14 tee, summer stress

In an effort to make the 14th hole play a little tougher and be a better representation of the 4th handicap hole on the course, the Golf staff has asked that we place the blue tee markers onto the tee across the service road.  You will be seeing the markers placed here more frequently than not.

This will add another 10-20 yds to the hole from the blue tees.

 

 

 The summer stress has caught up to us on a few greens.  We are starting to see diseases surface that frequent stressed turf.  To combat the issues, we have raised the mowing heights slightly, applied a curative application of fungicide, and are keeping a watchful eye on our moisture levels.  Because of these measures, greens speeds may be slightly slower than in the past two months. 

Here is a picture of Anthracnose on our greens through the lens of a macroscope.  We apply preventative fungicides for this disease, but breakthrough can happen during high stress periods.  To reduce the chances of seeing these types of diseases surface, stress would need to be minimized or significantly more funds would be needed to put towards preventive applications. 

 

Product testing

There is no shortage of fertility products on the market that we can apply to the course.  There are products that have been out for years that are well vetted in the industry, there are others that are fairly new to the market and raise an eyebrow when presented by a vendor.  I am open to trying new things when I think it is in the best interest of the club, BUT I want to see it work before I go all in.  One of the products we are trying this summer is labeled as a biostimulant - it is a fertility product that contains seaweed extract and acids that stimulant plant health and root growth.  There are plenty of golf course that use this type of product all the time and I want to see if it would have beneficial effects at FCC.

We are trying this fertilizer on half of our greens this year, we also split #3 green - with half the green getting the usual fertility package and the other half getting the new product added.  You will notice the red hash marks on #3 that split the green in half. 

 

We will be able to monitor the greens with and without this product to see if it lives up to its hype.  If plant health, root length and stress reduction is apparent, then we have a potential candidate for our fertility package in 2016.  If we see no difference in health, playability or appearance, then we know the product isn't worth the jug they put it in.  Many of these products are pricey and I don't want to apply it liberally if there is no significant benefit vs. our current program.  The only way to verify this is to have a "check" plot or spray certain areas with the product and some without.

During the summer months we fertilize the greens with the "spoon feeding" method - giving the greens small amounts of nutrients on frequent intervals, not using any granular products from April to September.  This gives us a very firm control on the health and growth of the greens.

Seed heads

All grass species produce seed at some point in their life cycle, this time of year many of our typical cool season grasses are seeding.  Poa annua or Annual Bluegrass is a prolific seed producer and one of the few grasses that can seed at a variety of mowing heights - from rough height to greens height.

The greens at FCC are predominantly poa, some of the poa is more of a perennial biotype and produces less seed, some is more of the annual biotype (think #1 green) and produces more seed.  The older the green, the more perennial poa and typically less seed.

We are currently in the middle of the seed-head flush, within a few weeks the seeding will be complete.  During this seeding stage, greens tend to be a little slower and little bumpier due to the seed-heads in the way.  We try to limit the amount of seed-heads on the greens but there will always be some seeding that occurs.

The main strategy we use to reduce the seeding pressure is to apply growth regulators to the greens to slow down the growth of the plant and inhibit the production of seed.  This application is timed with 'Growing Degree Days', giving us a great tool to apply the regulator at the optimal time and give us the best chance of success.  We follow certain models that give us day to day readings in our zip code on where we are in the phonological calendar, once we hit the correct 'Growing Degree Day' we apply the regulator.

The suppression this year on seed-heads was a little above average, but we are still seeing seeds.  This natural process will conclude in a few weeks, leaving us great greens for the remainder of the season.

Early orders

October in my line of business means: Early orders.  This is when every vendor that we have that sells us chemicals and fertilizers stops by and gives us their pitch and what they have to offer if we purchase our chemicals and fertilizers through them.  When products are ordered this early for next years applications, we are able to get substantial savings, up to 30% off.  This product is then delivered over the course of the winter with payments typically due next year.  So as you can see, as one year draws to a close, the next has already begun.