November Update

We are in full fall operation now with the leaves falling and frost delays some mornings. Leaves will be the priority now that turf growth has slowed down. We are continuing to vent the greens on a weekly basis, these tiny 5mm holes create air spaces in the soil profile that allow the roots areas to grow. Do not be concerned that this will affect green speed as they have been over 11 the past 10 days. We are continuing to brush mow the greens reducing longer blades of grass producing healthier more consistent surfaces. Final applications of fertilizer being applied to greens and tees building carbohydrate reserves in the plant during the fall months producing roots and preparing us for 2017. Topdressing of tees and approaches will continue through the fall into the early winter to help firm these surfaces ahead of next season. The approval to install new lights on the entrance columns was given by the board so we will be installing the new wiring and fixtures this month.

Fall is a great time of year for turf

Fall Shade

I took these pictures today, October 26 at 10:30AM on the 5th and 6th greens. The shade in the fall is the worst on both of these greens with the 5th green at least receiving morning sunlight since we removed the trees along the houses but the 6th green receives no sunlight in the morning and only about 50% sunlight until after 11 AM.

5 Green at 10:30AM in October

6 Green at 10:30AM in October

From Dr. Danneberger at Ohio State
Managing bentgrass under golf course conditions is a challenge. Managing creeping bentgrass in
shade under the same conditions is frustrating and may be impossible. Shade not only influences the
amount of light available for plant photosynthesis but also affects light quality.

Plants absorb solar radiation as energy particles called photons. The energy of a photon depends on
the light wavelength from which it originated. Blue, green and red wavelengths provide energy for
photosynthesis. Far red wavelengths help manage plant responses to the environment. Light quality
refers to the proportions of particular wavelengths in the light environment. Changes in the
proportion of red and far red – and possibly blue – light trigger plant responses that affect plant
health.

In shade, a greater proportion of the light present is in blue and far-red wavelengths. These excesses
in blue and far-red light and a deficiency in red light cause turfgrass plants to produce thin, delicate
leaves and rapid, vertical shoot growth. These plants are usually more succulent and commonly
have a poor root system.

These circumstances and a decline in photosynthesis, combined with frequent low mowing and
nearly constant traffic, make it difficult to maintain healthy creeping bentgrass in golf course shade.
Thin, weakened leaves are easily to damage, but they regenerate slower than healthy plants. When
pressure is applied to succulent plants, cell membranes can rupture.

Turf in shade grows vertically faster, to compete with neighbour plants for light. This is a
disadvantage from an agronomical point of view. Because shoot growth is encouraged in shade,
root systems on shaded turf are shallow and sparse. Turf density is poor, and damaged areas are
slow to recover because stolon growth is poor.

Course Update

As of Saturday morning we are mowing greens at our normal height of cut and will begin using our brushes to work on the texture of the greens for the remainder of the fall season improving speed for our fall golf events. The cool nights and warm days have made the growth of the turf very strong and we are working to keep the rough in check with the recent flush of growth. Last week we had some gloomy days with a constant mist although very little measurable rain. The mist kept the surface of the turf wet and has created a large worm cast (mud) issue on the fairways which will get better with the current weather conditions. The casts from the worms smear over the turf as we mow creating muddy conditions and ruining our cutting reels on the mower. We are still in the moderate drought stage and no relief is in sight with very little rain forecasted for the next 10 days. October is a great month to plant trees and we took advantage planting 3 new trees this week, a Black Gum between 5 and 6 along with 2 Japanese maples around the 7th green complex donated by Mr. Turvey who grew them from saplings at his home. Mr. Turvey has a wealth of knowledge about trees especially Japanese Maples and his yard is close to being an arboretum, we thank Mr. Turvey for his donation and expertise.

USGA Update

Recent cooler temperatures have been a welcomed relief for turf managers, golfers and cool-season turf, which now is rebounding due to shorter days and cooler nights. However, turf recovery may take a while at some courses. It has been a difficult year and few courses escaped the season unscathed. Throughout the Northeast Region turf was damaged by drought, excessive moisture, disease and insects. Perhaps most noticeably, weed invasion at many courses hit an all-time high this year. As you review the season and evaluate what worked and what didn’t, consider the following:

• This year’s drought identified irrigation coverage problems at many courses. It has also proven that every course should have a drought emergency plan.

• Weed populations exploded as a result of temperature and moisture extremes throughout the Northeast Region. The best defense against weed invasion is to maintain dense, healthy turf. Unfortunately, the extreme conditions meant that few courses were able to maintain turf density this year. The resulting weed outbreaks helped replenish the bank of weed seed in the soil. It may take several years of intensive management to get weeds back under control.

• Annual bluegrass, creeping bentgrass, and bermudagrass can be desired species or difficult weed problems, depending on one’s perspective.

• Annual bluegrass struggled this year due to high temperatures and disease pressure.

• The high temperatures and abundant sunlight helped bermudagrass perform exceedingly well, which is excellent if it is your desired species. However, where bermudagrass is considered a weed, the favorable weather this year created more management challenges for the future.

