Greens Venting

We will be venting greens with small cross tines on Monday and Tuesday. This process will allow vital oxygen to enter the root-zone and reduce the gas build up. The night time temps on Tuesday and Wednesday are very favorable with the lows near 60 and will help cool down the profile just a bit before the next onslaught of searing  temps arrives next weekend.

Sodium Induced Wilt

Bring the rain!!
We have received .65" of rain since the third week of May and humidity has been mostly non-existent. This is wonderful for outdoor activities compared to those oppressively humid days but brings challenges to those keepers of the turf. The fairways have developed numerous dry spots and there are a few issues causing this situation I'd like to address.
We have been keeping the golf course on the dry side for the last 7 years to allow for better plant health, play-ability, and and fewer cart path only days. When running on this edge to keep those conditions some browning out will occur. Grass kept on the wet side doesn't allow for any ball roll and diseases can become a serious issue.  When constantly watering,  rooting also becomes a problem as the plants do not need to dive in search of water. With the severe lack of rainfall on our course this past month coupled with high temps and low humidity, irrigating on a regular basis has become the norm. I have commented on this issue in the past when we are forced to irrigate for long stretches without a decent rainfall.
High temps during summer combined with a lower relative humidity dries out the plants rapidly. ET is known as evapo-transpiration and is a measurement of how much water is lost from the plant and soil during a 24 hour period. ( for example; an acre of corn will lose 3-4000 gallons of water per DAY and a 80ft oak tree will lose 40,000 gallons of water per year.) As the plants transpire or perspire more water is pulled from the roots to cool off the plant. On a 85 degree day with a relative humidity of 30%,  a whopping .33" of moisture is lost. To irrigate this amount back to the plant almost 700,000 gallons must taken from the pond. Our irrigation pond on holes 14,17 contains about 2.5 million gallons. One fact to realize is that to water this amount down on greens tees and fairways it would require the pumps to run from 10PM to 1:30 the next afternoon. Obviously this is an impossibility as my crew begins work at 5:00 am and tee times start at 7-7:30. The amount that can be put down before we start work is .18" which is practically a 50% loss.
The other issue when solely relying on pond water is the make up of that water. Our irrigation water contains very high levels of sodium and bicarbonates.  When we consume a very salty meal we become dehydrated and must drink copious amounts of clean water to feel good again. If you put a teaspoon of salt in your water you would still remain dehydrated. This is actually what is happening on the fairways and rough. The term is known as sodium induced wilt. The more water we put down to keep up with the ET rates, the more sodium is introduced and the faster the plant dries out. I have installed a wetting agent tank that is connected to the irrigation pumps and will slowly feed this product as we water to help break through the dry compacted soil and allow for some water retention. When we finally get a good soaking rain the sodium will be flushed away and we can start over.

Fairy Ring

This pesky organism can be found over the entire globe and has been frustrating superintendents for centuries. It is one of the largest single organisms and in northern Michigan there is a single fairy ring that has been growing for nearly 1500 years on a 37 acre site. Scientists estimate this 1 fairy ring weighs in excess of 21000 lbs.
Fairy rings are a fungus related to the mushroom group. These wood-decayers eat lignin which aids in cell strength. Lignin is a major component in thatch and why you will see it appear on golf course turf. The fairy ring doesn't attack the grass itself but the byproducts it produces attaches to the sand particles and creates  hydrophobic conditions. This layer repels any water we may put down and with the hot dry conditions we've been experiencing will quickly lead to wilting turf. There are a few fungicides that we can spray that will suppress/eliminate the fairy ring.  The second option is poking holes around the infection and watering heavily with wetting agents to flush the area and get water back to the bentgrass roots.

Type II conditions with mushrooms present

Type II on golf course fairway

Soaking fairy ring spots with wetting agent at Royal St. Georges

18 green.

Happy Father's Day!

 

Greens Update

Greens update:

The last two weeks have brought us very favorable weather and the greens have responded nicely. The vast majority of Graden lines have been covered due to normal soil temps, moisture, and the weekly fertilizer spoon-feeding we have been applying.

1 green has been slower to respond due to a couple of factors. 1 has always been a green that needs extra care to keep pace with the rest of the course. The trees that surround our maintenance shop block the typical westerly breezes that would help to dry out the green. This causes the roots to stay overly wet and will not grow as deeply as a green with full sun and airflow. Over time, the saturated roots will die back resulting in less root area to uptake proper nutrition and oxygen thus slowing growth. This was a serious issue on 4,7,9, and 11 greens in the past but with selective tree removal, more sun and wind is available and those greens are doing significantly better. The second factor is wear. The design of the green, which has steep slopes on the front third, the left third, and two small mounds on the right greatly limit us in making pin location choices. This concentrates all the play right through the middle where most of the recovery has been slow.

We have needle tined this green four times in the last month and a half and will continue to do so to help get vital oxygen to the roots. This will also provide much needed air 2-3” down to help dry out the green. I will reduce mowing frequency on this green to help alleviate additional wear on our part and increase fertilizer applications until the green has healed.

18 Green - Full sun and Airflow

Almost there- picture taken from 1 green center of traffic

Picture taken from 1 green away from high traffic areas

You are my sunshine,my only sunshine

Well it looks like the rain will cease for a few days. The good news is the temps will return to normal and get these plants moving. Just like last April we have been very chilly and it has taken longer than expected for the greens to fully heal. Bentgrass needs soil temps of 55-65 degrees to really start moving and the average during April was 52. Considering cool season grasses usually start going dormant around 50 it has been a slow recovery. We definitely needed the moisture after a three week stretch with less than .2" but temperatures are now what is most important. With these upcoming temps we should see a surge of growth this week.

Happy Mother's Day!

To all those moms, who show us love, give us inspiration and support, Thank You! Have a wonderful Mother's Day