Reel to Reel

All is well on the golf course.  The 8" of  snow is a welcomed addition.  The thick layer of snow provides insulation for the turf and protects it from the dramatic winter temperature fluctuations. As a reminder to winter walkers, please avoid walking across any greens.  Compacted snow will turn to ice and result in possible turf damage.  Thanks for you cooperation. Below are a few photos.  Thanks to Brendan for providing the photos this week.    

With the golf course under a little snow, our attention has shifted to cleaning the equipment in preparation for our winter maintenance. David power washing a banks mower As you can imagine, the long golf season takes its toll on the equipment.  The winter months allow us the opportunity to conduct preventative and routine maintenance to the fleet.  The scope of the work includes: Sharpening and adjusting cutting units Inspection of hoses, electrical wires, switches and connections Replacement of filters and adjustment of fluid levels Engine repair and maintenance Tire inspection and care Body repair and painting Mike repairing a cart  

The greens have been roped off and are closed for the season.  If we have warm weather, please feel free to come out and play, but please play to the temporary greens (the red stake in front of the green). Traffic on the greens during this time of year and throughout the winter months can cause turf damage in the spring.  Please avoid walking on them until the frost is out of the ground in the spring.  Thank you for your cooperation.

Below is a compilation of my favorite shots from the month.           

The cold temperatures are a reminder that winter is close. Our winter preparations on the golf course continue as we finish cleaning up the last of the leaves. The 30-40 mph winds last week helped bring the remaining leaves to the ground. Brendan blowing #12 fairway The final fungicide applications have been made to the greens, tees and fairways. The plants are healthy and have looked great all fall.  We could not be in better shape going into winter. On December 2, we will close the greens for the season. They will be roped off this winter to help deter foot traffic from winter activities.

The color change of the leaves is lagging behind last year's pace.  The trees are about 2 weeks behind schedule and are just now reaching full color.  I think the warm fall we experienced delayed the color change.  Now that they've reached full color and the colder weather has settled in, I would anticipate the leaves to drop at a rapid rate.  Below are two photos, one taken last November, the other taken yesterday, notice how many leaves are still on the trees this year. #2 green taken 11/8/13 #2 green taken 11/8/12 

Today we started winterizing the irrigation system.  During this annual ritual, compressed air is blown through the irrigation lines removing all excess water.  We do this to reduce the risk of damage to the irrigation pipes, valves and fittings from freezing.  compressor hooked up to the pumphouse It was a long day, as we moved through all 1,500 irrigation heads. We will continue through the system one more time tomorrow to ensure everything is all set for this winter. irrigation heads #14 rough      

It has been a busy month of projects.  Below are a few of my favorite photos from this October.

We aerified the greens today with the soil reliever.  As its name indicates, the soil reliever does just that.  When the 10" tines penetrate the soil, they also shatter the soil profile.  This action breaks up any compacted layers, helping the soil profile to hold more water.  This is important as we head into winter because we do not want excess water building up on the green surfaces, freezing and causing damage. Mike deep-tining #11 green The solid tines cause very little disruption.  After rolling the greens, they are extremely smooth.  We created about 15 holes/square foot which works out to be about 61,500 holes per green.    

Cold temperatures this week have dramatically slowed turf growth.  When this normal change in weather occurs, our focus shifts from mowing to leaf removal.  On a daily basis, we send out the full complement of blowers and mulchers to keep the golf course clean and playable.  Leaf color has changed quite a bit this week, however the majority of the leaves remain green.  I would expect this week's cold temperatures and frosty mornings to speed up the process.   blowing off #7 fairway   David mulching leaves in #7 rough    

Next Monday, October 28th, we will deep-tine aerify the greens in preparation for winter.  The 10" deep holes provide an additional means for excess moisture to move off of the surface of the greens during the winter.  Moving excess water off of the turf surface before it freezes is a key component in avoiding winter damage. On November 4-5, the irrigation system will be winterized.  We will be blowing air throughout the system to clear out all of the water in the lines.

