Tee Closed

The second tee will be moved to the fairway on Friday in order for Greenwood to remove the White Pine in the fairway expansion area. This work is being performed early to prepare us if Pavalec arrives early or the weather stays wet for an extended period. 

Aeration and Recovery

We have completed the green, approach, and tee aeration for the fall season. The fall aeration is the single most important agronomic process that we undertake at MGC as it removes a large amount of organic matter that has built up over the season, introduces over 25 tons of sand into the soil profile, and increases our oxygen exchange capacity providing for healthier roots. This fall we chose to deep aerate the greens first, using 12 inch long ¾ inch wide tines to break the soil layers and create deep channels for roots and water to move through the soil profile. The greens were then aerated a second time using 5/8 coring tines at a very close spacing of 1.5 inches by 1.5 inches giving us over 10% surface disruption. This process is as aggressive as it gets and is needed to gain ground on our infiltration rates, air porosity, and water porosity.

 

We applied 250 pounds of Renovate Plus soil amendment to each of the 2^nd, 5^th, and 6^th greens to aid in recovery and moisture management. Renovate Plus is a blend of organic and mineral amendments including kelp meal, compost and humic acids which make up a sustainable microbial food source of short, medium and long chained carbons. The mineral fraction of Renovate includes greensand, sul-po-mag, hard and soft rock phosphate, and calcium. This combination prevents de-mineralization of the soil and allows for roots to take up nutrients as needed, and is a great way to provide a biological foundation to any soil by promoting soil flocculation and turf recovery. Eco-Lite is the premier zeolite rock mineral mined from an exceptionally clean zeolite mine and provides an array of physical benefits including the highest CEC of all physical amendments. Zeolites are very hard rock minerals that possess a crystalline structure and have the capability to absorb water when the surrounding soil is wet, creating better air movement in the soil and allowing for the controlled release of this water when moisture levels in the soil fall.

 

The goal for the next 10 days is to drive recovery as quick as possible by providing ample nutrients and water. The greens will be mowed and rolled during afternoon dry conditions until all of the sand has settled. We will then switch to our good greens mowers and begin lowering the height of cut back to our normal setting. Thank you for your patience during this important time of year.

12 inch deep aeration - Fredco Golf

Core Aeration Tight Spacing

Afternoon dry rolling

Aeration/Construction Update

We have completed the demos of 3 different triplex mowers over the past two weeks on greens allowing us to dry mow the greens in the afternoon as well as provide the means to vertical mow greens in the future. We will be looking at all pros and cons of these mowers and make a recommendation to the Board of Governors for the 2014 season.

A reminder that the greens will be aerated on Monday followed by the approaches on Tuesday and the tees on Wednesday, weather permitting. The greens will be deep tine aerated first by an outside contractor followed by a close spacing core aeration performed with our equipment and labor. All of the areas will be topdressed with sand and soil amendments, as per our soil tests, will be applied.

The Board of Governors approved the first phase of construction on the 9th hole to begin late this fall. The first phase consists of renovating the greenside bunkers on the 9th hole including drainage, liners, new sand, and sod. A fairway expansion will also be created connecting the 9th fairway to the 2nd fairway providing a future strategic bailout area while playing the 9th hole as well as a bailout area from the 2nd tee. The entire construction area including the fairway expansion, 9th green complex, and rough area in front of 2 tee will receive new irrigation allowing us to irrigate more efficiently as well as providing irrigation where we were previously lacking coverage. The 1st green complex will also receive new irrigation allowing for the more efficient irrigation of the putting surface as well as allowing independent control of the surrounding rough irrigation.

USGA September Update

September Is A Great Month For Course Maintenance

By Adam Moeller, agronomist, Northeast Region
September 5, 2013

A recently core aerated, verticut, and topdressed putting green. An appropriate rate of topdressing was applied to smooth out the surface as much as possible, minimizing surface disruption.

In the Northeast and across most of the northern part of the country, September is a great month for golf course maintenance. Cooler weather stimulates grass recovery from the summer stress and it allows for the maintenance staff to perform crucial management practices such as core aeration, topdressing, and verticutting. While these practices produce some temporary disruption to the playing surfaces they are the backbone of golf conditioning. The grass should be actively growing when these programs are performed so that recovery is as fast as possible, which is why late August and early September are ideal for most facilities. All too often course officials and golfers learn the hard way that pushing off these programs until late season only compromises their effectiveness and extend recovery time significantly. The following Green Section Record articles explain why these programs are so important:

Aeration and Topdressing for the 21^st Century

Core Cultivation: Timing is Everything

Easing the Pain of Core Aeration

While September also is a great month for golf it is important that the maintenance calendar should take some precedence over the golf calendar. Many golf courses that do not adhere to this philosophy justify their rationale on financial implications, and not golf course conditioning. Simply put, this approach comes with consequences that may require more resources and disruption to overcome.

General Observations

• Many facilities are in recovery mode from recent core aeration, topdressing, and/or verticutting treatments. The disruption of these programs may be annoying, but they are essential for meeting golfer expectations.
• The weather has aided in recovery from core aeration and verticutting, although the stretch of heat and humidity from the end of August to early September increased disease activity. Dollar spot and brown patch have been most problematic.
• Recovery from summer decline is progressing nicely in most cases. Core aeration followed by overseeding can quickly transform a thin, worn out area to a healthy stand of grass. 
• Grass root systems are regenerating nicely, especially on areas that were recently core aerated.
• Fall projects will soon be underway. Given the heavy and frequent rain in June, drainage work is a priority at most facilities. Bunker renovations and leveling/enlarging of teeing grounds is also a common fall project.

Source: Adam Moeller (amoeller@usga.org)