Western Hills Country Club Grounds: Singing in the Rain?

Singing in the rain was a 1952 film starring Gene Kelly that showcased the star actor enjoying a nice spring rainstorm. Trudging through the rain may be a better title for the way the grounds department is currently dealing with the abundant amount of rainfall that has descended upon the course. After a 2018 that went down as one of the wettest years on record, 2019, so far, has started where 2018 left off. The first 4 months have been the fifth wettest on record with over 23”. April is typically our wettest month of the year and we were over an inch above normal for that month. We were hoping that April showers would bring May flowers, but the current forecast is looking like the present month will just bring more showers. This much rain hinders us on many of the jobs that we need to get accomplished. Mowing is one of our top priorities this time of year and has to get done, especially on our putting greens. Letting the greens go longer then a couple of days without mowing could be disastrous for the bentgrass, causing scalping, slowing down green speed, and encouraging more poa annua to take hold. So we have to be aggressive and not let the grass turn into a jungle; that breaks mower belts, and scalps turf.

Our new pond on #18 fairway

In between monsoons, we were able to get other work done. One of the jobs accomplished was fertilizing all of our rough areas. We use a 13-0-0 fertilizer with dimension to control crabgrass. We put this down using a pro gator and a lely spreader. This greens up the rough and helps it to thicken up with new growth. The dimension is a preventative crabgrass control that will keep the crabgrass from germinating in many of these areas for up to 3 months. Next up, tees and fairways.

Mike Westendorf applying rough fertilizer

Also, we have begun our greens spraying program. Our first application consisted of some nitrogen, and iron that help in the overall health of the greens. Also a chemical was sprayed to suppress diseases such as dollar spot, and cool season brown patch. Lastly a plant growth regulator was added to suppress poa annua and slow down growth. Fairways and tees will be sprayed in the near future.

The boom sprayer ready for its first run

Tree work has again made its way on our to do list, but this time it comes in the form of blowing off spring time debris. The maple seeds (samaras) and oak flowers are abundant this time of year and have to be blown off before mowing and sometimes a couple of more times in the afternoon. Also, a branch from the honeylocust tree near #9 fairway bunker was removed because it was blocking shots hit from inside the sand trap.

Oak flowers covering a green

Red Maple helicopter seeds covering a green

Honeylocust branch removed

On the horticulture side, the tulips have put on their show and are ready to be removed to make way for the summer annuals. After the tulips are pulled out they will be placed by the grounds department building and anyone that would like to enjoy them in their own gardens can take one, two, three, or a hundred of them home. The bloom cycle continues to roll on with the hawthorn trees, buckeye trees, rhododendrons, azaleas, dogwoods, and spanish bluebells stealing the show. The landscape bed behind three green was designed to have an Augusta type feel. The azaleas and dogwoods that are common at the Masters are now here at WHCC and look very nice, in bloom, as a backdrop behind #3 green. The hydrangeas will bloom for the summer months, and this landscape bed should get bigger and better with every passing year. The summer annuals will be filling in the clubhouse beds in the next coming weeks, and hopefully mother nature will turn off the faucet and allow us to stop Trudging in the rain!