A different type of aeration

For once, when we speak of aeration, it's not going to be discussing tine size and organic matter dilution in the soil.  No, in this case we're talking about raising oxygen levels in a water body.  

Over the past several years, the aquatic weed growth in the lake at #5 green has become an increasing issue.  Testing has shown low oxygen levels in the water.  To date, the solution to this problem has been increased chemical applications to control the plant growth.

Instead of continuing down this path, we have installed an aeration system to improve water quality.  The system for the five acre lake consists of a compressor inside the pump station, and close to 4000' of tubing throughout the lake.

Don't expect to see a big splash and lots of surface disruption with this system.  The idea is to increase oxygen levels in the water, not on the surface.

This investment will allow us to reduce the chemical inputs and maintain a water body which is both aesthetically pleasing, as well as one that provides a healthy environment for all of its inhabitants.

The classic question...

Without fail, every year we are asked this question:  What do you do in the winter?  

The answer typically involves project work, wetlands pruning, and at least some snow removal.  However, this year's answer is definitely different.  As we've said, the greens are receiving maintenance at least once each week, and as you can see below, the fairways actually got trimmed in mid-February.  

While we remain prepared for snow removal, it just might not happen this year... 

Lack o' winter

It's certainly more typical to see us shoveling snow than shoveling aerification plugs in February, however there has been nothing typical about this year's winter.  Look no further than the short grass--this past week, the greens were mown once, and rolled twice.

This unusually warm weather has provided an opportunity to aerify much of the sod which was installed last fall.  While we often think of our equipment getting a break for several months during the winter, that has not been the case this year.  Whether it's our aerifier (as shown below), or mowers, the beat goes on.

During periods such as this, members often ask what kind of impact these weather patterns will have on the course going forward.  Without question,  a good deal of the activity of flora and fauna is temperature-driven.  Fortunately, temperature spikes this time of year typically do not seem to have a major effect on the long-term conditions of the turf.

Carts in the barn

 If it feels like you've been receiving a good number of "No Carts" text messages this month, you would be correct.  While any golfing weather in January should be considered a bonus, this January's warm weather still didn't allow much cart activity.  

Gray skies and puddles have been a common sight in January.

In fact, from January 19-January 25, we had three separate rain events, totaling 2.75".  However, as the saying goes:  At least it wasn't snow.

On again, off again

 While we were hit with some bitterly cold weather pre-Christmas, thus far, January has been quite mild.  Because of this, the covers on the putting greens have not been a "set it and forget it" for the bulk of the winter.  In fact, most weeks, the team has pulled the covers at least one time, whether it's for mowing and rolling the green at the range, or applying a fertilizer or fungicide to the seeded Clubhouse putting green.  

When we have forecast low temperatures remaining at 40 degrees or above, we will typically leave the covers off for the night.  As you can see, the sodded putting green has been enjoying the warmth that the blanket provides.

Please Stand By

The Turf Blog will be taking a brief winter break during January.  However, if anything newsworthy takes place, we will be certain to communicate that to you, and look forward to sharing new course information with you in 2023!

No rain, no carts?

 This past Saturday, December 31, we had the unusual situation of making a "No Carts" call when we hadn't received any measurable precipitation in a full week.  To be certain, there was plenty of cart activity on the day prior to this, Friday, December 30:

So why would we need to go from carts, to no carts when there wasn't any rain or snow?  Well, the simple answer is, to protect the golf course.  With practically no turf growth this time of year, any damage done by carts will remain for several months to come.  The deeper (both literal and figurative) answer is how this damage can occur.

If you remember back to the nasty storm a few days before Christmas, we received 1.2" of rain, taking us to a well above average 4.65" for the month.  Immediately following this storm, temperatures took a nosedive.  Before that water had a chance to runoff or infiltrate the soil profile, it became frozen near the surface.  Over the next several days we experienced some extremely frigid weather, locking that water in place.

As temperatures slowly began to rise in the week following Christmas, the soil too began to thaw.  But in the same way that the soil freezes from the top down, it also melts that way.  Thus we find a soft melted layer at the surface, with a frozen layer beneath it, so for over a week, the majority of that pre-Christmas precipitation hadn't moved at all.

Allowing traffic under these conditions can cause damaging root shear, as described in this brief USGA video:

Root Shear

To summarize, fully frozen soil is typically alright to drive on, as is fully thawed soil, once it's had a chance to drain.  However, traffic on partially thawed soil can lead to a very unappetizing turf stew.