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| Cold late March temperatures freezing the newly turned-on clubhouse fountain |
Spring is here and the Grounds Crew is busy getting the golf course ready for the season. The temperatures have been up and down; with the first part of the month well above normal and the latter half much colder. Mowing has begun on the putting greens, fairways, and tees. The rough should start to grow in early April.
Verticutting of the fairways is underway. This will help decrease the heavy thatch layer that had accumulated over the years. Thatch is the buildup of organic material between the crown of the grass and the soil. It is composed of undecomposed rhizomes, crowns, roots and stolons. It binds up water and nutrients prohibiting its percolation farther into the soil profile. This causes moisture and roots to hold closer to the surface. Shallow roots and thick thatch lead to soft and wet fairways. Since we have started verticutting in the spring and deep-tine aerating in the fall, the fairway conditions are beginning to improve. The thick thatch layer is decreasing, and the roots are growing deeper into the soil profile. This has allowed us to cut back on irrigation leading to firmer conditions. Hopefully this continues and we will keep up with these annual cultural practices.
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| Assistant Michael Westendorf verticutting #10 fairway |
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| Verticutting and picking up debris with the TC-125 John Deere sweeper |
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| Thatch from a #10 fairway plug in 2020. Puffy thatch and organic material are noticed above the red line |
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| A soil plug from the same location on #10 fairway in March of 2022. The thatch is decreasing. |
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| Soil profile from #18 fairway notice the white roots extending below this core. Estimated at 8" deep. |
The work on finishing phase 1 of the driving range project has begun. We pushed to get as much accomplished as possible before cold winter weather and decreased sunlight brought it to a halt. Over the winter, many areas of the driving range floor, on hillsides and at the low center, washed out from water rushing through after rainstorms. To fix this we added a 12" catch basin below the 18" pipe that drains under the new practice tee. This is connected to 6" perforated drain tile that connects to existing tile. Also, swales were added to the center to help slow down and catch water before it washes soil and seed away. The ruts on hillsides were filled in and seeded. Target greens are marked, and we will soon begin to mow them at a shorter height so they can be seen. Now, warmer temperatures are needed for germination and, eventually, for the grass to fill in. Hopefully, we will be able to open the far tee and the driving range floor by the beginning of May.
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| Driving range floor in late February. Notice the long wash out occurring in the center. |
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| Fixing the driving range floor |
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| New catch basin installed in front of the 18" pipe that drains under the new practice tee. |
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| Wilfredo and David laying sod around a catch basin located in the center of the range |
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| Ricardo, David, and Jorge fixing ruts on the hillside. |
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| Seed and futera matting added after soil leveled and prepped. Now we need warmer temperatures and moisture for germination. |
The expanded putting green area and the chipping green are filling in. We have begun the process of mowing, rolling, fertilizing and topdressing, but these areas will need much more time to grow before they are ready for daily play. The tentative opening for these areas is June 15th.
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| First mowing of the year for the putting green expansion. It will take time to fill in and for us to begin to decrease the mowing height to match the other greens. |
Bunker work is next on the list, and we have started adding sand to the bunkers that need it. We are measuring each bunker to try and keep 4 to 5 inches of sand in the bottoms and 2 to 3 inches on the sides. Understand that after rain events the consistency of the bunker's sand will change from the sides washing out and mixing in with the surrounding soil. Keeping the right amount of sand after washouts is very difficult (especially on steep slope faces) and I will be discussing with the Green Committee some possible solutions as the current project work winds down. Click here for more information from the USGA on bunker washouts.
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| Ricardo and Jorge adding sand to the left side #1 fairway bunker. |
On the horticulture side, mulching of the landscape beds is underway. The proshop landscaping is completed with a new retaining wall built and new plant material installed. The plants consist of roses, ornamental grasses, hydrangeas, and dwarf lilacs. Something should be blooming in these landscape beds from late April until the first frost. The tulips will be in bloom in early April and there is a chance of the blooms extending into Easter Sunday.
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| Lemon zest roses by the wall and pink knockout roses in the back. |
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| Pansies added in front of the verdin clock plaque |
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| Miguel and Wilfredo trimming incrediball hydrangeas. |
The warmer weather is right around the corner, and I will continue to update the happenings around the grounds as we move into the busy golf calendar.
Brad Piecuch
Grounds Superintendent
