Too much, too long...

Rain, heat, humidity...  it all fits into the "Too much, too long..." title.  Recently we've endured the toughest stretch of weather for several years with heat, and rain approaching record levels in June.  Consider the following:

-  As of today (June 28th) we are finishing up the 2nd wettest June on record, dating back to 1895.  The average rainfall throughout the state is at 7.92", 4.1" above normal.  Here at CCC we have recieved closer to 9" for the month, more than double the average.

-  The month of June has been a warm one with the average temperature of 74.9 degrees, 3.9 degrees above normal.  As of June 25th, this is the 10th warmest June on record.  While 74.9 degrees does not seem all that warm, consider that it is the average, not the high.  Our daytime high tempertures in the month of June were regularly in the upper 80's and lower 90's.

Anytime you combine near record heat and precipitation, you're bound to run into problems... and we did.  Over the past week we had excessive rain, creating multiple areas on the golf course that were saturated with water, and in some cases submerged for days.  With temperatures exceeding 90 degrees during the day and not dipping much below 75 degrees at night, the turf (specifically the Poa annua) in these wet areas was brought to the breaking point and we have been left with areas in our fairways and first cut of rough that will need some seeding and special attention.  Over the next week or two we will be addressing these areas to bring them back to health.  You will likely see some rope or stakes directing you away from the newly seeded areas.

Pictured below is #18 fairway where water sat for several days.  This area has a higher Poa annua population due to the persistant wetness and suffered damage.

Now have a look at #9 fairway where we recently patched some damage with bent sod.  This area stayed rather wet throughout the recent heat and the Poa suffered.  Notice the healthy bent.  This is a pretty good reason to press forward with our Velocity work to eliminate Poa and allow bent to flourish.

As I have said before, only bad things happen quickly on a golf course.  Most of this turf damage happened in a matter of days, yet it will take weeks to recover.  We will be treating the affected areas with extra special attention to ensure the fastest recovery possible.

Hot, Humid, and Wet...

Three words us superintendents don't like in combination.  Unfortunately we are in the middle of them and there doesn't seem to be much end in sight.  Although our course is covered with fungicides and the immediate threat of a disease outbreak is minimal, the conditions are wet.  We have roped off several areas (like the one shown on #17 fairway) to keep traffic out, hoping to minimize any golf cart damage during the wet period.  The forcast is not showing much for rain over the next few days, so it is likely the ropes will be coming down.  I would ask that all golfers use some common sense while negotiating our course and steer clear of noticeably we or roped areas!

In the meantime... go after those pins, the greens are holding!!

Persistance Pays Off

Over the past four weeks we have been watching a mallard hen sit on her nest near our bag drop.  She managed to pick a spot that was in the middle of two of the busiest sidewalks at the club, and right in the middle of a flower bed!  Why would a duck pick such a spot that is so far from water and completely void of any sort of peace and quiet?  Maybe she knew something... bowls of water and oyster crackers appeared as members and staff did their best to keep her comfortable, and from what I hear she even inherited a name... "Madeline" I think it is...

Either way, "Madeline's" persistance and patience have paid off as she has hatched a brace of baby ducks!  Carley Cresap, our club horticulturist, counted seven babies and two unhatched eggs.  Seeing that "Madeline" has some mothering skills, we will let her care for the babies and not disturb her.  If you see children harrassing her, please instruct them to let her be.  We will be excited to watch her raise her young..

A Tough Call...

Making the decision to park all electric carts on a Saturday morning is not a decision many superintendents take lightly.  The decision instantly kills a substantial amount of revenue for the day and turns away a fair amount of golfers.  It's a lose-lose scenario across the board.

However difficult the decision is, superintendents know that it is their job to make tough decisions with the condition of the golf course in mind.  If carts run when they shouldn't, the result is muddy wheel tracks throughout the golf course.  These tracks will linger and ultimately result in poor conditions and thinned turf.  Keeping the carts parked when it is too wet will cause an inconvenience for a day or two and will certainly frustrate golfers, but will prevent long term damage to the golf course.

Pictured above are some tracks produced when carts ran through a wet area.  The damage is somewhat superficial, but nonetheless is there.  There are areas of the course that are much more prone to damage than the spot pictured, which is why we decide to keep carts in when the course is too wet.

Research Dividends...

After five seasons of research in conjunction with the University of Illinois, we have finally begun our large scale Velocity program!  You have surely heard me talking about Velocity in the past, but if not I'll give you a quick crash course.  Velocity is one of the only (and certainly the newest) products on the market that will successfully and selectively take Poa annua out of bentgrass.  Here at CCC we have been doing test plots and trials for what seems like forever, and have finally honed in on a rate and application interval that will produce satisfactory results, but with minimal damage.

Our "large scale program" as I refer to it will include all fairways and tees.  We will be treating every four weeks, depending on weather conditions.

To say I am looking forward to analyzing the results would be an understatement.  My hope it that we are on the cusp of some major improvement in our bentgrass population, however it may take a couple seasons to come to fruition. Check in periodically for updates on our progress.

Silver Maple Blues

What do you get when you cross a bunch of Silver Maples with a windy day in April?  A mess!

Today and tomorrow the National Weather Service is issuing a Wind Advisory for Central Illinois with sustained wind between 25 mph and 35 mph with gusts of 45 mph.  Combine that with a very warm spring that has produced a bumper crop of seeds and it makes for a frustrating day for both golfers and maintenance staff alike.  A Buffalo Turbine Blower behind a light duty cart is our only tool that has a chance at keeping greens remotely clean.  Despite our efforts however, this green will be covered with seeds again in about 15 minutes.

Fairways get covered just as quickly.  Keeping fairways clean in heavy wind is near impossible.  We will clean fairways once in the morning and concentrate on greens thereafter.

As we develop our tree plan you can be assured there will be no Silver Maples on the planting list...

Poa annua seedhead supression

According to the Forsythia blooms, Growing Degree Day counters, salesmen, other superintendents, and last but not least my gut, it is time to take action against Poa annua seedheads.  Annually here at CCC we enter into a many faceted battle against what many industry personnel have called the "super weed".  We begin the battle with an application of growth regulators to control the emergence of seedheads.  This application must be timed right in order for it to work, and the timing depends on a whole host of variables.  Unfortunately, the growth regulators do produce some negative side effects ranging from off colored turf to increasing susceptibility to certain diseases, to increased problems with worm casts.  Most of the side effects are related simply to the fact that we are slowing the growth of the turf (including the bent) during a time of year where we would like to have some good growth.

This year we are leaving #11 and #12 fairways out of the growth regulator application and will be observing the results.  These two fairways were treated last year with Velocity and we will be using seedhead production to gauge our results.  Once we have seedhead emergence, we will then treat with Velocity again to test its ability to "knock seedheads off" the plant.  If this proves to be successful, we may be able to avoid some of the negative side effects of the spring growth regulator application in the future.  The early Velocity application will segway nicely into the planned Velocity program that we will carry out throughout the 2010 season.

For a turf geek, these are indeed exciting times in our battle against Poa annua!

Please stay tuned to this blog to follow the many progress reports that will be coming this season...