Greens Aerification

                                                                            

Today, we are aerifing greens with 'needle tines' rather than the 1/2" core we usually use in the Spring time.  With the storm we had on Sunday, the greens were excessively soft and pulling a core would only make them softer making it difficult to topdress (sand) and work the sand in all the aerification holes.  We are topdressing behind the aerifier and working the sand into the turf canopy.  This method gives us minimal disturbance to the putting surface, yet has many benefits to the green profile.  With the projected rain tomorrow, the topdressing sand will get washed into the canopy and the remaining pebbles being picked up with the mower.    

#14 Sod Work

                                      

                                     

With the addition of the new irrigation heads and tree removal/trimming tasks being complete, today we installed over 3,000 sq feet of sod. As you can see from the images above, we graded out the areas and preped it for sod. Once graded, bluegrass sod was installed and watered. We will rope off the entire area which will help us maintain a playable surface. The remaining area will be overseeded and fertilizer will be applied to help germination and establishment.  

Overseeding Tees

With the soil temperatures rising and moisture in the profile, we are overseeding the tees today which will fill in any winter damage we had this year.  Once tees are complete, we will hit any damaged fairway areas as well. With the 1.5" of much needed rain on Sunday, the course is taking shape and bouncing back nicely.  

Irrigation System

After a new pump/motor, hand dug trenches and holes, the irrigation system is up and running. The first cycle was run last night so it's a matter of time until we can get the course to soften up.  Things are slowly but surely bouncing back from winter, so have patience as it's still early. In the coming weeks, we will overseed the necessary areas and apply fertilizer. 

#14 Irrigation Project

The cold start to the season means the maintenance department has been busy doing one thing...projects!  The worst area on the course is the rough between #5/#14.  This winter, we removed 7 trees and pruned up the remaining trees in that area.  Now that we have sunlight penetration , we are adding 2 new sprinkler heads so we have a way to get water to the rough.  In the next 2/3 weeks, we will be prepping the bare spots around trees and will be sodding the large areas and seeding the remaining thin areas.  Once that is complete, we will fertilize and rope off that entire area moving forward.  I've been told that this area has been an issue for 30+ years, so hopefully this will alleviate the problem and we can continue to take steps to make this the best conditioned course possible.