will make it a priority for 2014.

Course Updates

The heat is taking its toll on the turf in certain areas of the golf course. We have been diligently hand watering areas but certain areas like the new fairway sod are struggling from too much water. We try to keep the rough irrigated but that can lead to over watering fairway areas especially those with high levels of thatch stay excessively wet. The forecast is calling for 4 more days of heat including Fridays member guest. The plan is to continue our defensive measures until Monday when the greens will be vented allowing us to then changed over the aerator to spot aerify fairways allowing them to breath. The signal light is again not working properly so I have contacted electrician to see if we can diagnosis the current issue. 

Fairway sod on second hole struggling from excessive moisture. 

USGA July Update

“These Are The Times That Try Men’s Souls”

By David A. Oatis, director, Northeast Region
July 12, 2013

Small plugs are quick and easy to install, and they help elevate cutting heights.

While Thomas Paine’s famous quote referred to the American Revolution, as the summer wears on many golf course superintendents can relate to the literal meaning of the words. Well, at least we had a nice spring! The recent spells of high temperatures and high humidity levels have produced extraordinary disease pressure, and turf throughout the region is beginning to show the effects. Diagnostic laboratories are swamped with phone calls and submissions, and predictably, diseases are being identified in many samples. However, it is confusing and disquieting to some when disease shows up in samples of turf that have received appropriate, and perhaps even aggressive, preventive fungicide treatments. The question “how can that be” quickly is posed. In a nutshell, disease pressure simply is too high. Few pest control products ever provide 100 percent control, so when disease pressure is extraordinarily high, the percent control may drop. Additionally, there will be much more of the disease inoculum available for infection, and the turf will be more susceptible because of its stress-induced, weakened state. In short, an excellent disease control program does not guarantee success under extraordinarily high disease pressure conditions. Furthermore, stressful maintenance practices weaken the turf and leave it more susceptible to pest and disease.

So what is the solution?  Control the things within your control. Reduce mowing frequency, raise cutting heights or switch to solid rollers, and above all else, manage water as closely as possible. Multiple “ultra” light syringes can help cool the turf if there is evaporative potential. Heavier applications may correct water deficiency, but wet soils heat up rapidly and this can increase turfgrass stress and disease potential.

Many courses have installed fans in recent years around pocketed greens, and this is shaping up to be another bountiful year for fan manufacturers. Normally fans are considered more of a preventive than a curative remedy, but in extreme situations they can slow and sometimes even reverse turf decline. Thus, blowers (tractor-mounted, pull-behind independent blowers, shop fans run by generators, etc.) all can help your turf in an emergency. Your golfers may not appreciate a loud, tractor-mounted blower sitting right next to a green, but they will better understand the problem when they see it, and they will appreciate your efforts in trying to remedy the situation.

Some turf managers will be tempted to implement aggressive maintenance strategies such as hollow core aeration, slit seeding, etc. While there are plenty of times when aggressive treatments are justified and likely to produce good results, now is probably not one of them. Carefully consider the time of year the weather and the potential of pushing weak turf farther into decline before reacting. Venting strategies that improve aeration and drainage without causing surface disruption or turf injury may be very helpful at this juncture. However, seeding operations are not likely to be met with much success for a few more weeks, and aggressive cultivation may kick off more stress and disease problems. It can be extremely difficult not to take action at this point, but it may be your best bet for the time being. Once temperatures moderate and seeding operations have a better chance of success, aggressive cultivation and overseeding strategies may be justified and are more likely to be successful.

So what else can be done?  In areas where extensive turf thinning and loss have occurred, mowers sink deeper into the turf, and this effectively lowers the cutting heights and exacerbates the problem. As previously mentioned, switching to solid rollers and/or raising cutting heights can help. Additionally, installing numerous small plugs of healthy turf from a nursery also can help. Two inch plugs can be installed very quickly and are easy to level. If you can install enough of them, they can help elevate cutting heights and this helps to protect the remaining turf. The plugs also will spread, and will provide more protection for seedlings once seeding efforts begin. Larger plugs (4.25 inch or larger round or hex plugs) are much slower and harder to install, and they are much more visible, so give the two inch plugs a try.

