Making progress while the turf checks out underneath us
The hot weather is moving along our turf eradication this week. You can see around the trees that were sprayed last Friday that the turf is really starting to wilt. The Poa annua in the fairways is starting to feel funky already. Don't worry about the herbicide being close to the trees, as soon as it hits the soil, soil microbes break the material down long before the tree would take any up. The turf has taken up all the herbicide and has dried out nicely so that you can enjoy one last weekend on (dying) cool season turf on the Manakin. Starting Monday June 3rd the Manakin will be closed until its targeted opening date of September 24th.
The bentgrass on the greens and the Latitude sod around the greens is glowing right now with the pleasant weather. The Latitude has come in beautifully and will be anxiously waiting for more of the same turf to be installed throughout the course in July. The Manakin greens have not been aerated in over a year. Next week we will break that streak as the Dryject comes back and we will pull cores out of the Manakin greens. This means that the big putting green will also be Dryjected and aerated but should recover quickly just like the Sabot greens.
With the turf on the golf course taking up the herbicide, we can continue on with some projects before sprigging begins on July 8th. First on the list are a variety of new tees that will be constructed out of soil. Just like the tee on 18 last week, this tee on 3 has shaped up quickly. The new tees will give us some more variety at the shorter lengths and make sure our many different skill levels are accommodated on a daily basis.
We are also working hard on making sure the irrigation system is up to the task of growing a new course in. Heads are being evaluated to make sure they are not only operating properly but they are level and flush with the turf. Level heads put out water efficiently and correctly, making sure we are not wasting any water and the water is reaching its intended target.
Tree work also continues on the Manakin. As we have talked about before, we are still working through trees that are relatively out of play but having a bad impact on either cartpaths or our ability to grow turf, either bentgrass or bermudagrass. The wood chips are being spread though tree lined areas on the course and will be spread out this summer.
Over on the Sabot we took advantage of the dry day on Thursday and gave the greens a light dusting of sand. The sand will help smooth out the last few bumps from aeration and help keep the surface firm. As play ramps up on the Sabot, these light topdressings will help defend against more foot traffic and ball marks. Our new Golf Course Superintendent on the Sabot, Joe Wagner started this past Tuesday and is here in the blue shirt. Joe has a strong private club background and comes to us from Chockoyotte Country Club in Roanoke Rapids where he was the Superintendent for 4 years. Joe is already having a positive impact on the course and you will continue to see conditions, quality and details get dialed in here through the summer. Please welcome Joe!