December Course Report

Course Report December 2018

Up to now we have been very fortunate with the weather this autumn and into the winter period. It has been mostly dry and frosts haven’t been too severe, until this morning (3rd December), where the coldest morning of the winter has arrived at -3 degrees Celsius. During the middle of November however we had a wetter period where there were heavy downpours giving around 10mm of rain on two occasions. With the surface drainage that we have done and the dry underlying soil conditions the water drained away well, and up to now we haven’t had any day’s closure so far this winter. Overall not a bad year with 14 days closed to date, most of those came in January through to March due to snow. The course has been playing well of late, the weather playing a big part; however, the work that was done earlier on in the year (if a little more disruptive) has certainly made the greens more playable at this time of the year. I hope members do appreciate the work put into the greens to make them better for the future. Obviously solid and hollow tining plus sanding injection is scheduled again for August 2019, giving us good greens come the end of the year.

On the course the drier weather has allowed us to remain on the summer grass tees for much longer without causing too much damage. Until this last weekend we had only 5 winter tees in play.  Soil temperatures were still good until recently giving some recovery. However, when the grass stops growing, and the surface conditions begin to deteriorate, as now is the case. Especially when frosty, the winter tees are used to ensure there is good grass cover on the summer tees when we get to spring.

Leaf collection has been our priority for the last 3 months; gladly it is ending with one final round up all that is needed before the leaf collector comes off. All hedges have been cut by the hedge contractor, leaving very little mess. Hand cutting of the remaining thorn hedges is all that is left to finish and will be done before the end of December

The ditches have all been cleaned out, this is an important job to get done before the weather turns wetter. The ditches provide an important outlet for water coming off the course.

Machinery servicing is now ongoing; we are working through the 40+ units, which all need grinding, cleaning and setting up ready for the new season. All the vehicles also need servicing, cleaning and repairing where necessary.

Towards the end of this month the greens will be slit tined followed by a light roll. The approaches will be aerated, along with some of the poor areas on the fairways.  An application of 2-0-10 fertiliser plus slow release iron was applied to greens and surrounds. During the cold conditions and with play on the frozen surfaces they lose colour and the iron content helps them look greener and will also help keep the plants stronger and able to withstand disease much better. Another preventative application of fungicide has been applied to the greens, another will be sprayed before Christmas.

We have tried a new product on the tees and some of the surrounds that irritates worms, its been tested on small areas with good success so we have tried on other areas on the course to see if it is as successful.

Several young trees will be planted towards the end of the range and around the 20^th tee to finalise the existing plans we have in that area. All the trees we are planting have been grown for free on the course. The woodland management plan is to start in January. The plans for tree thinning are to be put up in the clubhouse for all members to see. It explains the reasons for the need for tree thinning on the plans, any further questions please contact me on the email blow. This winter we will be concentrating on the 4^th, 5^th, 6^th and 12^th holes. The cost of the tree work will be very minimal as nearly all will be done by the greens team.

Preferred lies will continue until spring. Ropes and hoops are now out across the course to direct traffic away from wet and highly worn areas please ensure they are abided by. Please ensure all pitch marks are also repaired, now there is no recovery on the greens any unrepaired pitch marks will be visible until spring. When restrictions on the course are in play, please could all golfers check in the professional’s shop before starting. All buggy users must ask what current restrictions are in place before going onto the course for safety and the risk of causing damage. Also, can I ask all buggy users to please stick to the semi rough areas and use the driest routes possible as they can cause long term damage to the course. Thank you

Please can I remind all members to take care when playing around the course in extremely cold weather, as pathways and winter mats can become extremely slippery, the worst areas are salted however this only has a limited effect

I hope all whom play Malton and Norton Golf Club have enjoyed their golfing year. Merry Christmas from all the greenstaff

2017                                                                            2018

January -         23mm                                                  January -         58mm

February -       52mm                                                  February -        30mm

March -           41mm                                                  March -           75mm

April -              18mm                                                  April -              40mm

May -               41mm                                                  May -               26mm

June -               66mm                                                  June -               6mm

July -                112mm                                                July -                38mm

August -           82mm                                                  August -           24mm

September -    68mm                                                  September -    64mm

October -         55mm                                                  October -         58mm

November-      52mm                                                  November -     23mm

December-      45mm                                                  December-     

2017 Rainfall - 655mm                                                           2018 Rainfall – 442mm

Average annual rainfall- 620mm                                           

                        Richard Jacques

                                    Head Greenkeeper

               

