Maintenance Update 05/30/2012

We received some much needed rain over the last couple of days.  This past Monday night we had right at one inch and this morning a quick shower dropped about a tenth of an inch.  Unfortunately this morning's storm had some really high winds and there are a lot of dropped limbs along with an entire tree from between #10 and #16.  We will be working diligently to get the mess cleaned up along with the trimmings from Mr. Lockman's work between #1 and #18.

The course was closed yesterday to allow us to verticut and solid tine aerify the greens.  The processes went quite smooth, as we aerified, verticut four times, and lightly topdressed with sand.  The aerification process will help to relieve compaction as well as aid in allowing gas exchange in the root zone (allowing oxygen into the root zone).  Because of the topdressing, the greens were only rolled today and not mowed.  We will resume mowing on Thursday.  After aggressive verticutting, the greens may not look the best right now, but they are still rolling great and should recover very quickly.

With the recent rains, the rough has gotten very thick.  We are now using two rough units to get all of the rough mowed this week at 1.5".  The mowers are leaving quite a bit of clippings behind and we will also work to get this cleaned up.  I may need to look at raising the height a bit to 1.75".  I certainly realize the difficulty in having the rough too deep, but it may be necessary depending on the weather.

I have done some rotation to the cart path only holes.  #1 is now 90 degrees, with some traffic control left in some of the thinner rough areas.  I will be making a portion of #3 and all of #17 cart path only for the next couple of weeks.  Please remember to keep carts on the path around the teeing areas and away from the green complexes.  Holes #1, #3, #7, #8, and #17 tend to get the rough beaten down the most so I will be maintaining a rotation of keeping some of these holes cart path only at all times throughout the year.

The bunker crews added sand to the final bunker on #18 yesterday evening.  They have just the drain pipe to finish in front of that green and the process will be complete.  Before the drain pipe was replaced, we cut the sod from this area and used it to repair the right side of #10 fairway.  This area is now roped off so please keep carts outside of the ropes on this hole as well. 

I understand hitting shots out of the new bunkers can be quite difficult, given the night and day difference from what we had before.  We will continue to work on our raking practices and, over time, they should become more firm.

Thanks and have a great rest of the week!
Chuck McCaskill, CGCS
aggieturfman98@gmail.com

Maintenance Update 05/21/2012

Good morning! 

It has been a very busy spring for our department at the club and I apologize for not updating in some time.  Here is what we have going on at the course:

• Greens aerification.  We last aerified the greens on April 16th with 1/2" coring tines.  It took quite a bit of sand to fill all of the holes.  As soon as we aerified, we saw a streak of very cool mornings and high temperatures below 80.  This, coupled with the aggressive aerification and the amount of sand, the grass essentially shut down for quite some time.  It took a very long time for the holes to heal over and for the surface to smooth out.  While there is still evidence of the aerification, I feel they are much smoother and are at a good pace.  We were able to get out last Wednesday afternoon between groups and apply a light sand topdressing, which aided in smoothing them out.  We are currently scheduled to aerify again next Tuesday, May 29th.  However, with the length of time it took for the last recovery, we will not be pulling a core.  Instead, we will utilize a solid "star" tine, which will help relieve compaction and aid in gas exchange at the root level.  There will be minimal disturbance on the surface.  We will also be verticutting and applying a light topdressing.
• Bunkers.  We are nearing the completion of the bunker project.  As of this morning, crews were digging the drain lines out of the chipping green bunker and will then move to shaping the bunker on #18 (yes, the bunker will be staying on #18).  The crews will also be removing and replacing the drain pipe running from the cartpath and across the fairway.  Finally, they will be shaping and grading the drainage ditches between #8 and #9 as well as the area between #7 and #8.  These areas will be dug out, brought to proper grade, and then Portland cement will be utilized (much like the bunkers) to create a stable bottom.  In the event of flooding and silt deposit, we will have a solid base to be able to clean out any deposited mud. 
• Tree Trimming.  Mr. Harold Lockman has been very busy trimming up tree canopies over the last several weeks.  It has been a challenge keeping everything maintained on the course along with cleaning up the limbs.  We are working to keep limbs picked up in the field of play so they aren't too much of a hinderance.  Mr. Lockman will continue focusing on the canopies along the fairways.  This should help tremendously in areas where shade lends to a thin stand of turf.
• Cart Traffic.  As evident on holes #7 and #8, limiting cart traffic can do wonders for the quality of turf.  I will be putting more holes into a "Cart Path Only" rotation.  For example, the right side of #1 and the right side of #17 are severely compacted from cart traffic resulting in a thin stand of turf.  My plan is to make these two holes cart path only, but remove the ropes from #7 and #8 allowing carts onto these holes.  I know having the starting hole cart path only makes it difficult to maintain tee times, so I will start rotating these holes more frequently.  I also removed the ropes from #12 and #16, but please keep in mind that all par 3's should remain cart path only.  Also, as a general rule of thumb, carts should remain at least 30 yards from the greens and remain on the paths around the tees.

Thanks and I hope everyone has a safe and happy Memorial Day!
Chuck McCaskill, CGCS