Aeration on Greens

Here it is!!!! Finally!  Been waiting for this the last couple months!

Getting a head start on the aeration this evening - not sure what the weather is going to do for the next couple of days and I'm not missing this!

The first aeration on new greens tends to make them a little soft and squishy - limited thatch is the cause of that.  We had a little bit of softness, but they look really good.  They are much firmer than I thought they would after pulling cores.  So far I'm thrilled with how they look after punching them.  They might be extra bumpy the next week or so until they grow through everything - mainly because of this softness.

Spraying

Spraying for that constant fungus management throughout a wet summer in Williamsburg.

Aerifing

We aerified 7& 15 today just to get them out of the way and take advantage of some of the cool weather. They look really good after the topdressing - even after a little indecision at the beginning. After making a pass on 15, it was really soft and squishy. After making an adjustment to the machine and stressing over what would make more damage - either not aerating or continuing - I decided to keep going.

We apply slow release Potassium, Calcium, Magnesium, 007 seed, and an organic app to help the collars and cleanups recover. Aeration is a great time to take advantage of a clear pathway into the soil for our additional nutrients.

We will finish the front 9 greens on Monday and the back 9 on Tuesday. Aeration is a great tool that aids in recovery.

Same spots different time of year.

The area that are struggling just a little bit on 15 are the same spots that we struggled with 11 months ago after seeding. I have to look through some of my construction photos to find that pic of this green all washed out just after seeding in this exact area.

You might have seen us out spraying greens this evening wearing the full spray suits with the respirators. We are making an application of a fungicide that acts almost like a soil sterilant for the diseases that work on the roots. It's a nasty fungicide but works fantastic. I'm not positive that we have some Pythium root rot, it doesn't look like a specific pattern, it's more of a general decline during extended wet periods, but I think we might have something working on the roots on some of the weaker greens. This goes back to the compounding problems. These problems come to light on greens without the new, big fans and limited air movement, coupled with high traffic and no maturity.

The first year or so are rough on new greens that have a lot of play and a limited amount of grow-in. We have definitely experienced that this year - the edges are rough but the majority of the inside of the greens are in great shape.

The greens are actually not playing that bad. They are rolling out nicely and starting to firm up. Look for the speeds and firmness to really pickup through September and beyond.

FYI - I got this picture in before Ryan and Chris could scurry out of the frame. It's funny....they see the phone come out and know exactly where the picture is going.

Flushing

Flushed 5,7,12,13,15 yesterday to try and take advantage of this cool weather.

Fans

13 is a perfect example of how important the fans are. The area right in front of the fan is in great shape, and the further you get away from the fan, the worse things get.

Closure of a few greens

I made the decision to close 5,7and 15 this morning for a little while. I have been trying to avoid doing this, but after looking at them after I flushed them last night...now is the time. They are not in deep trouble, and we are about out of the woods, but they are close enough for me.

We knew this year would be a challenge with the short time frame we rebuilt and grew in all the new greens, but I never thought the first year would be this stressful. Erring on the side of caution is necessary evil until these greens get some maturity to them.

September/October can't come soon enough!!!