The summer of 2010 has proven to be a difficult on for turf managers. Nationwide, with very few exceptions, golf courses have borne the brunt of Mother Nature be it too wet, too dry, and without fail too hot. Here in central Illinois we are no exception. Our golf courses have experienced turf loss on a grand scale with very few exceptions. As it has worked out, the problems have been mainly with Poa annua. Naturally then, golf courses who have more Poa annua have had more difficulties and golf courses with less Poa annua have faired much better. The embedded video was produced to help explain the effects that heat has on turf. As you watch the video, consider the fact that here at CCC we have routinely seen 2" soil temperatures spike at 97 degrees in the heat of the afternoon! Difficult growing conditions to say the least!
We will continue to fight the fight, man the hoses, and baby our turf until cooler temperatures prevail (I can't wait) at which point we will begin making our way around the course to reseed areas that are too far gone to recover.
While we certainly haven't been the hardest hit in our area, we do have some trouble spots. Let's hope for a fall that is conducive to seed germination and subsequent growth!
I talk a lot about the golf course and how much work we do to keep it beautiful and playable, but I don't very often talk about the landscaping at the club that so many have grown to love. It is entirely possible that the reason I don't talk much about the landscaping is because I don't have to think about it very often... I've got Carley for that. Carley, as many of you know, is responsible for (among other things) all landscaping at the club. She works incredibly hard to make sure I don't have to think about it. This spring she's drawing some attention with her "green" weed control efforts. She has selected several flower beds that have shown to have weed problems and sealed them in plastic. This seal will effectively sterilize the top few inches of soil (where the annual weed seeds are) and greatly reduce the need for in-season weed removal. We are hoping this experiment will prove successful and will free Carley's time this summer to tend to her many other tasks.
