Course Works Report
On a monthly bases you can refer to this page which outlines works that the boys on the course have completed
GREENS REPORT – JULY 2010
The last month has seen the golf course receive around 100mm of rain and the longest cold spell ever, with around 20 days below 5 degrees and many of these close to zero. This extreme cold has seen our couch tees and fairways start to struggle, but with around 6 weeks of winter left, they are holding up well. In June, I attended the annual Australian Turf Grass Conference on the Gold Coast. The conference was beneficial to my professional development as I got to discus thoughts and ideas with other professionals. Some highlights of the conference included the following sessions:
- Richard Forsyth, Superintendant at Royal Melbourne Golf Club – Resurfacing of greens and fairways at Royal Melbourne.
- Euan Grant, Superintendant at Turnberry Golf Club – Preparing the course for the Open and Green speed beliefs and experiences.
It was interesting to hear from two well respected Superintendents and the tactics they are employing at their respective courses to maintain the quality of their playing surfaces. There were also a range of other sessions and forums that offered interesting and worthwhile information.
I appreciate the opportunity to attend the conference and found it an invaluable experience. It was also good to see such a large contingent of delegates from WA.
GREENS
- The greens are being cut at 2.5 mm around 10 times per week and rolled 2-3 times per week.
- All greens have been verti-drained this month, which has really helped the greens take the 100mm of rain we have had.
- Poa control continues with applications of Paclobutrizol every 5 weeks. This is proving very successful with the Poa very retarded and with no seed head.
- Fortnightly foliar feeding.
- The putting green is looking great. It is currently being hand cut at 3mm making it a bit slower than the rest of the greens. This is being done because a 2.5mm cut is to low for this green at the moment. As soon as we can, we’ll start cutting it at 2.5mm.
FAIRWAYS & TEES
- The second application of Poa control has been applied so a yellowing of the Poa in the fairways will be seen over the next few weeks.
- Fairway and tee mowing has been reduced to 1 – 2 times per week as the couch has gone very dormant due to the colder weather.
- Verti draining of wet areas and high traffic areas is being done to help with compaction and drainage.
- 3 weekly foliar fertilising continues.
ROUGHS & SURROUNDS
- The roughs and surrounds are being cut once a week.
- Surrounds are being verti drained to help keep them dry.
- The roughs and surrounds will be sprayed with a herbicide to remove weeds, mainly clover, over the coming weeks as the weather permits.
BUNKERS
- The bunkers continue to be levelled.
- They are raked 3-4 times per week.
TREES
- Around 15 dead trees have been removed and stumps ground.
- Safety planting of Casuarinas will be done on Gallop Road and we are currently researching and sourcing a more appropriate screening tree for Melvista Avenue.
Aaron Petrovski