Finished product #9

The picture here was taken to show the finished product behind and to the right of #9 green. The crew did a great job with a difficult area that was always a mess. You should experience a much drier playing and walking surface in this area from now on. 

Behind #9 green

Right side surround area of #9 green

Odds and ends

Lead irrigation tech and drainage extraordinaire Jeff Ellison and crew are putting the finishing touches to some drainage at the back of #9 green. Not only will this help solve the soggy area there, but also give the water coming off of #18 approach and the new drainage work in the rough a much needed working drain line to move the water out of that area.

Behind #9 green

The crew will be finishing up the project early next week so please be careful in this area as there may be some open ditches over the weekend. We will mark off the area and have paths that you can safely pass through if your walking.

Another little cleaning project going on is the brush clearing alongside of #9 tee. This area was completely overgrown with blackberry and other weeds. Sorry all you blackberry pickers you'll have to scout out another area, we have plenty as you know!

Hillside #9 tee

New divot bottle stands

You will notice out on the golf course some new divot bottle holders located at #6 and #14 tees. They hold 24 divot bottles for you to use as you play your round. We also have relocated at both of these tees a divot mix box for you to use if you need to fill some of your own bottles. Once a bottle is empty just place it in the bottle holder upside down and take a new one and we will refill it and place it back into the holder.

We will be installing some landscaping around the amenity station as we move forward. Thanks to all of you who utilize the divot bottles, we appreciate all your efforts to help make our conditions the best they can be.

Greens treatment

Recently we applied a fungicide product on the greens. The granular size of this product is quite large, larger then we'd like to see, but very effective in warding off any disease. With the overcast, cold and wet weather continuing, it is providing some insurance against our friend Fusarium (Michrodochium nivale) or as it is also called,  Pink Snow Mold. While we haven't seen any new Fusarium starting up, the conditions are ripe to possibly have some appear. Because the size of granular is larger this time, it may take some time for it to work into the ground.  It shouldn't have an effect on the ball roll, but if you must blame a missed putt go ahead and blame it on the product and I'll take the heat!

Fusarium  (Michrodochium nivale)

Keep it straight.

Landscaping improvement update

If you've been to the Clubhouse recently you will have noticed some improvements to the parking lot and clubhouse grounds. We've replaced much of the Ivy with new turf and enhanced some of the beds. The flowers you see are Primroses, which will keep us in color for another couple of months. In about mid May we will be planting our late spring and early summer plantings in most of the beds around the clubhouse and golf course. Here are a few pictures of the finished product. We still have a little more work to do around the banquet entrance. We used 10gal Camellia bushes and dwarf Rhododendrons in this area. The next bed you will see renovated will be around the flag pole at the entrance to the club.  By clicking on the picture you will get a more up close view.

Parking lot landscaping improvements

Entrance to Banquet Room

Golf Course Maintenance Update

The Golf Course Maintenance staff has been busy recently with renovations of the landscape beds around the clubhouse. We removed the large bed of Ivy leading into the clubhouse and replaced it with new sod. We also are in the process of renovating the bed in and around the flag pole as you approach the club. New plants are scheduled to be planted in the area leading into the banquet entrance as well. We hope you like the improvements as we continue with updating many of the planter beds.

On the golf course you will notice some of the lakes have the diffuser systems working again. The lack of oxygen in a lake or pond contributes to the layering of muck on the bottom, which act as fertilizer for weeds  and can contribute to excessive algae growth. By introducing oxygen  to the lake at various depths, from the bottom to the surface, it is absorbed and organisms will deteriorate much faster, thus reducing the layers of "muck" and in theory help keep the algae and weeds from getting out of control.

We are fast approaching greens aerification, which is slated to take place on April 16th. The greens currently are starting to gain some ground in growth as we approach warmer temperatures. They continue to be a little bumpy and uneven in growth.  The dark spots you see on the greens are a result of the fall aerification. The holes provide for more air and water movement resulting in a much healthier environment for grass to grow. These will fade out as we get into drier and warmer temperatures. These also can contribute to some of the unevenness and/or bumpy conditions on the greens.   We are doing the best we can to keep them as smooth as possible by mowing and rolling when appropriate. The weather on occasion has kept us from regularly mowing so there are some days when the greens are definitely a challenge. When we get to a point where we have sufficient growth and recovery we will be verticutting and lightly sanding, which will smooth things out better.

Please don't hesitate to email or call me with any concerns or questions you may have.