OCT 2023
Newsletter Greens Report The past month has been a challenging time for the staff and I. We have seen some positive growth coming into the warm growing period as well as running into many issues that were out of our control due to weather and machine issues. Scarifying of the fairways did not go according to plan. Due to shallow roots, operator error and too big machine. Topdressing these fairways with our natural mined sand had its positive and negative effects. The cost was a huge bonus as washed sand would have cost the club a minimum of $5k. The negative was we had debris (shells, tree roots, large salt crystals) through out the areas that was spread. In the near future we will use a sieve to hopefully remove the debris. Next time we would look into a less aggressive way of removing thatch and promoting growth than what we encountered. Leading into renovations we had put in extensive work with our fertiliser program making sure all our nutrients are at ideal range as well as the greens moisture percentage. The moisture percentage was read every day for 5 days leading into the greens renovations on the 2nd October Coring greens again didn’t go perfectly to plan with the vacuum picking up the cores. This was due to the machine being set too low and tight which caused the brushes in the machine to peel the turf up. This meant my work schedule was pushed back (Top dressing, Rubbing in, Fertilising) This meant that the cores had to be picked up by hand with shovels and boards instead of it being cleaned up by the contractors vacuum. The damaged areas were re turfed and supplied by the contractors.
Rainfall on the course was at a lowest of the year in September of 14mm. The fairways really made that evident, especially the ones with the cypress and gum tree roots taking away the moisture from the turf. This ongoing issue will be addressed in the upcoming months with trials of root pruning to begin. Ageing irrigation lead to a break on the 17th fairway on the mainline. Which meant we had no water on the North end of the course over the two days that nearly reached 30 degrees. Repairing these breaks is a time consuming job. Small leaks around the course have also been found and will be repaired in the up coming weeks. A second wave of clover has germinated over the course in the past month. With all the renovation works going on around the course we haven’t had enough time to take action. Also the tractor has been used for these jobs so we haven’t been able to hook up the spray tank. This will be addressed soon and broadleaf sprayed out. Despite all these issues that have arisen, we feel like we have just got on top of it all. The greens are recovering well in just over a week. Our topdressing and our renovation fertiliser has been watered in well with the latest rainfall. Greens have been rolled multiple times as well as mowed. Over the next few weeks we will be gradually getting back to our desired cutting height. Thanks everyone for being patient with the works going on. Happy Golfing and enjoy the scenery. Course Superintendent, Jake