November Course Report

Course Report – November 2018

We have had a relatively mild, dry spell over the last month, mixed in with some stormy fronts which are coming in from the Atlantic. The mild weather has meant grass growth still continues where it is slightly longer. On shorter areas of grass such as greens, tees and fairways growth is slowing more rapidly as ground temperatures decrease faster due to lack of protection from the elements. There are only a few areas that are becoming sticky, mainly around greens and tees, where wear is concentrated more. Ropes and hoops used where needed. As the weather turns wetter more ropes will be put out. Due to the nature of the weather leaf litter continues to cover the course. The mild temperatures are allowing some of the trees to hold their leaves longer making it more difficult for the greenstaff to clear the course and ensure it remains clear. Daily leaf clearance is a priority task on the greens and tees, with the semi and fairways being routinely attended to. Leaf litter is collected and composted in designated areas of the course. Some of the leaf litter from around 5 years ago is now decomposed enough to be used as a rich soil, which can be mixed with other materials, which is then used during some construction projects. Overall the course is playing reasonably well, the green staff are trying to extend the playing season as long as possible.

Lots has been happening since the last update, firstly to get some recovery on the fairways before winter arrives we over seeded them with dwarf rye. We hired a disc seeder to ensure we had maximum germination rates, nearly all the fairways were worked on, with the worst seeded. We felt that there was some benefit on slicing the turf to encourage new growth even if seed wasn’t being planted. This has come through well and I would hope to over seed again in 2019 if budgets allow. It is important to keep seeding hardy species into areas such as the fairways, approaches, walk areas and tees, these will survive such extremes as drought and cold much better than weed grasses such as Poa and Yorkshire Fog, giving much more consistent playing surfaces. Dwarf Rye is such a durable grass for a parkland course, but bents and fescues could also be used.

The fairways have been the focus over the last month, we have also hired a ‘Shockwave’ machine. This decompacts the subsurface by pulling wedge shape blades through the soil at a depth of up to 250mm. The shape of the blade is the important aspect of the machine as the action moves the soil structure left and right creating many fissures in the soil which constantly link to the surface. We had the machine for around 8 days which we concentrated on the worst areas of the course. We also trialed it on the 2^nd and 5^th greens to see if it would improve the drainage. Following that we applied some ammonium and ferrous sulphate to the fairways to feed the seedlings and discourage worm activity.

We have now started slit tining all fairways, again to encourage root and shoot growth for the coming year.

The greens have been aerated with the Air2G2 as planned, we hope to do them again before the end of the year. When leaf collection begins to slow we plan to restart improvement work to the worst greens. This was put on hold due to the tractor being needed to pull the Amazone machine. Work will hopefully done to the poor areas on the 2^nd, 3^rd, 5^th, 7^th, 10^th, 12^th and 16^th greens. We aim to solid tine them and brush in kiln dried sand to improve drainage and the health of the turf in these low-lying wet areas.

An application of 2-0-10 fertiliser plus slow release iron will be applied to tees, surrounds and approaches in the coming weeks. An application of liquid calcium, iron and potassium has been sprayed on to the greens and surrounds to aid strength and colour, this will be followed by one more application before a granular feed will be put on to aid winter recovery from foot traffic.

All bunkers on holes 1-18 have been edged and sand redistributed, one task we would like to complete this winter is addressing some worn and damaged areas on bunker faces, edges and lips.

The hedge cutting contractor is now on site and mechanical trimming of hedges will take 3 days, however there are areas of thorn which still have to be cut by hand which will take up to a month to complete, depending on other tasks. All tractor marks are to be treated as GUR.

Preferred lies will continue until spring. The casual play leaf rule continues.

The summer tees will be used for as long as possible going into the winter as this year the weather has been on our side, giving more playable conditions. However, when conditions determine grassed areas and installed astro turf will be used for the winter tees, usually in front of the summer areas. We have found over the last couple of winters the members prefer to play off grass tees where possible rather than play of the smaller winter mats. Unfortunately, some areas of the course suffer more in wet conditions and will have to remain mat only use, like par 3’s, due to divot removal. The grassed areas have been specifically been cut out where the ground is driest and moves traffic away from the summer traffic patterns. Some of these areas do shorten the course; however every effort has been made to make winter golf more enjoyable.

Routine hole closure will commence during November once the weather deteriorates. This involves closure of loops of nine holes been closed on a daily basis. This allows wear to be spread evenly across the 27 holes during winter and to allow works on the course without delay. At first loops 1-9 and 10-18 will be closed alternately to allow play on 19-27 whilst it is playable as a 9 hole loop. When wetter conditions prevail flooding is common on holes 21, 22 and 24 making the whole loop unplayable. When this happens loops 1-9 and 10-18 will be used more frequently.

Now the colder weather is approaching please could I ask that all golfers do not abuse the traffic control measures we have in place, ie the hoops and ropes, I have already witnessed golfers removing these to access areas with trollies and buggies. They are in position to reduce wear around the course so in the Spring we can promote recovery in the most worn areas during the year. Also, when there is frost on the grass remove ice from shoes before walking on the greens as this damages the surface of the green. I would also like to remind buggy users to stay in the semi rough at all times during frosty conditions, with the only exception to cross the fairway to access the next hole. Members and greenstaff will and should report anyone abusing club rules, they are in place, not only to maintain a safe environment for golfers but to ensure the course is protected against long term damage.

A reminder that a fog policy is in place, stating golfers should not start playing if visibility is below 250yards, easily determined if the copper beech tree (marked with a sign) is visible from the white 10^th tee plate, if it isn’t please wait until visibility improves. Please see the pro shop if you are unsure if you can start your round or if there are delays in place. If visibility reduces after you have started your round then you should not continue if you can’t see where your intended shot will finish, should that be 250yards or less. Again, anyone abusing these rules will be reported for breaching health and safety rules, it is not just other golfers that could be on the course but staff as well.

2017                                                                            2018

January -         23mm                                                  January -         58mm

February -       52mm                                                  February -        30mm

March -           41mm                                                  March -           75mm

April -              18mm                                                  April -              40mm

May -               41mm                                                  May -               26mm

June -               66mm                                                  June -               6mm

July -                112mm                                                July -                38mm

August -           82mm                                                  August -           24mm

September -    68mm                                                  September -    64mm

October -         55mm                                                  October -         58mm

November-      52mm                                                  November -    

December-      45mm                                                  December-     

2017 Rainfall - 655mm                                                           2018 Rainfall – 419mm

Average annual rainfall- 620mm                                           

                        Richard Jacques

                                    Head Greenkeeper

October Course Report

Course Report – October 2018

It’s been a mixed month weather wise, the pattern of very little rain continues, generally dry with spells of breezy and warm weather with the occasional cold spell thrown in. For this time of year, the ground is very dry in places after the warm and dry summer we have just experienced. However, I would take a drier spell through to Christmas after last year’s continuous wet weather that started in September and didn’t relent until March. Reflecting on the wet period from last year, the fact the turf was severely wet for so long would have caused considerable stress to the grass and possibly caused increased compaction increasing the damage we have seen through summer, as the grass plant had very little time to recover.

Growth on the course is slow, we now have the opportunity to start to de-compact some of the areas, to allow better rooting and encourage more vigorous grass growth. Hopefully we will start to see some recovery before the real winter weather approaches. So far, we have micro hollow tined some of the poor approaches and surrounds, which will be done again, weather permitting. Following those, we have micro hollow tined some of the poor greens again, selecting the worst areas, the 2^nd, 5^th, 10^th, 12th and front putting green have had sections tined and backfilled with sand. We have seeded the 2^nd, 5^th and front putting green to improve the sward composition. These greens are very poor primarily due to the drainage characteristics of the soil, other factors that make these worse than others on the course are shade, shape and air flow, all these can be improved over time. During such a dry year it is hard to think that a green struggles to drain, but due to the amount of irrigation that has been needed to keep the high areas of the green alive the low areas have really struggled on such greens.

The fairways are being disc seeded, using the disc seeder will cause short term disruption to the surface, however the action of cutting through quite a thatchy upper surface will allow water to penetrate into the soil freely and it will also help create new grass growth. The fairways will be sprayed with liquid fertiliser once the conditions become suitable.

Next week (w/c 15^th Oct) we will start the aeration on the greens using the Air2G2.  With use of the hired machine we can penetrate up to 45cm, blasting air into the soil structure which will cause fracturing and allowing pockets of air where water and new root structures can penetrate. The great benefit of this machine other than aiding drainage, is that it causes very little disturbance, so from a golfer perspective we can keep the greens in a good condition for winter golf.

