Turf Talk

BY LENTZ WHEELER | GOLF COURSE SUPERINTENDENT

Phase II of the Golf Course Master Plan has come to a close and contract work is over for the winter. We have experienced more rain this fall and winter than in previous years which led us to the decision to postpone the tee renovation at sixteen. This area is very cold and wet, and construction requires firm and dry conditions. Rather than beginning the golf season with a closed tee, the project is now slated for Fall 2023.

All of the other work went well. The third tee has undergone a dramatic change and promises to be everything we expected and more. The new cart path routing and soil movement has created a fresh look. The elevation changes from the different teeing areas as well as the dramatic carry over the lake make for a new signature hole. Congratulations!

Our crew is concentrating on creek and pond bank clearing. Extensive work has been done on the fifth hole. The drainage work that was completed last year improved the turf in this difficult growing environment. Expect continued improvements as the new grass matures and the growing environment gets better with more sun and better air circulation.

Our crew also added new sod to holes two, nine, eleven, and the practice area this fall. Did you know that fall/early winter is the best time to install sod? Roots continue to push down even though top growth has stopped. Once the ground freezes that stops, but it picks up when the ground thaws. The best part is that irrigation is rarely required! If you want a great yard, you should follow this example and sod in the fall. You should never sod in the spring unless absolutely necessary. New sod doesn’t have time to establish deep roots and will usually require an abundance of water to keep it alive, and even then it still might die.

We had a tree pruning contractor on site for a week in late January. They had two experienced climbers and one man on the ground. Our crew chipped branches with the chipper provided by the contractor. Trees pruned were on holes three, five, eight, ten through fifteen, and seventeen. We will move on to tree removals once the course is firm enough to handle heavy equipment. This will be similar in scope to the work performed last winter. The course needs to have a hard freeze or be very dry for this to be successful. 