Irrigation burst

We have been having problems with an irrigation leak in the 17th irrigation box for a number of weeks. Every time the irrigation is running and the system is under pressure the area around the 17th box becomes saturated and the valves submerged in water. In the last few weeks we have been using the irrigation most days to water new turf and seed so we couldn't work on the leak. Now we have a period of wet weather we finally have a chance to inspect the valves and associated pipe work. The box and a isolating valve close to it was dug out to see where the water is coming from.

Else where on the course we cut bunker faces, cut bits with the stiga, divoted tees, cut tees, greens, fairways, semi, teesides and spread some more merit turf insecticide on areas around the course.

Scenes of March..........at the end of May

Yesterday we felt we had jumped back a couple of months, the wind was blowing, bitterly cold temperatures and heavy showers made it feel more like March than nearly June. England is certainly not the place to be for guaranteed sunshine and a normal summer. It seems like any predictable weather pattern is something we can only dream of, we can get any weather any time of the year, making greenkeeping very difficult for all types of golf course across the country.
The potential of grass growth at this time of year is below average (around 50% of what we would expect at this time of year). The growth potential is when the grass is actively growing, when soil temperatures rise above 6 degrees on a particular day.
The graph above shows hours of growth potential each day over the last 50 days, it shows why the grasses in the greens are growing at different rates due to the cool temperatures and general lack of growth. If we add the fact we are a tree lined course, causing shade and reducing temperatures further it can take another 25% of growth potential in specific areas of the course.
We have been battling through the horrendous conditions to produce a golf course we can all be proud of. The team were out cutting semi, fairways, surrounds strimming bits, cutting copses, tees and grooming and cutting greens. The course looking good for what looks like a bank holiday weekend of SUNSHINE.

Topdressing

Yesterday we topdressed the greens again with a straight sand topdress to help smooth the surface and to dilute any thatch accumulations. The greens are topdressed on a little and often basis, however it is noticeable now that we are starting to see a build up of sand in the upper surface of the turf profile. This is a positive step forward, providing firmer greens that can take more wear throughout the year. Given some drier weather they also run consistently faster.

We applied around 12 tonnes to 20 greens, as the greens are cut fairly low we dont need to apply too much sand to ensure we get it in to the sward. Today we cut and rolled the greens, the sand that was applied caused some issues collecting on rollers and tyres on the mowers, however after a little rain and growth the sand will settle down.

Now the trees are in leaf and the blossom is out on the cherry trees it feels like summer is finally here, I think the course always looks its best when there is real definition and we can present the course to the best standards we can. Now we have good growth we have applied a selective herbicide to the semi rough areas to control various weeds, we will also treat selected ares of fairways, all the tees and some of the range area in the coming days when conditions allow.

The selective weedkiller were using combines two active ingredients with different modes of action.

Fluroxypyr is an auxinic herbicide that enters plants via the leaves and disrupts normal growth functions. Florasulam however, can enter via the roots as well as the foliage, helping to ensure complete distribution throughout the plant.Fluroxypyr and florasulam move through the plant in both the xylem and phloem vessels. This provides effective distribution and accumulation at the growing points in both shoots and roots. Last year we used a similar product on the fairways with very good effect.
After the greens were treated with the feed and wetter they are looking better and are seeding less, growth will be monitored to ensure they remain healthy. Alistair and myself both passed excavator assessment this morning.
Other tasks have been to continue with cutting roughs, cutting copses, finishing tees and cutting around sprinkler heads.

Back to work and things have certainly changed since I saw the course last, with the rain (32mm last week) softening the surfaces the greens are slightly slower and have started seeding. This is the poa in the green, and can seed down to 1mm so is very difficult to remove and stop seeding. It usually is more of a problem in spring when soil temperatures reach a level which the seeding poa thrives on. Other grasses on the green are starting to grow but at different rates making them look worse than they putt. To help remove some of the 'woolly' growth we double groomed them this morning, followed by an application of fertiliser, wetter, iron, primo and seaweed to help promote healthier growth during this difficult weather period.

We also cut fairways, cut the range, picked up balls, moved holes, cut semi, sprayed off paths and started cutting rough with the tractor mounted deck.

Adams week in the thick of it!

After returning from a week off on holiday, leaving Adam my deputy in charge of course maintenance, he has been busy ensuring the course looks its best. With substantial rain Tuesday into Wednesday causing slight delays for the ladies open day and increasing growth rates meaning cutting was high priority, the course now emerald green is looking fantastic, Adam and the rest of the team have done a very good job.

The hose pipes are out on the course to ensure the turfed areas we laid over the winter doesn't dry out in this glorious weather. The temperatures have certainly improved and the course has responded, greening up day by day and the growth on the greens slowly levelling out. The worst areas on the course seem to be areas of semi rough, mainly rye grassed areas which are tufted from the poor winter gone by. These will slowly fill in as the year passes, however it does produce some unpleasing lies at the moment. Overseeding with rye grass is a possible option for the future if we could purchase a disc seeder and budget for the extra seed costs. It certainly would be a step forward in terms of recovery and playability in spring.