A granular fertiliser has been applied to the greens and surrounds (except 19-27), 4-0-14+Fe applying 9kg/N over a 4-5 week period. At this stage of the year it is important not too over stimulate growth as it leaves the grass plants more susceptible to disease, however some nutrition is needed to keep the plants healthy to enable recovery when growth is slow. A preventative fungicide has also been applied to the greens (except 19-27). Now chemicals are becoming less toxic to the environment, and rightfully so, fungicides are becoming very specific to the target. Rather than being able to treat curatively, they are now applied preventatively to stop initial disease infections. This is far more time consuming and overall more expensive to ensure turf is under the minimum risk of attack. Once the turf shows sign of disease it will not recover fully, we can only limit the damage. Fungicide applications will increase from 4/5 to around 6/7 mainly throughout winter for fusarium and during July and August for Anthracnose. Applications will be made at intervals of 21-28 days based on potential disease pressure. The increased applications would increase costs significantly. To stay within the annual budgets, greens on 19-27 are not being treated in the same way, I would expect to see increased disease activity on those greens this winter, we have also reduced other expenditure on the Derwent course to stay within allocated budgets for 2018.

The greens that were scarified during summer are now fully recovered on 10-18, not quite as knitted still on 19-27, this is mainly due to the reduction in fertiliser applied. The whole process has been interesting from a turf management point of view. Initially we were happy with the amount of organic matter the machine removed, we estimate the GKB machine removed 4 times the amount we removed via hollowcoring, the GKB machine was faster and less labor intensive, however, and this is the big issue we are faced with in planning next years renovations, recovery was slower. From a golf point of view, we need to balance both sides. I still feel it is too early to make a judgement as we may see significant long-term improvements to the greens using the new method which outweigh the short term negatives.

Elsewhere we have cut all long rough areas with a tractor mounted rotary mower, these were the areas which could not be accessed with the Amazone machine during spring.

The leylandii hedges are being cut, the hand cut areas are being started initially then a contractor will come to finish any areas that he can access along with sections of thorn.

Now the leaves are starting to fall we will constantly be clearing priority areas, the tractor mounted blower is used to clear large areas of leaves, the back pack required for small, more difficult areas. Once the volume of leaves starts to increase they will be collected using the Amazone. Currently the tractor used to pull the Amazone is tied up disc seeding the fairways. The local rule regarding lost balls due to leaf litter is now in play. I stress this only applies to casual golf only. If balls are lost it entitles the player to drop a ball without penalty in the area which they feel it was lost. This is to speed up play and not to punish the golfer during casual play.

Preferred lies are now on (1st Oct) due to the aeration work which is under way and for any poor conditions we now may experience coming into the winter period.

Unfortunately worm casts are becoming a real issue once more, as previously stated there are no cost-effective chemicals to remove worm casts, we are continuing to apply sand and iron to deter activity.

Winter tees are being cut in preparation for use and mats will be taken out onto the course in the next few weeks where needed but will not be in use until weather and growing conditions dictate the need for them. The use of winter mats does shorten the length of the course but without the use of them the course would suffer greatly and remain unplayable for longer.

The winter programme of tree work includes removal of all dead or dying trees and branches marked with white paint and removal of obstructing and interfering branches with reduce playability from certain areas of the course. Some woodland is also to be thinned such as left of 5^th. Other work in the winter programme will be finalised for the next monthly report.

2017                                                                            2018

January -         23mm                                                  January -         58mm

February -       52mm                                                  February -        30mm

March -           41mm                                                  March -           75mm

April -              18mm                                                  April -              40mm

May -               41mm                                                  May -               26mm

June -               66mm                                                  June -               6mm

July -                112mm                                                July -                38mm

August -           82mm                                                  August -           24mm

September -    68mm                                                  September -    64mm

October -         55mm                                                  October -        

November-      52mm                                                  November -    

December-      45mm                                                  December-     

2017 Rainfall - 655mm                                                           2018 Rainfall – 361mm

Average annual rainfall- 620mm                                           

                        Richard Jacques

                                    Head Greenkeeper

September Course Report

Course Report – September 2018

Over the last month we have had typically seasonal weather. The end of august and into September brought cooler nights which felt like autumn was beginning. Shorter days and blustery conditions have started turning some of the trees golden and the leaves starting to fall in some areas. It did stay relatively dry, in this area we only received 24mm of rain during August; some parts of the country had 4 to 5 times this amount. The course is the driest I have seen it in the 20 years I have worked here, it is very difficult to see something, all the green staff work so hard to make the best we can, be at the mercy of mother nature. The drought conditions have left the turf very patchy and aesthetically poor compared to what we are used to at this time of the year.

