December 28, 2012

Good or bad....?

I am asked “Is the snow good or bad”....well, it depends!

Snow cover actually protects the turf, much like an insulating blanket, from the winds and bitter cold. Turf that has been under snow tends to be healthier in the spring than turf exposed to drying winds and wind chill temperatures. Snow also helps curtail wear and tear, as not a lot of golf is played when snow is on the ground.

But then, if the snow should turn to ice, the turf can suffocate after a few weeks. Also, as snow and ice melt, the abundant moisture coupled with above freezing temperatures is perfect for diseases such as yellow patch, grey snow mold, red thread, and pink snow mold. And the melt also means greater traffic damage due to soft soils. If the soil is thawed on top, but is frozen underneath, then the water cannot drain and makes things even worse. Roots drown, or get sheared from traffic, and in most cases the soil structure gets ruined. All of these scenarios have long term consequences.None of them are good.

And if there is no snow cover at all like last year, desiccation and wear and tear can really set the turf back.

I wish there were easy answers, but there are not. It all just depends.

December 19, 2012

People have been asking me what the goats are up to these days and how are they doing....

They are doing just fine! They are at my farm living the “life of Reilly”, or in other words, being spoiled.

They are on a healthy diet of quality hay, molasses coated grain, and sunflower seeds  which provides them with extra fiber and protein, and natural oils for their coats. They also have free choice minerals. In their fenced in area, they have planks and cinder blocks to climb on, and a goat chalet to nap in and keep them out of bad weather. And they also have their animal friends – chickens, ducks, a cat and the horses to baaaaa at and discuss barnyard politics. Then they get a lot of human visitors – someone always shows up to see and pet the goats! They have it pretty good and easy these days! There most likely will be a little culture shock next spring when they come back to work here, but I think they are looking forward to some delicious poison ivy!

Mary, Francis, and Irene told me to pass on to you their wishes for every one to enjoy a happy holiday season and that they are looking forward to seeing everyone again soon!

December 11, 2012

Friday night we had two and one half inches of rain and originally I intended to make the course “walking only” on Saturday because it was so wet. But being a Saturday, Mark and I talked it over and decided to go “cart paths only” and we opened up to carts at 10:00am.

Well, that didn’t last very long....

I am sure the person driving the cart had no intentions of causing damage, but none the less, he went off the the cart path and did. Unfortunately, this is not an isolated incident. It happens routinely. Even on days when carts are allowed off the paths, sensitive areas that are roped and/ or signed off are driven on with abandon by some. The ropes are simply knocked down and the signs ignored.

It doesn’t make a lot of sense to go about with disregard. And it certainly is not fair to those who follow the guidelines, and who have to deal the bad lies left behind by others.

November 23, 2012

Last week I traveled to State College, PA and attended the Penn State Golf Turf Conference. This is annual three day event in which professors and researchers from Penn State and other leading research universities present the latest research on fine turf used for golf courses. Presentations are also given by the mid-Atlantic and northeast regional agronomists from the USGA. The conference is primarily attended by golf course superintendents and turfgrass students from throughout the United States and other countries. 

This year the presentations focused on summer weed control, biostimulants and hormone therapy, financing equipment, water quality programs, social media, disease management and suppression strategies, managing shade, research focusing on poa annua, fescue varieties, and bentgrass, and the USGA’s “Year –in - Review” which recapped the challenges that  courses endured through the year.

Another valuable part of the conference was simply talking with other superintendents, sharing experience and ideas.

Next month the New Jersey Turfgrass Association is sponsoring their annual Turfgrass Expo, which I also hope to attend. Attending these types of seminars and conferences helps me to keep up to date on whats going on in the golf industry, which helps me do my job better, and in turn, makes the golf course better and more fun for you.

November 8, 2012

Is anyone else tired of this weather? The year started out with a non winter, followed by record high spring temperatures, the “Direcho” storm at the end of June, record high temperatures again but with no rain, then a week of rain in September from the remnants of Hurricane Issac, then came Hurricane Sandy, and now this “snoweaster”... I wish that whoever is making the Gods angry would cut it out already!

November 6, 2012

Today lime was applied to the fairways. Soil tests taken late summer revealed that the pH had dropped over the past few years and a correction was needed. The availability of certain nutrients to a plant is directly dependent upon pH. Acid soils tie up some nutrients while basic soils tie up others. Plants thrive with and/or without certain nutrients which is why the soil pH is very important to what particular plant is being grown. Turf – most turf – grows best at a pH of 6.5.

That seems simple enough, but an ideal pH is not always ideal. For example, some diseases, summer patch in particular, are more prevalent and destructive at a pH of 6.5 than a lower, or more acid pH. So we have to thread the needle very carefully to balance pH to get the best environment for the turf and the worst for the fungi. For our plants and disease history, a pH of 5.7 to 6.0 has continually given us the best growth and least disease pressure. This best case pH may be different for another course.

Not all lime is the same. There are two common types - high calcium lime, and high mag lime, which contains a high percentage of magnesium. The level of these nutrients found in the soil test will determine which type should be used. Sometimes the soil needs one or the other, or like in our case, we need to use both. To that end, today we are spreading high cal lime as half our lime requirement, and early next spring we will spread an equal amount of high mag lime.

What causes our soils to need liming every so often? Why does pH drop? Certain fertilizers and nutrients cause acidity, as well as irrigation water (yes, we keep an eye on that too!), rain, types of organic matter (like the mulched tree leaves), topdressing materials, etc. Soils are ever evolving, which is why it is so important to monitor them and make nutrient and pH corrections very regularly.

November 1, 2012

6:30 am Nov 1

I want to throw out a quick post to update you before the staff heads back out onto the course to continue the storm cleanup.

Overall we were very lucky with no major damages.  The entire course is littered with leaves and branches which are taking a great effort to clean up. Three trees came down – one each on 12 and 13 tees, and another on the 7^th forward tee. The 3 to 4 tunnel had about three feet of water in it that needed pumped out.

The 9^th green and surrounding area was flooded by the wetlands behind it. The 12^th tee area and the beginning of the 12^th fairway flooded from the adjacent wetlands that run beside it. The wedding garden and the lower practice putting green were also flooded with salt water. We will be treating theses areas with gypsum to help leach the salts from the soils, but will need irrigation to flush it out, and for the time being, the electric at the pumphouse is “out”. As soon as we get the pumps up and running we will be able to address the salt issue.

Our staff is being supplemented and aided by staff from the bagdrop/ proshop and clubhouse.

The 8th fairway... all the fairways were covered with leaves and debris.

9th green showing debris line  from flooding.