As the course is dry we topdressed some of the tees we levelled in the past few years to help maintain levels and also sanded some of the drained areas on the fairways.

Today, with rain expected later in the afternoon we started applying the merit turf insecticide to control chafer grubs. This has been the driving factor for badger damage this winter. Adam, Scott and Alistair applied 4 hectares worth of insecticide, by hand, using rotary spreaders, quite a task but worth the effort if it limits damage in future years. Most of the insecticide was applied over holes 3-6, however the left of the 22nd was also covered.

This morning we also applied the second compost tea solution to the greens, 1-18 greens were treated with the 200 litres of tea solution. The 25th and centre section of the practice green was also treated with wetting agent as they were showing signs of dry patch, irrigating in afterwards.

This morning we noticed a number of leather jacket grubs on the surface of the front putting green, a clear sign that we need to treat the green with chlorpyrifos this winter. This insecticide has to be applied any time from November to March for effective control. Fortunately no damage is being done at present however pecking by crows can sometimes be an issue as they search for the grubs.

Measuring greens performance - evening test

My last post was what we look for when the greens are initially maintained, ie first thing in the morning when cutting and rolling is carried out. Another crucial point when thinking about how the greens are performing is the longevity of quality throughout the day. I have been away over the weekend and in that period the temperatures both day and night have improved significantly so I was keen to see the change in the greens. Grass is starting to grow faster than it has previously, so I took the opportunity to measure growth, smoothness and speed at the end of the day. I took these measurements at 8.45pm, over 12 hours after the greens were initially cut. Where the mixture of grasses on the greens were predominately bent they were smoother and had grown slightly more. These pictures are from the practice green.

 The green has grown around one millimetre, this showing an approx height of 4.5mm, previous height of 3.5mm.

The green running at 8'5'', again the measurement in the morning was 9'4'' after a single cut.
On the course where the mixture of grasses favour a higher percentage of poa they looked more uneven as the bents have grown more throughout the day and the poa had hardly grown at all, creating a spotted effect. This is common at the start of the year in mixed species greens as poa needs higher constant soil temperatures to grow. With the weather not been on our side it has made this effect slightly worse. This week when we get all staff back on to the course we will be concentrating on greens smoothness, grooming, brushing, cutting and rolling daily. These pictures are from the 4th green.

Again approx stimp reading of 9'4'' in the morning, this measurement taken in two directions, first reading 8'8'', second reading 9'1'', making an average stimp reading of around 8'10''. This means in terms of pace they have only lost around 6'' of speed throughout the day, however in terms of smoothness they have grown unevenly, causing some untrue rolls. The work we are doing and the rising soil temperatures should help them become more even, however more growth could mean a greater loss of pace by the end of the day. 

Measuring greens performance

The greens on any golf course are probably the most discussed area for golfers, we aim to provide greens that are the best we can within our budget. Differing elements have to be taken in to consideration, such as weather, amount of play, maintenance practices and other course maintenance. To help understand the way the greens are playing, interacting to balls pitching on them and roll we have a couple of gadgets at our disposal. The stimp meter, moisture meter and the prism gauge, a stimp meter is used to measure the speed of ball roll across the turf, the moisture meter speaks for its self and a prism gauge is used to measure the height of the grass plant accurately.
Currently with the weather being dry the greens are not as dense as they normally are at this time of the year, this is making them a little inconsistent with smoothness of roll as the different grasses are growing at different rates, they are however fast due to the lack of growth. Our greens are fairly sloping across the course so very fast greens can cause problems, we like to ensure they are fast throughout the season without causing undue stress to the turf. After they were cut but before rolling this morning they were running at 9'4'' after rolling they were running at 10'6''.

When taking a stimp reading it is done in two directions of a relatively flat area to take an average of the two figures. The stimp meter is simply a length of shaped metal with a hole to place a ball, the meter is then lifted until the ball rolls down and the measurement is taken from the end of the stimp meter to where the ball comes to rest.
The prism gauge is simple a way of measuring the actual height of cut on the greens, when setting up a greens mower the 'bench setting' or height the machine is adjusted to can sometimes not be the same as the height they cut on the greens, due to the actual greens firmness and type of rollers on each machine.

Some blades of grass are slightly longer than others but the average height is approximately 3.5mm.
These tools are not used that frequently but give an agronomic understanding and provide specific data to then adjust maintenance accordingly. Having said this I think the best way to understand the greens is to play on them regularly, seeing them from a golfers point of view. Unfortunately I have no one to blame when I hit a bad putt !
Else where on the course we have seeded and watered more badger damage on the 6th, seeded and watered the old hedgerow on the 18th/19th, cut tee sides, cut in tree lines, groomed surrounds and sprayed them with fertiliser and iron, finished cutting semi rough and tidied up some branches on the course. We will be cutting tees again tomorrow and the normal greens regime will continue over the weekend.

Sprinkler in action on 18th