View from 7

Spring has finally sprung and the golf course is responding great! We are beginning to grow and I couldn't be more excited!

Greens Update

The latest weather patterns really have caused issues for our greens!  They are still rolling excellent, but they came out of dormancy very slowly this year.  They are now growing in full force and have excellent color, but you may have noticed white patches.  These patches haven't caused any yips in the putting surface, nor have they really slowed the green speeds down.  They are merely cosmetic.  What are these patches?  Well if you look close you may see exactly what the problem is:

Our grass is doing the same as these plants:

 

Flowering/seedheading.

 

This weather is causing our grass to "come out" and what do plants do first out of dormancy, they flower.  It is nothing to be alarmed about, but we have sped up the process some by applying a chemical that should stunt the flowering and seeding process.  Along with lowering heights and grooming, a light "starter" fertilization and warmer consistent temperatures, this should go away in no time!

Here is what a green looks like with the seedheads forming:

 

Overall though, there are minimal issues for our greens.  We are working to remove the Poa Annua on the few greens that do have this noxious weed!  We have been studying/planning on how to resolve our issues on the sink hole on number 3 green and the back of 16.  I think we are very close to coming up with some neat new ideas that will help the overall playing conditions and help grow these areas better.  I will update you with plans as soon as we make a decision on these areas.  Keep coming out in full force as you have been lately!  We are improving each day and I'm excited as we continue to green up!  

Spiking Greens

The benefit of spiking the greens is to allow water and nutrients to enter the root system and to allow oxygen exchange to promote healthy turf grass. With the zoysia being so tight knit in the upper layer, it opens the surface and it reaps the benefits. Once the greens have been spiked, a roller smooths the putting surface and you barely know we have even been on the greens! Pruning the rhizomes and stolons allows new shoots to form and thus a healthier putting surface. We will do this each Monday throughout the growing season--some times 2 directions, other times only 1 direction. Check out the process in our photos.

Once we finished, we put out our monthly application of wetting agents and a fungicide to mainly prevent zoysia patch, but it controls a broad spectrum of possible diseases. Notice the picture of #3 green the same day--can't tell we even did a thing to them, even ball roll wasn't affected.