It Rained (Finally)!

While this may not be the best picture in the world, the one-inch rainfall that we received on July 27 was worth documenting.

After a significant amount of complaining by the author, Mother Nature has finally provided us with some much-needed rainfall, and now, it probably won't stop.  Since yesterday morning, the golf course has received 1.25" of rain and counting.  The forecast is calling for scattered rain throughout the day and potentially heavy rain tonight.  It seems as if our storm dodging is done for the meantime, but after not receiving significant rain since June 19, I suppose that we are due.

If you've been on the course recently, you'll hopefully agree that we came through the extended heat spell in relatively good shape.  From July 16-26, the average high temperature was just a shade above 90 degrees.  And, if you read my previous post, the cool-season grasses that we maintain aren't particularly fond of such temperatures.  During several afternoons, the soil temperature at a 2" depth was also above 90 degrees.  So, while the turf may not appear to be stressed to the casual observer, there are some signs of physiological stress on the course.  The above-average temperatures that we experienced resulted in significant die-back of the roots, and the most-affected plants are Poa annua and the juvenile creeping bentgrass plants that filled-in many of the areas that received winter damage. 

The juvenile creeping bentgrass on greens 3 and 6 seem to be the most affected.  Not only did these greens receive winter injury due to their shaded location, but they are almost completely blocked from receiving the predominately westerly and southerly summer winds.  And, just as the wind cools us on hot days, it also cools the turfgrass.  Because of this, many courses in the the southern and eastern U.S. install fans near the greens to keep them cool.

All-in-all, the hard work of our crew has kept the course in fine shape, considering the circumstances.  In particular, a lot of credit goes to Omar and Randy, who have joined Chad and I in chasing wilting turf.  Without complaint, they spent some long afternoons dragging hoses around the course.

Besides battling the weather, not a whole lot else is new.  And, now that the rain has finally arrived, my wishes for 70-degree weather will begin in earnest.   



Heat Advisory

It's been a great week on the golf course.  We were able to apply a light rate of fertilizer to the fairways and now have 99% of the course sprayed for Japanese beetles.  Additionally, the weather was very mild, and the turf and maintenance crew enjoyed the cooler temperatures.  Considering that we've only received 0.5" of rain over the past 25 days, the course is looking and playing very nicely.  As such, here's a picture that I took today of the 8th hole...

...and considering that it's the middle of July, everything looks pretty darn good.

Now, onto the bad news...

If you've been paying attention to the weather forecast, you're well aware that the next 10 days, and hopefully not more, are going to be downright HOT.  After today, the lowest high temperature in the 10-day forecast is 87 degrees and that's for next Sunday.  Besides extreme daytime temperatures, the mercury is only going to fall into the high 60s to mid 70s during the nighttime hours.  As you can probably imagine, it's going to be a very stressful time for the turf, as there will be no respite from super-optimal temperatures.  With these temperatures, the plants will not be photosynthesizing, and because the plants are constantly respiring, such an extended spell of hot weather has the potential to use all of the energy that the plants have stored. This is indirect temperature kill, and besides having healthy plants going into the stress period (which we do), there isn't a lot that can be done to prevent it from happening.  Plants can also suffer from direct temperature kill when the leaf temperatures reach 100-130 degrees, and when the air temperatures are 90+ degrees, the green leaves (white grass would be nice) can easily get to this temperature on sunny days by absorbing the sunlight.

Aside from applying the proper plant protectants, which we are doing tomorrow and Monday, water management is the key to get through these times with the least amount of damage possible.  Although it may be tempting to water like crazy, this can actually do more harm than good during extreme heat.  Water holds heat much more easily than air, and saturated soils would bake the plants.  However, we have to make sure that there's enough water to allow for both transpirational cooling and respiration.  There's no doubt that it's a tricky balance, and we will be doing plenty of hand watering to provide the most optimal soil moisture that we can.  Additionally, there's a good chance that we will be briefly running irrigation heads on the fairways during the early afternoon hours.  This technique is called "syringing", and it can prevent direct high temperature kill by cooling the plants by as much as ten degrees.  So, if you have to dodge some sprinklers next week, just know that the turf appreciates it.

Continuing our defensive approach, we will limit mowing of greens, tees, and fairways as much as possible, and they will be mown as early in the morning as is possible.  Additionally, the greens may be a little bit slower until the heat and humidity subside.  We will be slightly raising the mowing heights on the greens to alleviate a little bit of stress and to prevent them from scalping, as the greens get "puffy" from the humidity.  And, finally, we may restrict cart traffic to the rough only during the afternoon heat.  As the picture below illustrates, stressed turf and carts don't get along very well...

Carts can damage stressed turf, as is evident on the right side of number 7.  Hundreds of these in the fairways wouldn't be a pretty sight.

Well, that's a lot of doom and gloom for one post.  Although we learned a long time ago that we can't control the weather, you can be assured that we're making very calculated decisions and will be busting our humps to keep the course as healthy as possible.

Dry and Busy

It's been a few weeks since I've had the time to post, and you can be assured that it isn't because I've been vacationing.  As you can probably imagine, we've been a little on the busy side over the past few weeks.  Between the 4th of July fireworks, several big events, and an extended dry spell, the shop has been abuzz with activity, and the irrigation system (and our entire crew) has been working overtime.

As has been the case for much of the summer, the brunt of the severe storms that passed through the area this morning missed the golf course.  We did end up receiving 0.25" of much-needed rain.  This was the first measurable rainfall at the course since it rained 0.25" on June 21, and since May 25, only 3.25" has fallen.  During the same stretch last year, it rained 11", and we feel as if a happy medium is in order for 2012.

The 7:00 am sky looked very ominous this morning.

With this rain, the mosquitoes might become more prevalent.  During the fireworks on the 4th, a couple of the oodles of spectators offered reminders on many of the fairways that bug spray burns turf.  So, if you need to apply some mosquito repellent to yourself, please so do on a cart path or in the rough.  Otherwise, there will be a lot of green footprints surrounded by yellow turf on the course.

Besides the burns from both bug spray and fireworks, we're happy with how the course has been holding up.  In order to keep the course as fast and firm as possible, we run the irrigation system as little as possible overnight and spend a significant amount of time handwatering dry spots on greens, tees, and fairways.  Although it is time consuming and labor intensive, handwatering allows us to target the areas that need water the most.

Between routine maintenance and time spent watering, we haven't had very much extra time to devote to special projects over the past few weeks.  The only exception to this is that both the bathroom by 2 green and one of the cold storage buildings at the shop were repainted.  Both buildings were in sore need of a little TLC, and the fresh coat of paint did wonders.

Over the next few day, we'll be taking advantage of the brief weather break to continue a couple of tasks: spraying for Japanese beetles and aerifying tees.  We'll also be fertilizing the fairways, and we might even have time for a few small projects before the 90s return.

As difficult as the weather has made our jobs, it sure has been great for getting in a few rounds.  And, if you're like us, you'll enjoy the next three days of moderate weather before the furnace turns back on for the weekend.