Autumn
Blog
The course has been in excellent condition all season. The
feedback from members and visitors has been very positive. The wet warm spring
really kicked the growth off with an early season flush in May. This allowed
quick recovery on the areas that received high levels of play during the
winter. I have never seen the course so green in July when normally its brown
and burnt off.
The recent greens aeration went well. The processes that
were carried out were as follows-
- · Double
scarification (10mm) depth
- · 19mm
solid tine (75mm) depth
- · 35
tons of sand applied
- · Sand brushed
and worked into the surface
- · Greens
overseeded with a browntop bent mix
Scarification removes lots of material in the top layer and the greens really benefit from this work.
The recovery has been very good.
Fig 1: 13th green 16 days after renovations
The greens have been very consistent over the season and performance has been good. This is down to a number of things.
- · Good
turf health
- · Consistent
maintenance practices
- · Correct
mowing
- · Correct
Irrigation
- · Correct
fertilization
In early September some of the greens suffered from a big attack of fusarium. This disease thrives in damp, humid conditions. The weather at this time was perfect for the disease to strike. The worst affected greens were the 7th and 15th.
A fungicide was sprayed at the first opportunity and all the affected bits of turf were seeded, speeding up the recovery. Acidifying products are now used at this time of year. This discourages the development of the disease and hardens the grass plant off. As you can see from the photo the recovery from the fusarium has been excellent. The aim now is to keep the greens nice and healthy as we go into the off season. Cutting and rolling will take place when conditions allow.
Fig 2: Recovery of the 7th green.
Planned Winter Work
- · Three
fixed winter mats will be installed on the 3rd, 4th and
16th holes. These
will be the same design as the one which was installed on the 1st
hole, last winter. The old-style mats become very slippery during the winter
and are a health and safety concern. Over the next few years, all of the old
ones will be replaced.
- · The 13th
right hand bunker will be remodelled. This work removes the big overhang and
will be a much-needed course improvement.
- · The 13th
astroturf path will be grassed over.
- · Irrigation
valves that are leaking to be replaced.
- · Tree
survey to be performed (late October) and recommended work to be
undertaken.
- · Regeneration
on areas of scrubland to be cleared.
- · All
long roughs to be cut and collected.
- · All
machinery to be serviced and units sharpened in house.
- · Various
turf repairs on damaged areas.
- · Leaf
clearing.
- · As we head into the autumn, controlled measures will be introduced. Post and ropes will be put out protecting the approaches to greens. Fairway protection mats will be introduced. Winter tee positions and mats will be put into play. All of these measures help the course over the winter, which then allows the transition into spring that bit easier.
Wildlife
Lots of deer have been seen on the course this year,
including a number of young ones.
Fig 3: Deer on the course
More bird boxes will be put up this winter in various
locations of woodland.
Volunteers
A big thanks to David Fletcher who volunteered to divot
the fairways. This was a great bit of work done, helping the fairways recover after
a long season.
A big thanks to David Watson for painting the brown tee
markers, ready for the winter.
A big thanks to Avril Rowbotham who has done an amazing job transforming the 15th garden. Avril has put lots of time and effort into this. We have had lots of great comments from members of the public who walk past and admire the garden. Well done to all the volunteers who help out with jobs, the work is very much appreciated.
Fig 4: Before and after photo of the 15th garden
Let’s hope for a drier winter than last year.
David and the team.
