Fairy Ring, Sedge & Palms

As the summer comes in so does the fairy ring on the greens. This does not kill the bermudagrass but for sure wipes out the Poa Triv. Other than looking bad and producing mushrooms, fairy ring poses no long term harm to the green; however, with that being said we will be treating it during the aerification which allows the chemical to penetrate deeply into the profile.

The purple nutsedge is coming back especially around a few greens. As many of you know purple nutsedge is considered to be the world's worse weed and due to the high number of underground nutlets each plant produces quite difficult to control. Over the past 5 years we have gotten our nutsedge population down from in excess of 40 acres to less than 3 total acres. We have had a very aggressive program and starting next week we will be starting it up again. I should note that the same herbicide that kills the sedge also kills the ryegrass; however, the bermuda is not affected at all. This will lead to some weak areas at first but they should recovery nicely soon after.

The palms around the golf course are NOT going to be trimming again this year in a effort to save thousands of dollars. That being said we will trim the date palms and select few solely around the clubhouse. That trimming will be done during the aerification.

Warmer Weather & Transition

Finally, the weather has started to warm up and over the last two days we are seeing the fairways starting to grow back in with bermudagrass. Another couple weeks and we will be filled mostly back in on the fairways,; however, this same warmer weather is going to take out the ryegrass that we did not chemically treat. These areas to will be going through transition and will be uglier at first until the bermudagrass without competition fills those areas. These areas include the greens and approaches as well as areas under the trees.

This upcoming week we are limited of staff due to the holiday and we will also be trimming the oleanders along El Dorado which will take the staff off the course. The week after that we will be starting the aerification of the rough to relieve the compaction from all of the cart traffic. There will be plugs left behind but remember according to the rules of golf you get free relief.

Be patient through these times of aerifications and transition, and just enjoy your round of golf. These are necessary evils that we too do not enjoy but will make the golf course so much better in the long run. As you can tell by the seasons getting better and better these processes make the golf course more enjoyable especially during the season.

Three "W's" - Weather, Wind & Water

Transition -- this is the time of year that is hated by both members and superintendents equally. It is the time of year for the few in the nation that overseed that we on purpose kill one type of grass (our cool season) to give rise to another (our warm season) just so we can prepare the golf course to be ready for another season of cool season turf (ryegrass) and start the process all over again. In our world we joke that there is two times a year that if we could go on vacation for a month it would be in December when the bermudagrass that we have so hard during the summer months to bring back into healthy condition we have effectively knocked down and the ryegrass hasn't quite filled back in it place; and the other is during transition (May & June) where we go out of our way to kill the ryegrass that we have worked so hard to make perfect leaves the course weak until the bermudagrass can fill back in once again.

As superintendents we are depended not only on our skills alone but also Mother Nature's three "W's" for an easier transition -- you will have notice I did not say perfect transition ... that is not possible unless you are God. The three "W's" -- weather, wind and water control how the transition will occur. Many super high end golf courses just sod out the areas that were affected by transition which give immediate gratification for tens of thousands of dollars; however, leaves the areas sodded to have to be done from that year on. Just like every other course the three "W's" determine just how much they are going to spend.

This year we have had all three "W's" fighting against us ... the weather has been ten to twenty degrees cooler, the winds have been at a all time high for the month of May thus drying the turf, and both of wells went down during the time we needed them the most thus limiting our water to less than half of what we needed.

The good news is that everything will recover ... quickly -- no. With the cooler weather the ryegrass has become strong again in the areas we have not chemically treated such the greens and approaches, which means that when these areas finally do transition they will be rough at first. Turf is not like carpet where one day it is less than desirable and then the next it is perfect ... we are depended on time and the three "W's" to ease this time of year ... but we will get there soon.

Draining Pools & Wear Patterns

As summer is upon us many of the members and homeowners have left for the season leaving their pool people in charge of maintaining their swimming pools in their absence. Sadly, every year we receive damage to the golf course turf due to the laziness of the pool cleaners who instead of draining the pools they are in charge of correctly they take the quickest way of completed the tasks. I would asked that if you could, please speak to your pool people and let them know that you will not tolerate these kind of actions.

There is also a picture to the right of golf cart wear patterns and the damage it causes to the turf from not scattering. During the summer months we remove the ropes to make it easier for the maintenance staff to complete their tasks in a timely manner; however, I need help from you to even out the wear pattern by SCATTERING please. This will not only help now but in the future as well.

Bunker Rakes

Bunker rakes ... in the bunker ... out of the bunker ... sticking up out of the bunker ... the list goes on and on. It was decided the to expedite the maintenance staff during the summer months and lower damage to the rakes themselves that we would place them inside the bunkers until next season. This only a temporary change just for the summer thus the debate can rage on about their placement during the upcoming season.

Why Are the Fairways Browning?

I have been asked a few times lately "Why are the fairways not as green and lush as the approaches?" This is a good question and the reason is because we sprayed them on May 3rd with a chemical designed to remove the ryegrass without harming the bermudagrass.

You may ask did we do that? Well due to our large trees we have difficultly completely removing the ryegrass which competes with the bermuda for inputs such as sun, fertilizer and space itself. For bermudagrass to become healthy during the transition it requires at least 100 days of growth in the growing season. By removing the ryegrass (it completion) we allow the bermuda to fill in and completly recover thus providing a better base for the overseed.

To the right you will also see a overfilled divot ... which we see many of on the fairways everyday. Years ago someone told the members around here to overfill the divots for complete recovery and that the irrigation would level it over the evening ... well that is not true. The picture you see is in the morning after irrigation and level it is not! When we mow the fairways in the morning these divot piles act like sand paper to our reels and bedknives thus dulling them quickly and costing the Club monies in replacement and labor to sharpen. Please level with your foot these divot sand piles and save the Club thousands in the process.

Excuse Our Mess

We have started several smaller projects such as re-shaping of 2 and 6's greenside bunkers and adding much needed drains around the course. These projects are mostly finished and should be healed in a couple of weeks. In addition, all roped off areas are out of play due to potential damage to the turf. We have also opened up the area which is always wet along the right side of 2 from the drainage of the streets. This area will be repaired soon.

You may have noticed that there is a crane out on 18 next to the well. This crane has just removed our pump and shaft which required repair to the lowering of the water table in the Valley. Over the past 5 years the water table has dropped 30 ft and since 1995 almost 100 ft. The repairs on the shaft will be completed on Thursday, however, on Friday the crane will be removing the shaft and pump on 6's well since it too has been having issues and is currently blowing out water from the top of the shaft into the motor. This entire project will be completed in a couple of weeks.