The first half of April brought consistently cool, damp,
murky weather with little grass growth. Frost delays and rain events have
slowed down the progress of our April project list considerably.
Fortunately, since April 15th we have been in a warm weather pattern
that is optimal for grass growth and aeration healing.
The greens were aerated using 3/8” hollow tines with 1.25”
by 1.50” spacing during the week of April 4th. The recent
warming trend should expedite the healing process. Greens will be mowed
and rolled dry for the first couple of weeks following aeration, or until sand
has been fully incorporated into the canopy. The aeration process will
continue on tees and fairways when weather permits.
The tees, fairways, and rough are all performing well and we
should get into a more routine process of mowing once our April projects are
completed. We have completed our pre-emergent application and begun our
post-emergent applications. The annual bumper crop of clover, dandelions,
and other broadleaf weeds is showing up and we will be spraying these
aggressively with post-emergent herbicides during late April into May.
Unfortunately, with the perfect weather comes lush, thick and heavy
rough grass conditions. Every year we battle the rough through the spring
months. In addition to our maintenance standards, typically during these
times we will shorten the mowing intervals and add a blower to the process to
scatter grass clumps.
The drainage project on numbers 3, 4, and 5 has received a
final grading, sodding and seeding is starting to take place.
In addition to completing general course-wide “spring
cleanup”, six dead trees have been removed; including two honey locusts on #12,
two oak trees near the pond on #8, a pine tree behind #2 green, and a redbud
tree near the old halfway house.
