Here we go......1st one this yr

Well, it's time to start my annual summer blog again. What started out as a crazy idea of a "renovation progress" sharing method two years ago seems to have really taken hold. The whole blogging idea is something that is really taken root in the golf maintenance world. Many of my colleagues use the power of the Internet to spread the word of what they are doing as well.

Here at the good 'ol CCN, many of you have started to see the results of the limited water we have had for irrigation. Many of you know that we get our water from the City of Naples, but I bet many of you didn't know that we do not have irrigation pumps. That's right! The Country Club takes pressurized reuse water from the City of Naples directly into our irrigation system. The issue of limited water comes into play every year at the end of the golfing season when the seasonal residents begin to leave for thier northern homes. This means fewer and fewer are still hear taking showers, washing dishes, and flushing toilets. All of that liquid goes to the sewage treatment plant, and after treatment the liquid is sterilized and sent back out to be used as irrigation water. So with a dwindling supply and an increasing demand due to it getting hotter, we are caught in a precarious position. We do have two well pumps we can use to supply irrigation water, but we are limited to consuming 24 million gallons of water from them. That equates to around a 30 day supply! That's not much so we are very careful to use the back-up water sparingly.

Another practice that you probably have seen happen lately that you haven't seen in a while is verti-cutting the greens. The process of verti-cutting the greens is extremely important. The main purpose of the verti-cutting is to remove excess thatch, or dead leaf tissue, that builds up in the turf's canopy. The Mini Verde, and all ultradwarfs for that matter, produces a large amount of thatch due to its very dense canopy. If the thatch gets to be too "thick" it can create a lot of agronomic problems, so we have to physically remove it. A secondary function of the verti-cut is to control any grain that builds up in the greens. If anyone has listen to Johnny Miller during one of his broadcasts you'll know what I'm talking about. Grain happens when the grass lays down and all the leaves point in one direction. A ball rolling down grain rolls smooth and true. A ball rolling against the grain is slow and has a harder time staying on course. Our practice of removing the grain is simple, verti-cut down and back in the same path. Usually one direction will produce a lot more "garbage" than the other and that is how you know you are going against the grain. Here is a short video I shot last year so don't mind me saying "2010" ...the process is still the same.


After verti-cutting we always top dress (sand) the greens. The sand helps fill in any imperfections such as verti-cutting lines or ball marks, but more importantly is helps dilute the organic material in the upper soil profile.  For those who don't want to take my word on it, here is an article just published by the area's USGA's Agronomist on sand and golf Sand-Is-Good-For-The-Game---April-2011

As the greens age, they will develop a mat layer just below the soil surface...this is good!  Think of the mat layer as the cushion under the carpet.  When the greens were brand new they were rock hard...no mat.  This picture is of the soil profile on the greens last Summer, notice there is a little bit of darkness to the sand profile at the top, that's the mat layer developing after one year.


This picture is of the mat layer after two years. Notice the mat layer is a little more pronounced and a little darker.


One might think if the mat layer is important for receptivity of the greens then lets grow some serious mat layer, right? The answer is to develop enough of a mat layer to allow a good shot into the green to be rewarded, but you do not to develop too much mat as it will effect the agronomics of the green. Excessive mat layer leads to water logged soils, disease issues, turf tinning, and overall poor performance of the putting surface.

Since we are coming out of Winter and getting ready for our Summer maintenance practices, I wanted to make sure we are all set to do the "right things" for the long term success of the Club. Twice a year I bring a USGA Agronomist out to the Club to give us an "audit" if you will. This year we had a small group follow myself and the Agronomist around and ask questions and listen to the science behind the madness. The USGA'S report is linked below if you would like to see what was discussed.
2011 Spring USGA Report