Golf Course Update

It seems as the weather has broken for a day here and the high humidity has left us for at least 24 hours. The course made it through the first heat wave of the season with only a few bumps. The greens are in good shape although were rolling slower during the humid and wet weather. They will be rolling quicker this weekend with the lower humidity. Our nutrient management program is in full swing now that the summer months have arrived. The greens are treated with nutrients such as manganese, magnesium, potassium, calcium, and even sea kelp on a weekly basis to help promote turf health at a time when the Poa annua roots are getting shorter by the day, but the collars need more attention. On a bi-weekly basis we additionally apply a balanced nutrient package including nitrogen, potassium, and phosphorus to just the collars around each green to help prevent mechanical damage from our rollers and mowers.

One area of concern has been certain patches of fairways that are turning a bronze color. These areas are predominantly Poa trivialis which is an even weaker species of Poa and usually has a much lighter green color then bentgrass or even Poa annua. The long wet period followed by the high heat in combination with our growth regulator program has caused these patches to turn a bronze color. I realize that these areas are not ascetically pleasing but keep mind as the Poa triv is stressed the bentgrass begins moving into these areas leaving us with a much healthier and stronger stand of turf in long run. I sent a sample of these areas to Rutgers to ensure that my diagnosis was correct and the response is as follows There were no active insects, diseases, or mites identified on this sample. We feel that the poor performance of the grass is due to the cumulative effects of environmental and cultural stresses. Moisture stress is the primary issue here as the decline of the turf was preceded by a long period of heavy rainfall, high humidity, and significant summer heat stress. We suspect that the turf will recover and recommend some soluble nitrogen to speed the process. These areas have been treated with a balanced nutrient package this week and will be treated again next week as well to aid in recovery.



Notice the different patches - Bentgrass, Poa annus, Poa Trivialis, and Ryegrass



We use chemicals from a few different manufactures including BASF which began a program donating money to the Wounded Warriors Project. A superintendent has to take a picture on their course with an American Flag and they will donate $100 to the Project. Shaun Kennedy from Helena Chemical came by to take my picture this week and it is now posted on the this website http://www.basfturftalk.com/honor-america/ and a donation has been made in the Madison Golf Club name to the Wounded Warriors Project. 

Look who decided to show up - Summer

80 degrees could be argued as the perfect temperature not too hot but enjoyable unless that is the temperature at 5:15 in the morning as was the case today. Summer has arrived in all its glory hot and humid weather with dewpoints above 70 and night time temperatures to match. The recent weather scenario is a very scary one for a golf course superintendent as the disease pressure is very high and the turf especially poa annua is beginning to struggle. Cool season turf normally recovers from the heat of the day at night but when temperature are above 70 degrees at night the plant struggles to produce the necessary carbohydrates to recover. Water management is at a premium this time of year as too much water will increase soil temperature and create a hot bed for disease activity so hoses are used throughout the day to keep enough moisture to prevent wilt but not saturate the root zone. The one benefit of humidity is that areas in our rough where we do not have irrigation especially on bunker banks stay moist and green. As the humidity drops but temperature stay high these rough areas will begin to go dormant and turn brown. We have less of these areas as we have added irrigation through the years but many are still prevalent.

The crew and I would like to thank the ladies division for providing lunch and dessert for us on Friday July 5th. The crew was provided Italian heroes, fried chicken, homemade side dishes, watermelon and homemade desserts. The crew and I are very appreciative of the generosity from the ladies as a full stomach made the hot afternoon a little more enjoyable.

Irons are used on many shots here at MGC and most of the time divots are created both on tees and in the fairways. During the hot summer months many of divots that are replaced will not heal so we ask that you fill the divot with the mix provided on the carts to help establish new turf in the weeks to come. If you are a walking golfer without a divot bottle please make all efforts to  replace the divot even though it will not survive a smooth playing surface will remain. Please do not use the divot mix in the rough as the mix contains bentgrass seed which is not a desired turf species for our rough.

The flooding rains on Monday washed out many of the bunkers including the ones with liners but the following picture show why liners are important. The bunker without the liner allowed rocks and silt to enter the sand where as the bunker with the liner kept the sand contaminate free.

Rocks and Silt Contamination

No Contamination-Liner

Rain Alot of Rain

The month of June ended with 9.6 inches of rain and July started with a 1.5 inch monsoon washing out the bunkers and flooding the course. This storm eliminates the possibility of spraying today so the sprayer will be on the course during play this week. The bunkers will take most of the day Tuesday to repair.