Green Contractors

A large ash tree that was removed by Gregory Forrest Lester

 The winter months are a perfect time for the Grounds Department to accomplish tasks that cannot get done during the playing season. To execute some projects we need the help of green contractors- contractors in the horticulture, arboriculture, floriculture or hardscape  industry. The taking down of  big trees is one example and we have been using Gregory Forrest Lester tree company for this task for the last 10 years. They are very efficient, knowledgeable, and quick (with 6 certified arborists and a board certified master arborist on staff). They remove trees that our equipment, simply, cannot tackle. To keep the cost within our budget we perform some of the cleanup work after the big trees are removed.

The cleanup work of some tree branches done in house

Stump grindings. The cleanup consists of stump grinding removal, dirt replacement, and seeding.

A large co-dominant branched pin oak removed by Gregory Forrest Lester

New limestone steps on #5 tee

The railroad tie steps that are located on #5, #9 and #18 tee boxes are in need of replacement and we obtained the help of Hafner Landscaping to install limestone steps. Currently, the #5 railroad ties have been replaced and we will be communicating with the Green Committee and take a look at our current budget constraints to see if further replacements are warranted.

The old railroad tie steps by #5 tee

The patmore ash tree that was holding up a section of the driving range net succumbed to the emerald ash borer and was showing signs of severe decay. For safety reasons, the tree needed to be removed. Hendel's tree service happened to have an extra telephone pole. They took down the ash, set the pole, and reattached the net. Now golfers using the far range tee do not have to worry about falling branches or a falling tree ruining their experience.

Dead ash tree holding up part of the range net

Abundant amount of fungal growth indicating sever internal decay

New pole

The fence behind #14 tee was installed last year to keep golf balls from hitting unsuspecting golfers on #14 tee. Unfortunately, the height of the original fence was not tall enough. So Mills Fence added on another section to the existing fence increasing the height from 7' to 13'.

13' fence behind #14 tee

There are more winter projects on the horizon and I will continue to update as they get accomplished.

Brad Piecuch

Grounds Superintendent

Parkland Style Course

Trees and Turf

 It may be a surprise to some people that trees and turf don't mix-in fact, they are natural competitors. Think about a dense forest. The trees are growing in close proximity with a dense shade canopy and little light penetrating the surface. Rarely is grass growing in this environment. Conversely, think of a grass plain, with small rolling hills of prairie grass, where little, if any trees are growing within. This is by design and each plant's survival strategy is distinctly different. A tree survives by growing tall with a big canopy and large roots. The canopy shades out competition and the large roots win the battle for moisture and nutrients. On the other hand, turf survives by growing close together and choking out the tree saplings before they take root.

 Also, grasses can survive drier/drought areas by shutting down photosynthesis and going into a dormant state, while trees do not have this capability, and without supplemental watering, will show decline immediately or in the proceeding growing seasons. This is why forests usually occur in high rainfall areas. Further, many grass and tree species transmit chemicals from their root systems to inhibit the growth of the other. For example, some types of fescue produce a chemical that inhibits growth of young trees, while walnut trees have been known to produce a chemical that inhibits growth for grass and small vegetation. In addition to the biological differences the way each plant is maintained is unique. Trees require deep and infrequent watering with precise and limited fertilization, while well maintained turfgrass requires light and frequent irrigation with heavy fertilization. Add in the damage done to trees by canopy raising, cart traffic, mower damage, and frequent knocks from flying golf balls and you have a recipe for a difficult situation for tree survival on golf courses.

 At WHCC we have a parkland style golf course. The trees on the golf course have many benefits including: providing shade for golfers, providing safety from errant golf shots, contributing to aesthetic beauty, adding natural habitat for local animal species, and helping to improve local air quality (turf also improves air quality and some debate that it does even better than trees). However, Western Hills Country Club is a golf course and not an arboretum. If it were the latter we would maintain the grounds much differently beginning with 40 foot mulch rings and entire areas blocked off for tree health and vigor along with many other different cultural practices. Since turfgrass is the courses' number one asset it takes precedence over trees, especially in high impact areas. The negative effects trees have when planted in close proximity to putting surfaces has been well documented (click here for more information from the USGA!). Also, trees produce a significant amount of debris that takes a weighty part of our labor budget to eradicate.With this in mind we have chosen to cut down some trees, recommended by the USGA agronomist during his visit last May, that contribute to declining turf health around high impact turf areas (ie. putting greens, collars and approaches).