Over the last two days we've continued our landscape work around the clubhouse.  Our focus was the removal of the juniper shrubs on the east side of the circle drive.  Upon removal of the junipers, we regraded the area, sodded, and designed a new landscape bed. before picture   The removal of the junipers really opens up a picturesque view of the golf course as you pull up to the club.  I'm extremely pleased with the finished project. juniper removal and regrading of the soil sod work early this morning new landscape bed in progress new and improved view  

The asphalt company completed the final stage of the repaving project today.  The paths look great and are riding smooth. finishing touches on the path behind #9 green On Monday we will finish sodding and seeding the edges of the cart paths.  We will also continue our work on the new landscape beds around the clubhouse and 1st tee. Myles grading new bed behind #1 tee  

Cart path work continued behind #9 green, #10 tee, and the halfway house today.  The work behind #9 green involved asphalt prep for tomorrow, while the old cart paths around #10 were removed. rerouting of cart path on west side of #10 tee removal of path on east side of #10 tee   Our attention today was focused on shaping the landscape beds around the putting green and sodding #18 hillside where the yews were removed. prepping area for sod this morning addition of rocks to the landscape bed laying sod this afternoon view from #18  

Today the asphalt company paved around the putting green and the first tee.  It is really starting to take shape. We focused our attention today on removing the yews around the putting green.  Over the years, the yews have become overgrown and have prohibited the view of the golf course.  The yews have also restricted air movement around the putting green and #18 green, resulting in tougher growing conditions. yews restricting view of clubhouse from #18 The removal of the yews will improve plant health on both of these greens.  It will also improve sight lines and provide a nice, clean appearance.  We will continue this project tomorrow. new, improved view from #18  

The cart path project is progressing nicely. The majority of yesterday was spent removing the old cart paths and prepping the areas for crushed concrete. The crushed concrete serves as the base below the asphalt. Today the asphalt company laid the crushed concrete and started laying the base coat of asphalt. Everything is really coming together quite well.  The rerouted paths are really going to help with traffic flow around the clubhouse and provide a nice, clean look.  cart path removal more path removal south of putting green   crushed concrete in place rolling base coat of asphalt Today my staff and I laid 2,800 ft2 of sod around the new cart path on #18 and around the clubhouse.  We also started preparing the new landscape beds that will surround #1 tee. laying sod around #18 new path on #18 finished Tomorrow's agenda includes more sod work and landscape bed prep....

We're two days into the renovation and everything is running smoothly.  We have been extremely productive; my staff and the asphalt company have been working together seamlessly.  The final layer of asphalt was laid on the new cart path on #18 this morning.  We finished rearranging the landscape and worked on the final grade around the new cart path. This afternoon's focus was concentrated on removing the old cart path heading towards #1 tee.  Work will continue this week and into the early part of next week. Thanks for your patience during this process.  Below are a few pictures of the project thus far. paving new path on #18 rolling new path on #18   removal of cart path heading to #1 tee removal of old cart path south of the putting green

Over the last several years as part of our aerification process on the greens, we have been overseeding with bentgrass seed to incorporate more bentgrass into the turf stand.  Newer bentgrass varieties compete very well with the poa annua that comprises most of our greens. Promoting bentgrass over poa annua is beneficial because bentgrass is more heat tolerant and requires less water, nutrients and fungicides.  These are the exact reasons why I have tailored my maintenance programs to give the bentgrass a competitive edge over the poa. Bentgrass seed is extremely small.  One pound of bentgrass seed contains about six million seeds.  On a typical 4,000 square foot green like #1, we spread about 24 million bentgrass seeds.  Most of those new plants did germinate, however most will probably not survive.  In interseeding situations, the established plants have an advantage because they are mature and can withstand mor...

We will begin a new project on Monday, October 7th.  Cart paths around the putting green, first tee, behind #9 & #18 greens, and halfway house will all be repaved. As part of the project, we will remove the existing path from #18 and reroute it.  This change will help with traffic flow and alleviate cart congestion around the first tee staging area. We began work on the new path yesterday; we removed some brush and prepped the area for the new path.  We removed about 7" of soil and will backfill the area with crushed concrete which will provide a solid base for the new asphalt path. before picture brush removal cart path excavation preparing path for crushed concrete

Here are a few of my favorite shots from the month.

Over the last two weeks, we have been deep-tining fairways.  The process is pretty slow as the soil reliever is only 6 ft wide and we are traveling 1 mph to achieve tight spacing between the holes. For example: #3 fairway is a 530 yard par 5 and is 80 ft wide, and it takes about 6 hours to aerify.  Although the deep-tine aerification is a lengthy process, the benefits of 10" deep holes are unmatched.  The soil reliever not only creates deep holes, it shatters any compacted soil layers that exist.  This helps in providing a healthy environment for water to move through the soil profile and for the roots to thrive. Jose aerifying #9 fairway   close-up of 12"long tine

The heavy rain last week caused a washout of the retaining rock wall behind the tennis building.  Today, we worked on regrading the topography on the south side of hole #15. By reshaping the area, the rainfall will flow down #15 rough instead of toward the retaining rock wall. sand washed out from retaining wall view from above the retaining wall   rerouting surface water away from the retaining wall   Over the next couple of days, we will repair the retaining wall.