APRIL 2022 GREENS REPORT
The cool change in weather has finally come so the ground staff have been working hard on getting all the snipping areas cleaned up whilst the rough areas have slowed down a little. The staff have snipped all dam walls, all tee areas including banks, signs and marker plates. All tee signs have also been heavily cleaned.
The Everglades area has also been cleaned up and the rubbish/leaf piles will be burnt off when the area has dried, possibly next month.
All machines, course utes and cart buggies have been serviced this month and are all in good working order. However, the new Toro fairway mower we purchased last year has been giving us issues with the cutting units. I believe that there is a fault in the units that were supplied with the machine. I have been communicating with the general manager for Toro about this and they are working with us to fix this issue as soon as possible. Our bunker rake machine is also being fixed again and in the meantime the staff will continue to do the bunkers by hand.
All greens have been sprayed with herbicide for control of winter grass. The greens will remain at 4mm height with the rolling being used more then ever. All tees, green surrounds and fairways have been fertilised this month. This month I haven’t seen a quiet day with golfers, you only need to take one look at the tee areas with how much divots there are.
There are definitely a few tees that need resurfacing, not just from the lack of growth and wear, but with the levels of these tees. This has not been unnoticed, and construction will begin on fixing some tees and grassing before we come out of winter. I will discuss more with what tees will be selected next month along with our other winter projects for the course .
This month we will be continuing with snipping areas, such as drains, paths, and the bases to all trees on the course, followed by a selected herbicide that will be sprayed to the bases. We will also be looking at starting to fill in the 6th bunker with a grass mound, and construction will commence when the rain stops and the course is a bit drier for carting the soil to the area.
The walkway bridge on the 3rd hole has been temporarily closed as the bridge needs replacing, and this is also planned to be completed this month.
ANDY BOSWELL – COURSE SUPERINTENDENT
MAY 2022 GREENS REPORT
Greens
The greens have taken a complete turn in the last three weeks, purely due to consecutive days of rain and no sunshine. We have two types of grass surfaces, blue couch and 328. The blue couch greens are actually holding up very well and are currently showing minimal disease and therefore I have no major concerns with them.
Some of the 328 greens have developed more than one type of fungal disease and mite issues (insect). This pest and diseases are common in golf course greens, especially in these current weather conditions. A fungicide and insecticide management plan for these issues make it easier to control. However, with the amount of rainfall that we have received it has flushed our products through the soil which makes it more challenging. On top of this our greens suffer from shade this time of year, so this combined with the heavy rain makes it perfect for diseases to strike.
The two diseases are called Pythium Blight which is evident in the 328 greens and ERI that is only in greens 9, and 10. The ERI disease is noted for being difficult to remove. Common practices play an important roll in controlling this disease along with fungicide products. Next week we will be scarifying these greens to remove any thatch build up. Dethatching and two fungicide applications over the next 14 days will help control this aggressive disease.
The other disease is minimal and under complete control with a fungicide application.
The Mite issue is also minimal and under control with an insecticide application.
Moving forward, my only concern is the predicted forecast for the next month. Grass needs sunshine regardless of how many products are used to treat diseases etc. So, the plan is also to raise the heights of the green’s mower to 5mm up from 4mm, and this will help with more leaf growth. Members will notice the greens slightly slowe,r however the importance of keeping our greens healthy through the cool months ahead is paramount. Overall the greens are still healthy considering the conditions we are experiencing.
Course
Because of the heavy rain the playing of golf has been minimal, however the staff have been busy repairing and maintaining what we can on the course.
All bunkers have been fixed and sand pushed back to wall faces, and are in play.
All hedges have been trimmed around clubhouse and on course.
The front entrance driveway has been repaired by course staff with road base and crusher dust and drains dug out.
The boys have been busy chain sawing trees and picking up fallen branches and palm fronds.
The staff built a new walkway bridge to the back of the 3rd green, and both bridges were moved from the flood. All bridges are fixed and back in play.
We are unable to mow any rough, however this is not a concern as all the rough was mowed before the rain started so the length is manageable.
The tees have been mowed this week, and we are waiting for a dry window to mow the fairways and green surrounds.
While these areas can’t be mowed, it gives the course staff more time to attack the crows foot weeds that have started to appear on the greens. We will not be using any chemical and will be removing weeds by hand on every green all week.
Over the next two weeks the plan is to keep mowing when we can, fixing up washed out paths, and most importantly cleaning up weeds in greens and managing our current diseases.
The drains are working well throughout the course however the ground is seeping and the rain keeps falling and we need some sunshine and some wind. The course is still in great condition overall and I hope to see you all golfing soon.
ANDY BOSWELL – COURSE SUPERINTENDENT
JUNE 2022 GREENS
REPORT
This
month the greens staff have finally been able to attack the course with mowing,
and commence projects throughout the course as we get a break from all the
rain.
Last
month’s rain had a huge impact on the course especially the greens.
This
caused certain pest and disease issues that were mentioned in last month’s
report. With raising heights on the greens mower and a management plan of
pesticides and fungicides and some much-needed sun, the greens are looking much
better. All greens are in full recovery from any pest or diseases.
This
month, to help with the wet and shade to the greens, we were able to use the
air2g2 aeration machine on all greens. This is done once yearly.
The
13th green was severely damaged from the rain last month, causing
severe washout with water covering the back half of the green. We have
completed full drainage work and diverted this issue for the future. This area
is currently unplayable and will be roped off under GUR until we have re-turfed
a small area at the back of the green.
The
staff managed to finally complete all rough mowing on the course, along with
all general areas of mowing to tees, green surrounds and fairways. All dam
walls have also been snipped and hazard lines marked throughout the course.
We
have started the project on the 6th bunker, and this will be filled,
turfed and completed this month.
Kev
is out this week with his excavator and is helping me with the bunker and cleaning
out some drains throughout the course. He will also be back next month to
repair some broken drainage pipes and any more drains that need cleaning out.
All
the bunkers have also been repaired from the floods and are all back in play.
Whilst
there was minimal mowing work for the greens staff, some have taken holiday
time while the rest of the team have been removing weeds on our greens whilst
it was raining.
As
mentioned last month, the next couple of months will be cool with minimal
growth. Our tees, especially the small ones, have been hit hard with divots
which we experience at this time of year. Tees such as 18th and 8th
will definitely be turfed with new grass closer to August / September as we
move into the growing season.
As
the grass growth is minimal, the staff and club are very thankful for the
members that are doing their part in filling in their divots, and most
importantly repairing their pitch marks on greens. However, after all the rain
that we just experienced, the course is looking great.
ANDY
BOSWELL – COURSE SUPERINTENDENT