Aerification, Top Dressing, and Fertilization

Due to Mother Nature's unwillingness to cooperate, the greens aerification scheduled for Monday March 29 has been pushed back to either Wednesday or Thursday the 31st of March and 1st of April. When the conditions of the greens dry down enough this is the process of what we will be doing.







We will be using a .4 inch diameter tine to punch the holes in the greens this time around. We are relieving the thatch layer of organic matter that has built up during the fall and winter months. These holes also allow the release of harmful CO2 gases that are trapped beneath the thatch layer, and allows oxygen into the soil to promote new root growth for the spring.

Using this diameter size of hole will allow for less interruption in the putting surface. With a good combination of sun, rain, and warmer temps the surface should be back to satisfactory conditions within 10 to 14 days.

After the cleanup of cores on the green from the aerifier, we will apply a topdressing of sand to fill the holes with new growing media for the plant and roots. This application of sand also helps smooth out any discrepancies in the surface for better putting conditions after the green has healed.

We also apply calcium, phosphorous, and potassium amendments while the surface of the green is open, so that these nutrients can enter into the root zone and be used by the plant to help produce a new and healthy root system. The sand and amendments are brushed into the holes. (A picture of the brushing procedure will follow up with this post in the coming days)

Goodbye "Old Man" Winter!

Spring time is upon us, it wont be long til trees and flowers on the course will be in full bloom. The slow melt of 40 plus inches during the months of February and March will play a huge role in the color of the turf u will see this spring. Natural Nitrogen levels in the soil are higer than normal due to large amounts of snow.

New Bridge Constructed On Hole #17

Construction of the bridge was completed on Wednesday March 10th, with the exception of a small amount of paving to the cart path on both sides. The paving will be completed next week. The bridge is passable at this time and was opened for play on Thursday March 11th. Below are pictures of the structure: