Late Summer Water Management

What?!  They’re watering again?!  Didn’t we just get 3-inches of rain last week?!  As a matter of fact, yes, and yes.  The extreme weather that we have been experiencing lately has been challenging, to say the least.  The high temperatures and heavy rainfall have taken a toll on the turf, increasing disease pressure and putting our water management skills to the test.  Late summer is without a doubt the most stressful time of year for bentgrass.  By this time of year, many of the plants’ roots have been driven upward toward the surface, away from the dry and heavy soils, in order to access the available water and nutrients.  This natural environmental reaction, combined with the constant barrage of golf and cart traffic, really stretches the limit of the turf’s health.

While several areas on the golf course do not currently need any more water, there are some areas that actually do.  By utilizing tools such as soil probes, moisture meters, and hoses, we can accurately and efficiently apply water directly to areas that are most in need, and avoid watering areas that already have sufficient moisture.  A common problem for bentgrass in the summer months is a condition known as localized dry spot, or LDS.  In areas affected by LDS, the soil becomes hydrophobic, meaning it actually repels water, so that water cannot penetrate into the root-zone.  Organic-coated sand particles, excessive salt build-up, heavy thatch layers, competition from tree roots, and occasionally fungus can all contribute to soil becoming hydrophobic.  Methods for controlling LDS include probing or aerating the area, hand-watering with hoses, and occasionally utilizing chemical control with a wetting-agent.  Watering with the overhead sprinklers will not sufficiently penetrate the affected areas, and often, neither do heavy rains.  We instruct our crew members to use a soil probe to locate and identify dry spots in tees and fairways.  Often, a supervisor will locate and mark these spots with a pin flag to indicate where our crew members need to apply water.  This allows the crew member to move through the areas as quickly as possible, so that golf play is not significantly disrupted.   We use a similar approach on greens.  By taking soil moisture readings, we can accurately apply specific amounts of water to specific areas on the green.

Proper water management is one of the most important aspects of turf management, and your Illini CC Golf Course Maintenance Department takes that responsibility very seriously.  We know that a balance must be achieved between optimal moisture levels for the health of the turf, and optimal playing conditions for the golfer.  The biggest challenge we face at Illini Country Club is maintaining that balance while dealing with inconsistent soil profiles, changing weather conditions, shade patterns and inadequate irrigation coverage.  On a daily basis, we take into consideration several factors including weather forecasts, disease pressure, and course conditions/player expectations to help us determine our watering programs.  So the next time you see irrigation heads running, or crew members watering with hoses, you can be sure that we are not haphazardly watering the golf course.  

Prepared by, Curtis Keller

Drill and Fill

Drill and Fill Machines

After Cleanup Process

Drill and Fill Sand Channel

With the wave of extreme heat and humidity that we have experienced during this past week, it’s hard to believe that Fall Aerification is just around the corner.  On Tuesday and Wednesday, September 2^nd and 3^rd, we will be aerating greens with the “Drill & Fill” machine.  As you may remember from last September, the process of the “Drill & Fill” is exactly as it sounds....a machine is driven onto the greens that first drills a ¾” hole approximately 8 inches deep into the green’s soil profile, and then fills that hole with clean, fine sand.  This process achieves all of the benefits of traditional aeration (relieve soil compaction, enhance water, nutrient, and oxygen flow to the plants’ roots, thatch reduction, promote surface drainage, etc.), but with the added bonus of applying these benefits throughout the entire root zone, versus to only the upper four inches, as achieved through traditional aeration.  This will in turn provide larger, deeper channels for enhanced surface drainage and deeper root development, thus leading to healthier turf and a faster, firmer playing surface.

Our goal is to have at least nine holes completed and ready for play by Wednesday morning.  Please remember, however, that the entire healing process usually takes approximately fourteen to twenty-one days depending upon the weather.  We will be applying fertilizer and maintaining higher moisture levels to expedite surface recovery.  Members will experience softer, slower, bumpier greens containing many sand-filled holes during this time.  Once the surfaces have sufficiently healed, we will return to our normal watering practices and the greens will dramatically improve in firmness and drainage.  We understand cultivation temporarily disrupts the ball roll and is an inconvenience for the golfers but keep in mind that the long-term benefits far outweigh the temporary disruptions. 

Although the greens will be our primary focus on September 2^nd and 3^rd, we will continue to perform our Fall maintenance practices such as tee and fairway aeration, fertilizer applications, and other on-course projects throughout the month of September.  Again, we understand the inconvenience this causes for golfers, and we will do our best to perform our duties with as minimal disruption as possible, while always maintaining our courtesy to the membership.  The Golf Course Maintenance Department greatly appreciates your cooperation and patience as we complete these important projects.

Prepared by, Curtis Keller

Incredible Weather

What a difference a year makes! Since my arrival at Illini Country Club in 2010, it has seemed as though the city of Springfield has broken every record imaginable.  During the last four years we have experienced broken records in many different categories; from high temperatures, humidity, longest drought, high and low rainfall totals, to coldest winters and highest snowfalls. Most of these broken record categories makes it very challenging for a turfgrass manager.  But that was then and this is now! 2014 has been pretty good to us so far and we have even seen some record low temperature days, somewhat normal rainfall totals and July ending as the 3rd coolest July on record.  Disease pressure has been minimal except Dollar Spot (which is a fungus that thrives during wet warm days with cooler nights).  We have endured only a few stretches of weather where water management and hand watering was critical.  Along with the wet, cool weather comes optimal growing conditions for grass.  Our biggest challenge this year has been keeping up with the mowing, especially in the rough.  In past summers, the rough growth has dramatically slowed down, and even gone dormant during the months of July and August, making rough mowing a one man job.  This year we have continued mowing rough on our spring and fall schedule with three employees mowing rough a minimum of two times a week.  Some weeks the rough has been so thick and clumpy it has required one or two employees following the rough mowers with blowers to scatter the clippings.  I know the rough has been long and thick for most of the year and recent rains have made mowing difficult.  We will do our best to maintain the rough to our maintenance standards.  Hope you have enjoyed the nice weather and I hope to see you on the golf course.

    Dollar Spot in Rough