• Bentgrass populations increased at many courses – a welcomed sight on many greens, tees and fairways. However, bentgrass populations also increased in roughs, where it is not desirable. Summer patch infections in Kentucky bluegrass opened the door for bentgrass populations to establish or spread. If summer patch caused significant issues, it may be time to switch to a turf-type tall fescue. Turf-type tall fescue is not a perfect species, but it handles warm soil temperatures and drought better than Kentucky bluegrass and it is not susceptible to summer patch. In the meantime, implement an aggressive bentgrass control program in any rough areas that have experienced bentgrass encroachment.

• Trees also suffer from drought. The effects of drought on tree populations will be felt for several years. Many trees already have failed and more will fail in the future as a result of this year’s drought. Young trees and trees with vascular problems caused by bacterial pathogens, insect damage, girdling roots or impaired root growth will be most affected. Evaluate options carefully:

• Weak trees that have been further stressed by drought may never recover – removal may be the best option.

• Not all failed trees should be replaced. Wait one full year before making a decision about replacing a tree. During that time, evaluate the loss and give golfers time to become accustomed to a more open environment.

• Beware of late season anthracnose outbreaks.

• Also, annual bluegrass weevil damage recently has been observed. While annual bluegrass weevil populations may not be high enough to warrant treatment, their presence may explain why anthracnose damage isn’t responding to fungicides.

Japanese maple at 8 tee

Play for Pink Flags

Fall Display Scarecrow wearing pink ribbon

Aeration - Update

The first few mowings on the greens following aeration we pick up mostly sand but I am happy that Wednesday's mowing had mostly grass clippings in the bucket. We will be transitioning from our sand mowers back to our normal mowers working the height of cut back to our normal heights preparing for the International Tournament. I subscribe to a weather service that shows the forecasted growth potential of the turf for the upcoming 5 days, in the spring the numbers were not good following aeration but this week the forecast is perfect for growth.

Great Growth Potential

Roots are growing following aeration

Course Update - Late September

Aeration - All the short turf areas have been aerified with greens, tees, and approaches completed in-house and Fredco Golf completing the fairways during our 3 day shut down of the course. Sand topdressing was applied to fill the holes on the greens and a topdressing of sand was applied to the approaches and tees to dilute thatch material. The greens have been brushed and rolled 4 times working the sand into the holes and smoothing the surface. Mowing will begin as the turf grows through the sand, the first few cuts will be at higher height of cut followed by the gradual lowering of the heights until our normal height is reached. The greens will be sandy and bumpy this weekend.

Oak Trees - We have 3 oak trees (1 on 3 and 2 on 5) that tested positive for Bacterial Leaf Scorch. Symptoms include marginal discoloration or scorch of leaves in late summer or early fall, often with a yellow or dark band on the inside edge of the discolored area. Symptoms are similar to those caused by drought or root issues that interfere with flow of water and nutrients. Plants may not develop symptoms for a year or two after infection, but then thinning of branches occurs and trees die within 5 to 8 years.  We will monitor these trees, prune this winter and plan for their ultimate demise down the road with replacements.

Symptoms of the Bacteria

Weather - New Jersey saw the warmest August on record in 2016 although we did have an average amount of rainfall in August, September has been very dry and also very warm. We have had temperatures consistently in the 80's along with a few in the 90's this month which is much above normal, although I am not sure there is a normal any longer. For the second fall in a row we are struggling with drought conditions and the 10-day forecast doesn't show any relief. Thankfully we received .70 inches of rain on Monday September 19th which was great for the course but forced the cancellation of the NJPGA Assistant Match Play event. 

The routine morning water show 

Course Update

Well the past few mornings have been great for the turf, the crew and myself, a nice break from the heat and humidity although that weather pattern returns on Friday. The cooler weather has allowed for some recovery of the turf and an opportunity to apply some granular fertilizer to the stressed areas on fairways along with the 5th green and 6th tee. The long stretch of hot, humid and wet weather led to some wet wilt on the fairways and general thining on the 5th green although all the areas look better responding to the fertilizer application. We also took advantage and brush-mowed the greens to help stand up the turf gaining a better cut resulting in smoother greens following the dry-ject aeration.

Tan line on left of tape measure is the Profile material from Dry-Ject

Brushes on Greensmowers

Sunrise is becoming later and later 

Aeration

The greens were dry-ject aerified yesterday similar to the past 4 seasons where a machine uses pressurized water to inject material into the greens on a 3 x 3 inch spacing. In years past we used straight sand this season we opted to inject over 9,000 pounds of Profile into the soil. Profile is an inorganic soil amendment proven on thousands of greens across the country to resist compaction, eliminate localized dry spot, promote drainage and facilitate healthy root systems that leave turf less prone to disease and other maintenance problems. A Profile particle is 74% pore space with 39% capillary (water) pores and 35% non-capillary (air) pores. Profile Porous Ceramics improve water- and nutrient-holding capabilities, increase oxygen levels at the root zone, and facilitate drainage when soils are saturated. The particles also hold water and release it as needed to the plant, delaying the need for irrigation.

The roots on the greens have shortened with the past few weeks of hot and wet weather. The past 5 days especially have not been conducive for growing good turf and the course is showing some wear in areas. Temperatures over 70 at night prevent the turf from recovering from the days hot temperatures which have been hovering around 90 degrees. We have reduced our mowing and rolling on the greens and have shorten our application schedules to give the turf the best chance to recover from the heat.

Root Depth of 3 inches Mid-August