Most of the greens are being cut with the triple mowers, we are still cutting at our winter height of 4.5mm, currently the conditions are too soft to start thinking about reducing height of cut.
The 21st and 24th greens are still on winter greens as he greens are softer and the area around the greens is incredibly wet due to constant flooding issues from the River Derwent. Those two greens, along with the front putting green are being cut with the hand mower at a similar height. The greens are getting a lot of play, and to be honest not in the most ideal conditions most of the time and that is taking its toll the 2nd green in particular is soft and the surface is suffering. There are a few other areas where the greens are weaker, mainly due to light, shade and traffic.
Whilst moving the hole on the 5th it was a perfect example of the issues some areas of the course have during the winter months. It was a bright sunny morning and due to tree density to the south side of the hole no sunlight was getting to the green. As you can see from the picture the light is reaching the tree line behind the green, but no direct sunlight falls on the putting surface. As the year moves on the suns position will get higher to the point where it will be high enough to shine above the tree line and on to the turf. I have estimated there are 5 months of the year when the 5th green receives NO DIRECT sunlight. Sunlight is very important for grass, firstly grass plants produce their food by absorbing carbon dioxide from the air and fixing it at a binding site within the plant. Chlorophyll, the substance that gives grass its green colour, is also part of the photosynthesis process.
We see grass as green because chlorophyll absorbs red and blue wavelengths, while reflecting a green colour. When grass absorbs the light energy, the chlorophyll molecule goes into a high energy state, providing chemical energy for plant metabolism. No direct sunlight reduces the energy available and produces a weaker hungrier plant. Which is why we see greens such as 5, along with 2, 10, and 25 struggle a little more than some of the others. Lack of sunlight also has secondary effects, such as higher disease risk, due to wetter surfaces (no natural drying) and weaker grass plants. In order to increase sunlight we need to look at reducing the density of the canopy on this particular area of the course.
We have started edging bunkers ready for the arrival of 90 tonnes of bunker sand which will used to fill all low bunkers. Adding sand into the bunkers will make them softer for a period of time until they settle and compact. Any damaged edges are being repaired and tidied as we go around.
The irrigation contractors are doing really well, only 2 days have been lost due to the weather so far, and they are on schedule. They have around 8 valve boxes to refit, this then completes the mains and valve work. They have one final job to do before the tanks and system can be filled with water, that is the well for the transfer and aeration pumps, which is sited next to the 24th pond. We are hoping in a week or so the area will be dry enough to install it. The irrigation storage tank is now built, we are just waiting on the arrival of the pump houses, one to be sited near the tank and a smaller one to house the electrics for the transfer pumps. Once the pump houses arrive, the pumps and electric can be connected and then tested. On the course there may be some areas we still need the contractors to go back and address, such as any unevenness and settlement, any issues will be dealt with at the end of the project. The system, once fully finished will be pressure tested, as the system is under constant stable pressure (by design) it needs to be 100% leak free, if the pressure drops over a period of time then the system will have to be isolated into zones to discover where any problems may be. These will all be dealt with by the contractors before the work is 'signed off'.
