It has been a while since we have experienced a nice rain and the course is all the better for it.  We almost completed replacing the fescue sod around the practice green and the rain couldn't have come at a better time.  We will continue to work on weak rough areas prior to the holidays.

 

Before the new sod is laid the old turf is removed using a sod cutter.  We then aerify and rake the soil.  A starter fertilizer is then applied before the sod is laid-green side up of course!

Keeping foot traffic off is a must until the sod has rooted in.  Quincy reminds me of my kids!

A killing frost ended our summer annuals for the year.  Tulips will be installed next week.

 The first hard freeze causes the greens to appear mottled and illustrates the different genetic composition of our greens.

 The greens were groomed to reduce grain and true up ball roll. This practice is done at perpendiculars for the best effect.

Grooming will reduce grain and help reduce spike mark damage but will not prevent aggressive footwork.  Please tamp down any damage if this occurs.

The driving range tee has been overseeded with perennial rye and looks good from a distance.  This should thicken up and allow us to play on the grass earlier in the spring.  We are mats only for the rest of the year. 

Another amazing sunrise.

Another great week of weather has the course playing firm and fast.  Following club championship we will pick back up with more sod work.  The rough grass around the practice green will be replaced with  fescue similar to what is on the course.  Hopefully this will help you save a few shots when playing the course. We will leave two areas to enter and exit the putting green and one of the bunkers to practice in.  
These areas will be replaced once the new sod is ready for foot traffic. The surrounding rough will not be available for play until next spring.

We have made great strides in our battle to reduce annual bluegrass in our fairways.  The yellowing in the fairway is the annual bluegrass under suppression with bentgrass filling in.  Continuing to be aggressive with these regulators is a must.

Bentgrass filling in a divot.  Growth regulators increase lateral growth of bentgrass and inhibit annual bluegrass.

Light weight mowing and full sun are necessary for bentgrass success.

We had some tree work done this week.  Here a sick pine is removed in fifteen minutes.

Going…

Gone!

We have four check plots where we are trying to selectively remove annual bluegrass with the herbicide Poa Constrictor.

Topdressing approaches on Tuesday to build a firmer base for our turf.

This bunker face is at least eighteen inches higher than it was originally.  We will repair this in November.

From a drought to too much rain in one quick week.  Such is the nature of this business.  The course received 6.2 inches since Wednesday and now we are begging for the course to dry up.  We are working hard to get the greens in prime Springfield condition as we prepare for our club championship and are seeing improvement in the greens daily.

It is a beautiful site to have the sun shining and the lake full of water.  We did not have to purchase any water during the drought.

Our greens are very chlorotic from all the rain and are benefiting from the sunshine.

Besides the yellowing of the turf we experienced some etiolation or mad tillering in our fairways.  Etiolation is the rapid growth of weak leggy stems from lack of sunlight.  Regular mowing and sunlight cures this.

 The ninety degree rule is impractical and doesn't work.  Please enter the fairway once you past the green post and stay IN the fairway until you reach the white posts near the green.  Once in-once out!  That has a nice sound to it and was 'borrowed' from a neighbor club.

 Foxes continue to be a nuisance.  Here a repair was done in the seventh green for the second time.

A sinkhole developed on the sixth hole from all the rain and exposed a contractor mistake from twenty years ago.  The blue pipe is the irrigation mainline that was trenched in.  The trenched damaged the concrete drainage pipe underneath and it eventually failed.  A real head scratcher.

The fairways are making great progress.

September is winding down and we are in real need of significant rainfall.  We have not had a one inch rain event since late July.  For the month of September we have received just under one inch.  Of course it is raining as this is being typed.  Too little, too late for much of our seed work.

Not a pretty sight.

Our pump intake is easy to see.

Yoshino cherry trees defoliated due to the drought.

Pin oak under stress.

Josh seeding some stressed areas in the rough as we wait for rain.

The bermuda driving range tee has been overseeded with perennial ryegrass.  Here Josh is dragging the seed into the turf canopy.

One week later we are seeing germination throughout.

Here is the super's best friend Jim Groody repairing divots in the 7th fairway.

A sure sign of fall- collecting chestnuts near the 17th green.

The sod has rooted in well on the 4th hole and is ready for play.  Please keep pull carts off this sod for 

now.

 There have been plenty of earthworms in our fine turf areas this year.

Our greens have recovered beautifully from aeration.  Fairways are being mowed in the push-pull method to protect our rough seeding. 

Greens aeration went about as well as could be expected without the help of rain.  Our greens should be back to our standard next week.  We could use a nice soaking rain to get the rough back in shape.  Much of the weak areas around the fairways have been seeded and need some help from Mother Nature to fill in.  We took advantage of the nice weather to sod some weak areas with northern exposures on Wednesday.  Kudos to our staff!

A view of our irrigation lake.

We are transferring water from the lake on fifteen.

 Replacing weak turf on the fourth hole.

Nine thousand square feet of sod installed on Wednesday.  Beautiful!

 Vandalism on the fifth green.  We will repair this area this week.

We have gone back to conventional mowing of our fairways to protect the rough.  We need rain!

Ryegrass failure around the chipping green.  The entire rough surrounds of the chipping green will be sodded this fall and make for a much improved practice area.

 Shade problems on the twelfth fairway.  I believe its time to say goodbye to this tree.

Our winterberry hollies have had a major growth spurt by the fifteenth tee and are loaded with berries.

 Fog rolling in this morning.  Its not rain but its close!

When golf and maintenance collide!  Aeration and seeding time is here and unfortunately it makes playing golf very frustrating.  Why are we always working on the course?!  And on a holiday too!?  The fact is now is the best time to seed cool season turf.  In order to have success with our seeding we must water the seed-a lot.  The only way to have success is by applying adequate moisture and then maintaining that level until the plants are established.  Golf carts are particularly harmful to the new seedlings so we ask that you keep your cart on the path where applicable. Carts should be able to begin driving on the fairways soon.  

All of the approaches as well as the entire fairways on holes 5, 7, and 8 were solid tined aerated and then topdressed.  Keeping on this program will firm these areas up and allow the course more roll.

Seeding the intermediate rough with a tall fescue-bluegrass blend.  We have seen germination in six days!

Bent seedlings emerging after only four days,

Adequate moisture is a must to ensure seeding success.  We are very dry so rain would be a huge benefit right now.  No irrigation system can be as uniform in precipitation distribution as Mother Nature.

Annual bluegrass weevils are here.  Here is a plug from the first fairway showing the larvae in the thatch layer.  These insects are very difficult to control due to their multiple generations.

Annual bluegrass weevil damage in a fairway.  It prefers annual bluegrass but unfortunately will attack bentgrass also.

Topdressing applied in tandem.  Aerification went well despite the hot weather.

New assistant Josh dispersing sand with our turbine blower.

A good soaking in immediately following.  Rain is forecast which would be perfect!

Toughest summer weather of the year.  Heat index in excess of 100 makes it difficult.