 We are not now, or in the future, going to cut down all the trees on the golf course. Trees are a big part of what makes the WHCC experience so unique. Yet, we are trying to improve areas of our playing surfaces by increasing turf health which will decrease the amount of inputs needed and help to make the golfer's game more enjoyable.  In order to accomplish this we need to take a both/and strategy and be smart about what kind of trees we plant and where we plant them. For example, the Kentucky coffee tree is a good native tree to plant in remote rough areas because of its thin canopy that allows more light for the underneath grass to consume.  Another example would be planting redbud trees as a backdrop for a green because of their short stature and smaller root system. Planting pin oak trees, that get over 75' tall, very close to a green's collar is not a smart or efficient idea for maintaining a high quality putting green. The majority of the trees eradicated in the winter are trees that are dead or diseased (written about in a previous post). Currently, we have only two healthy pin oaks trees that were removed because of turf quality.  By eradicating some of the problem trees and planting better species, in proper places, we will be more able to accomplish our goal of maintaining the parkland style look of WHCC.

For more information about trees and turf click here for an article by the University of Kentucky.

Weak and thin turf caused by the row of pin oak trees to the right of #18 green

Maintenance Update

  The warm winter weather has caused the grounds department to continue mowing into January. We have been mowing the greens, approaches, and fairways several times in the last month. It has also allowed us to continue to sod bad areas located throughout the course such as spots on the practice tees, the raising of low fairway areas, and fairway areas where mowing and/or cart damage has occurred.

Raising of the catch basin in #18 fairway

  Other projects being accomplished are the eradication of the honeysuckle located between #15 and #17, the replacement of some defected irrigation heads, tree removal, equipment maintenance, leaf removal, and limbing up of low branches.

Removal of blue spruce tree infected with rhizosphaera needle cast disease

Thick honeysuckle between #15 and #16

Removal half way accomplished

The new MT52 mini track loader making the pickup of ash wood much easier

Interesting picture of a golf ball that was embedded in the middle of a blue spruce tree. It must have lodged into a branch intersection point and the tree grew around it, eventually engulfing the entire ball.

 With the abundant amount of snow-cover and cold air currently up in Canada combined with the time of year, I feel winter is ripe for a comeback. Hopefully that does occur, ending our mowing practices, and giving the grounds department a chance to finish tree removals, design new landscape areas, attend turf/horticulture seminars, do bunker drainage work, staff recruitment, and work on our maintenance policies for the 2020 season.

Brad Piecuch

Grounds Superintendent 

Tree and Winter Work

 Currently, leaf removal has been absorbing most of the grounds department's time. The many pin oak trees located throughout the golf course (because of marcescent foliage) are slowly letting go of their leaves. The wind storm that blew through around Thanksgiving helped to fall much of the foliage; however there are a couple trees still unloading. Hopefully we are on our final blow/chop operation and will be able to move on to other projects shortly.

An abundant amount of oak leaves after the pre-Thanksgiving day wind storm

 One important winter project on the horizon is tree/branch removals. In October we conducted a tree evaluation to address any diseased or dying trees. A few of our oak trees are becoming infected with Ganoderma-an aggressive wood rotting fungal infection that decays heartwood and can move into vascular layers. Large abrasions are a common entry point and once a tree is infected there is no cure. One of the first noticeable signs of infection is the presence of a conk (mushroom growth) growing on the trunk. This combined with significant canopy dieback indicates a severe infection and is recommended for immediate removal. Another common malady is co-dominant trunks with included bark. Large pin oaks with this have a high failure rate because of the massive amount of pressure put on the intersecting point. The lower the co-dominate trunk branches begin the more dangerous the situation. Also, many of the Colorado blue spruce trees are becoming infected with rhizosphaera needle cast disease and/or cytospora canker disease and are quickly deteriorating. Not to mention the emerald ash borer and all the damage that has caused to the ash trees.

