Leaf Clean Up

A Leaf Covered #14 Fairway

New Cart path on Hole #11



Late October is, as always, the heart of the war between the green staff and the leaves.  The main thrust of our efforts will certainly be on leaf cleanup during the next month or so.  Our fall fertilizer applications will begin this week and continue until mid-November.  Mid to late autumn is the best time to apply fertilizer, in the proper amounts, to turfgrass as the nutrients are directed to root growth and energy storage for next year.  The same fertilizer applications, if applied from mid spring through the summer, would result in the nutrients being directed to undesirably rapid grass growth at the expense of the roots and energy storage.

Verti-Cutting Fairways

Verti-cutting Process

Clean Up Process

After The First Mowing

This week is the beginning of our fall fairway aerification process.  In an effort to achieve our goals of consistently providing championship playing conditions, we will be doing things a little differently this year.  Instead of our traditional core aerification, we will be deep verti-cutting the fairways now and then solid aerifying at a later date.  This type of verti-cutting will not only reduce thatch up to three times greater than our traditional core aerification, but will also encourage vertical growth.  I am also anticipating a much cleaner and less disruptive final product for golf play.  Once the fairways have healed we will begin to solid tine, relieving compaction allowing for water and air movement through the root zone.  Implementing a more aggressive thatch reduction and soil decompaction program should allow for firmer playing conditions and healthier turf.  Golfers will notice vertical grooves and some discoloration in the fairways for the next few weeks.

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Seed is Up and Growing

 Newly Germinated Seed After Five Days

Driving Range Tee Slit Seeded Two Directions

You may notice some unusual patterns of grass growth in our primary roughs.  This is the successful result of our slit seeding process about two weeks ago.  We were able to slit seed about 3000lbs of Kentucky Bluegrass and Turf Type Tall Fescue seed in weak and thin areas in the rough.  We also had success on the driving range tee with Kentucky Bluegrass, Perennial Ryegrass mix.