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.

Dodging Bullets

In more way than one, this week has been full of near misses.  Although the weather has been dreary and not very conducive for golfing, we've actually lucked out with the rain.  On Tuesday, many parts of Madison were hit hard by the south-to-north moving thunderstorms, and the National Weather Service's official rainfall total was 1.36" for that day.  At the golf course, we only received 0.25".  So, while it certainly is wet out there, our normal maintenance has been largely unaffected, and the course is doing quite well.  It's spells like these that we're especially grateful to have well-drained soils, rolling topography, and cultural practices (especially the dreaded annual aerification) that keep the course surprisingly playable in times of wet weather.

Last night, we also apparently dodged another bullet when someone pulled a u-turn near the 16th green.  Had they decided to travel another 15 yards to the north, we would've had one ripped-up green on our hands.  With the course sitting between two heavily-travelled corridors of vehicle and pedestrian traffic, vandalism is an ever-present threat that we simply hope will never happen on a large scale.

In between dodging (the word of the post) rain drops, we were also able to complete a few small projects on the course, and I'll let the following pictures do the talking for these...

The perennial garden by the putting green has really filled-in over the last two years.  Yesterday, it was decluttered so that there is now some semblance of organization to the plantings.  Also, we added a bird bath, and I have to say that the birds will have quite the view when they're getting cleaned-up. 

The overgrown junipers that lined the left side of number 1 forward tee were removed this week.  Beneath them, we found a very nice rock wall (and a few golf balls from errant tee shots).  When we get an order of sod, we'll complete the transformation.



Course Happenings

With the arrival of our complete summer crew (who were profiled in the last Divot), the action has really been picking up on the golf course.  We've begun and finished several projects over the past couple of weeks, and if you've been on the course recently, I'm sure that you've noticed some of them.

The most striking change has been the transformation of the small wooded area between 9 green and 1 tee.  Over the years, the oaks, along with a black locust, that dominate the upper canopy of this area had become lost amongst a tangle of mulberries, honeysuckles, and buckthorns.  With the exception of a large mulberry that remains, we cleared the invasive understory plants, and I believe that it's a dramatic improvement. 

The before and after pictures really illustrate the changes between 9 green and 1 tee. 

Along with the invasive species removal, we've also stopped mowing the hillside and sprayed the weeds growing on it.  Over time, it should be a great looking native area, and we hope that you also like the change.

Last week, nine trees were planted around the course.  Shagbark hickories, red maples, and crabapples were the selected species for this planting.  Of special note is the shagbark hickory that was planted between 12 and 13 fairways (near 12 green).  This tree was donated by the Tilsen family in memory of Mr. Tilsen's father, Cy.  We certainly appreciate the donation and are sure that Cy's tree will be knocking down many errant shots in the years to come.

Our resident tree expert, Howard Kulke (on the left) and Angel Ramirez in the midst of planting the Tilsen memorial tree.

Yesterday, the repainting of one of our cold storage buildings and the bathroom by 2 green began.  The first step in the process was to waterblast the loose paint and debris from the surfaces, and if you're near the bathroom, you'll see that there was a lot of loose paint.  For the meantime, the bathroom looks even worse than normal and only one side is open.  Next week, it will be repainted (weather permitting) and fully opened.  The job has been contracted out to a company that specializes in painting metal buildings, which is why we aren't painting it immediately.  When it's done, it will look a whole lot better than the green paint that had seen much better days.

Finally, if you've been on the range lately, you may have noticed that the chipping green is covered in white dots.  These dots separate the different treatments of a trial that's being conducted by Dr. Jim Kerns (turfgrass pathologist) and Paul Koch (doctoral student and turfgrass diagnostician) of UW-Madison.  Once they share more details of the project, I'll be sure to pass them along.  Nearly every year, we host a UW-Madison turfgrass research trial, and the partnership that we have with the university is most definitely mutually beneficial.