Red conk indicating a Ganoderma infection on a red oak

White sap coming from an infection point indicating cytospora canker disease on a blue spruce.

Rhizophaera needle cast disease on blue spruce trees indicated by dieback of lower branches progressing upward.

Co-dominant trunk with included bark on pin oak by #8 tee

Dying ash tree courtesy of the emerald ash borer.

 The grounds department has a certified arborist on staff and consults with a board-certified master arborist once every two or three years to ensure that the WHCC trees are reasonably safe and in good health. Some healthy trees are in consideration for removal only if they are negatively impacting high priority turf areas (click here for more information about trees and turf). Some of these trees were recommended for removal by the USGA agronomist during his visit in May. All potentially removed trees are discussed with the greens committee before any removals take place.

2019-2020 winter tree removals

 Outside of tree work there have been other projects that the grounds team has been accomplishing. One was the blow out of the irrigation system in early December. This is a necessity to eliminate the possibility of pipes freezing and cracking during the winter months. This was accomplished by hooking up an air compressor to our pump station and then blowing out each individual head on the course and winterizing the pump station. Other projects included: leveling out of the bumpy area at the bottom of #15 fairway, completing the late fall fertilization, finishing the tulip bulb plantings, and continuing to mow on an as needed basis.

Irrigation blow-out

Leveling of #15 fairway area

 As we move deeper into winter, tree work will take center stage along with parking lot snow removal, attending turf/horticulture seminars, new landscape designs, staff recruitment, equipment maintenance, creating maintenance standards and a 2020 maintenance calendar, bunker work, and the upkeep of appurtenances. The grounds department is thankful for a great 2019 season and we look forward to an even better 2020 season. We wish everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Brad Piecuch
Assistant Superintendent

Its Beginning to look a lot like... November?

  In recent years November, along with Thanksgiving, seem to be getting pulled into a continuation of the Christmas season. Stores begin decorating in October, Christmas commercials begin appearing regularly by Veterans day, and the radio stations start playing Christmas music before the kids start receiving Halloween candy. The last couple of years mother nature seems to be following suit. The temperatures that have descended upon the tri-state more closely resemble late December rather then mid-November. We usually average around 50 degrees for high temperatures in November and the last couple of weeks the thermometer is struggling to reach 40 with lows in the 20s and teens. Hopefully we dodge another ice storm like last November. These conditions have the grounds department scrambling to catch up on leaf removal, mowing, fertilization, and draining out the irrigation system before the next arctic blast.

  The cold temperatures have a major effect on the turfgrass. The growth starts to slow down causing longer recovery time from stressors such as foot traffic, ball marks, and maintenance practices. Also, the cold causes many situations where we have to shut down the golf course to prevent any turf damage that may occur. This makes it a good time to touch base on winter play and course conditions.

  There are five main reasons why the course may be closed or delayed during winter months.  They are snow, frost, frozen ground, thawing ground, and very wet conditions.The first is fairly obvious, finding a white, or even colored golf ball, after a snow storm is virtually impossible and trying to putt would be comical. Snow does provide insulation from low temperatures and winter winds; however melting snow can refreeze and cause crown hydration injury. Frost and frozen ground can cause significant damage to the turf when walked or driven on. Thawing ground can cause root damage from foot traffic when the top layer of soil is thawed and the lower layer is still frozen. Any traffic during this scenario will break the roots in between the two layers. Wet ground is also very common this time of year from the freezing, thawing, heavy rainfall, low evapotranspiration rates, and the dormancy of the turf (prohibiting any water uptake). Walking on highly saturated soil will cause deep footprints that will create craters and unevenness especially prevalent on putting greens. For more information on winter play closures click on this informative article by the USGA. 