We were incredibly lucky with our yearly renovations, each week we worked on the greens we had dry, windy weather which is perfect for ensuring the sand fills the holes correctly. Any rain during the work would have slowed the pace and not incorporated the sand into the greens as desired. At this point I would like to give a mention to all the volunteers that turned up to assist us with the greens maintenance on the 10^th of September. Around 16 members assisted in clearing and collecting all the thatch that was removed from the Derwent 9 greens. Without these volunteers we would have not been able to complete the clean up and get the Derwent greens open for the following morning. To put how much the assistance helped, the same task done on holes 10-18 took 5 hours longer with just the green staff doing all the clearing and repair work. Amazing effort from all that helped, and I’m sure some sore backs in the evening.

Overall the work was a success, however shortly after the tining had finished on holes 1-9 we had an outbreak of anthracnose on a few greens (the 2^nd and the 5^th worst effected), this is a disease that affects mainly poa (Annual meadow grass). It infects stressed and bruised grass leaves, turning them straw like before the plants die back. There are two types of this disease, the first is foliar blight, this affects the leaves only, and giving the plant a chance of re-establishing again, the second is basal rot. This is the more severe case of anthracnose this enters the plant and kills the root system as well, leaving no chance of recovery. We had mostly foliar blight, but in some areas the plants did completely die back. I believe the working of the sand in to the wet areas of the greens has probably bruised the grass plants leaving the susceptible to disease ingress. On first sight of the disease all the greens were sprayed with a fungicide to prevent further spread. Unfortunately, any plants already infected could not be affected. Over the last couple of weeks, they have recovered well, with most areas filling in. Long term we need to be considering installing drainage and improving the structure of the soil to allow improved drainage. We are microtining the worst areas again and brushing sand into the profile

During the next month and into winter the greens will be aerated with 8mm needle tines, to keep the surfaces from sealing and to aid root growth/ plant density going into the winter, followed by another light topdress. This will not affect play and is important to ensure the greens are healthier during the end of the season.

Following the renovation work we applied a liquid fertiliser to boost recovery times, with the good temperatures we have been having, growth on the greens has been strong. However cooler nights lead to heavy dews and increased worm cast activity which cause problems cutting on a morning. Currently we are having to clear casts and debris every morning prior to cutting. Casts are particularly bad on tees and surrounds, however with no real cost-effective chemicals we are using sand to dilute the casts and iron to try and deter them. We are noticing the most cast activity on wetter and poorer soils and on high wear areas. We have trialled 4 different products on the market which claim to suppress worms, 2 of those had no real effects to the cast activity, 1 had an immediate effect but its longevity was limited to a couple of days and the final product which is an organic soil conditioner showed the best results, however its longevity was limited. It claimed to have an effective suppression of 3 months, however after 3 weeks casts have started to return. This product is over 5 times the price per hectare than carbendazim, so reapplying to large areas simply won’t be affordable.

In a couple of weeks, we will begin to cut down all the long rough once more. The Amazone machine will be geared up to start the collection in all areas. At this time of the year we have seen a noticeable difference in the thickness of growth. Albeit a dry year, the rough is far more playable than previous years, given a couple more years of cutting and collection we should see a big difference to our natural areas on the course.

The pond in front of the 8^th green is very low, so we have taken the opportunity to clear some of the weed from the water, ideally, we could use an excavator to remove the rest of the reeds and weed around the edge, this is something we may do later. The pond on the 24^th is now full, with no issues with water collection the dam has been lowered to reduce the water level.

Most of the damaged trees have been made safe, the poplars on the 2^nd and 24^th are still to be trimmed by a tree surgeon, hopefully these will get done in the next month.

As we approach winter we will start to think about course work over the next few months. The focus will be on tree management, small repair work and renovation of bunkers. More on these will be discussed in the next monthly report.

2017                                                                                        2018

January -         23mm                                                  January -         58mm

February -       52mm                                                  February -        30mm

March -           41mm                                                  March -           75mm

April -              18mm                                                  April -              40mm

May -               41mm                                                  May -               26mm

June -               66mm                                                  June -               6mm

July -                112mm                                                July -                38mm

August -           82mm                                                  August -           24mm

September -    68mm                                                  September -   

October -         55mm                                                  October -        

November-      52mm                                                  November -    

December-      45mm                                                  December-     

2017 Rainfall - 655mm                                                           2018 Rainfall – 297mm

Average annual rainfall- 620mm                                           

                        Richard Jacques

                                    Head Greenkeeper