New Equipment!

This is our new chemical spray rig. Big thanks to Club Corp for investing  capital and keeping us properly equipped. We also have two new utility carts and a topdressing attachment coming later in the year.

Tee Aeration Complete

On Tuesday we completed our annual aeration of tee boxes. Aeration of tee boxes helps relieve compaction, aids in gas exchange so that the roots can get oxygen, and breaks through the thatch layer that can build near the surface. Some members may notice that the tee boxes are still a bit dirty from the process. With a couple mower passes of the tees and a rain shower, the tees will look like new in no time. Tee box health has already improved this year, and we hope the continuing to perform the process on an annual basis will continue to improve our teeing surfaces here at GCC.

#7 Tee After Aeration. The Tees will look much cleaner once they are mowed on Friday

Inclination for Cultivation

Last week we completed our first round of slicing to our Back 9 Fairways. The minimal disruption of the surface will have little to no affect on play ability, and will improve turf health by allowing gas exchange so the roots can get some much needed oxygen. The process may also stimulate horizontal growth, by cutting and laying over stolons produced by the bermudagrass. We have plans for more aggressive methods of cultivation coming in the future. On July 12th, we have a scheduled core aeration to all of our tee boxes for a second consecutive year. We also hope to extend this core cultivation to our Back 9 Fairways in the near future. 

Bunker Edging Underway

#2 Fairway Bunker after recent edging

In an earlier blog post we discussed the different ways that we maintain bunker edges. Occasional sod, blowing sand off faces after strong winter winds, and proper raking are all important factors involved in maintaining a proper bunker edge. Now we are to the point in the year where we begin the more classic form of bunker edging, where we go into the bunker are cut out vegetative growth from the inside of the bunker. We also take this time to check sand depths, and redistribute or add sand as needed. This year we will first edge our fairway bunkers, and then move onto the green side bunkers next. This process is very labor intensive, but the results speak for themselves. 

Sedges Have Edges

Weeds in the sedge family have triangular stems, which is where the
common (at least to me) expression "sedges have edges" comes from

Sedges are a triangular stemmed, mat forming weeds seen in the picture to the right.

 There are different types of sedges that can usually be identified by their underground plant parts. Sedges present a problem for golf courses, because during wet, warm weather, they can grow vertically faster than the turf, but can also overtime form dense mats that compete with the turf. We have started spraying sedge in high profile areas (around the putting green) and will focus more of our efforts toward its control once we complete our broadleaf weed spray tomorrow.

Chemical control of nutsedge

Sand, Sand Everywhere

Topdressing is a regular part of golf course maintenance. We do many different types of topdressing here at GCC. Heavy topdressing allows us to incorporate sand back into the soil profile after aeration. Light, frequent topdressings (pictured above) keep the putting greens smooth and firm. Topdressing of seams of sodded areas can help level them out and facilitate grow in. Members topdress every day when they fill in the divots made during play with sand. Pictured below is a traditionally wet area on #7 that we have topdressed. We hope that with multiple topdressings of the area this year, we can slowly begin to improve it's playability after heavy rains. Sand topdressing is a big part of our plans for 2016. If you have a question about what we are trying to accomplish by topdressing a particular area, please do not hesitate to ask.

Broadleaf Weeds on The Golf Course

The picture to the right is indicative of the type of weather we have experienced over the last couple weeks. This cool, wet weather provides excellent growing conditions for weeds, but not enough warmth for the Bermudagrass to truly compete with them. As a result, we currently have a fair amount of weeds out on the course. As temperatures improve, the healthy Bermuda will compete with the weeds, and the number of chemical control options we have to control these weeds will increase. In the mean time, we are keeping the weeds in check with increased mowing frequencies, and selective chemical applications. Once warm, dry weather arrives, we can quickly get a handle on the broadleaf weeds on the course.