Frost damage from cart traffic

Black footprints caused from walking over frosty turf

First snowfall of the season

Cart damage from driving over frozen turf

 The agronomy team is committed to providing the best conditions as possible. Sometimes closing the course is imperative to maintaining healthy turf. In collaboration with the golf staff professionals we will communicate when these closures or delays take place. We apologize for any inconvenience and understand the famous quote "if you don't like the weather in Cincinnati, just wait a minute!"

Brad Piecuch

Assistant Superintendent

Fall Projects

 The grounds department has been extremely busy tackling many fall projects. Golf Preservations has installed drain tile into two poorly draining soil based greens. There are many benefits to having a better drainage system installed, some of them are as follows:

• increase turf quality 
• increase green speeds
• create firmer conditions 
• decrease compaction
• increase root depths 
• allow greens to be opened up quicker after a rain storm
• decrease disease presence

  It takes about a day to finish a green. They first survey the green, then map out the location of the drainage, cut the sod, dig the trench, remove the spoils, install 2" perforated pipe, back fill with a 6-2-2 (sand, peat moss, topsoil) mix, and finally place the sod back on the trench and install valve boxes for flush out areas. The tile is placed around 15"-16" below the surface and drains out to the lowest point on the green. Holes #6 and #2 will be closed for a short time to allow the sod to root in.

Golf Preservations trailer

#6 green drainage install

digging trenches on #6 green

main drainage trench

Using plywood to minimize disturbance to the green

back filling ditches and installing the old bentgrass back on top

Drainage completed #6 green

Drainage install #2 green

Main trench for #2 green

Completed drainage project #2 green

We were able to replenish the fairway/tee nursery with leftover bentgrass sod

#2 green after a rain storm, before the installation of new drainage

#6 green after a rain storm, before the installation of new drainage

  Another project taking place, with the help of Russ Macke, is the expansion of three forward/alternate tees. These small tees on #7, #9, and #17 will be enlarged by 2 to 3 times their current size and leveled out. We are using the excavated dirt from #6 and #2 greens drainage projects to help with this job. Hopefully, this will encourage golfers to use these tees more often, decreasing some usage of the further back tees and alleviating their leveling concerns. Drainage has been an issue at the front of #13 green and we have installed new drain tile and a catch basin to try and resolve the problem.

Excavating the sod on #9 forward tee

Excavating the sod on #17 alternate tee

Using the spoils from #6 green drainage project for the expansion of #9 forward tee

Leveling of the expanded #7 forward tee

Newly sodded #9 forward tee

Drainage added to the beginning of #13 green

New drainage installed #13 green

 Our other fall maintenance projects are moving along nicely. Aeration of tees, fairways, and rough have been completed, as well as, early fall fertilization.The turf has responded well to these practices and is showing off its bright green colors as we speak.

Aeration of #6 fairway

Aeration of #1 fairway

Aeration of # 13 tee

#2 fairway three weeks after aeration and early fall fertilization

 An athletic field mix of bluegrass was slit seeded into a Bermuda grass area on #11 fairway last month. We are starting to see results as some of the bluegrass has germinated. Right now, it is patchy because the Bermuda grass was extremely thick and healthy when seeding took place. The warm early fall temperatures kept the Bermuda actively growing longer than usual which hindered germination of some of the bluegrass. However, bluegrass is an aggressive creeping grass and it will be interesting to see how it fills in during the late fall season. We will continue to monitor this plot throughout the shoulder season to consider if Bluemuda (click here for more information) is a potential solution to our Bermuda grass situation. 

Bluegrass germination on #11 test plot. Notice the dark green bluegrass patches mixed in with the brown, dormant Bermuda grass.

  Finally, after completion of these jobs most of our attention will be focused on leaf removal. The WHCC trees are starting to put on their fall show. The ash, maples honey locusts, and hickory trees are in full color. This contrasts well with the bright green turf and allows for some great photo opportunities.

White ash trees fall color

Green ash trees fall color

White and green ash by #18 green

Sugar maple fall color right of #7

We apologize for the inconvenience that these projects have caused; however the benefits will be noticed and enjoyed for years to come.

Brad Piecuch

Assistant Superintendent/Horticulturist