Greenkeepers Blog

Superintendents Report – March 2013

We had 36mm of rain for the month of March and recorded 4 days of rain.

As I write this report we have come to the end of daylight saving, we are having cooler mornings and nights. There has been a decrease in turfgrass growth although our cutting frequency has not changed.  

Greens

Greens are running ok at the moment, they are a bit softer than I would like.

Towards the end of April I will verti- drain the greens with a solid Tyne followed by a light top-dress and fertiliser, this should give us good surface drainage and grass coverage going into to the winter months.

Tees

We are cutting tees twice a week.

The round up trials are continuing  with more work on the 2^nd and 8^th tees and most noticeable on the 9^th tee where we seem to have found the right chemical rate for the control of the kikuyu in the couch tees.

Fairways

Unchanged from last month

Fairways are being cut twice per week.

There is a small amount of disease in the heavily trafficked areas, and these areas have been treated and traffic controls are in place.

There has not been any wintergrass germination as yet and I will be applying a pre emergent herbicide to all closely mown areas of kikuyu, this includes fairways and green surrounds.

Bunkers

Bunkers have all been trimmed in preparation for the Kiama Open.

Bunkers are being raked on Wednesdays, Thursday, Saturday and other competition days including Veterans golf days, pennants and corporate days.

Machinery

The machinery cylinder grinders that were donated by the veteran golfers have been delivered and installed and we are now just awaiting some specialist training for the operation of the machine.

We have recently purchased a set of second hand greens mower cutting cylinders, these will be used as a back up set for the greens mower and the tees mower and will be beneficial when we start a regular greens dusting program.

Trees and Gardens

Helen has been busy planting several species of plants around the clubhouse and first tee; the majority of these plants have been donated by members.

Roundup spraying under trees continues when time permits.

Vandalism

The main problem on the course is the Corella birds with a recent attack on the 10^th green on Wednesday 3.4.13. Green staff repaired the damage the following morning and the recovery has been good. This problem is very difficult to police and I would ask all members to help in scaring the birds away from the greens or any closely mown surface.

Other projects

-          Garden work, trimming and mulching.

-          Round up spraying under pine trees, gardens, course boundaries and dams.

-          Tree maintenance.

-          Pathway repairs.                          

Thank You  Mark Yates

Superintendents Report – February 2013

We had 131mm of rain for the month of February and recorded 9 days of rain.

We had a damaging storm the 24^th of February, resulting in a lot of debris and tree branches down on the golf course. It took approximately 5 days of solid chain sawing and wood chipping to get the debris cleaned up, this along with general maintenance has taken up all allocated time.  

Greens

Greens are on the slower side due to consistent rainfall and growth.

There has been some disease “dollar spot” present on the greens, however this disease has been treated and is under control.

 Tees

We are cutting tees twice a week.

The roundup trials on the 12^th tee, showed some goods results but the Kikuyu recovered over a 3 week period, due to the storm clean up no further trials have been conducted.

Fairways

Fairways are being cut twice per week.

There is a small amount of disease in the heavily trafficked areas, and these areas have been treated and traffic controls are in place. There has not been any wintergrass germination as yet and I will be applying a pre emergent herbicide to all closely mown areas of kikuyu, this includes fairways and green surrounds.

Bunkers

The storm damage forced me to reprioritize the bunker maintenance.

We refaced several of the bunkers and relocated approximately 20 tonnes of sand back into the playing zones of each bunker, this job alone took 2 staff 2 days to complete.

Machinery

The machinery cylinder grinders that were donated by the veteran golfers have been delivered and installed and we are now just awaiting some specialist training for the operation of the machine.

The cutting units on the greens mower have just received a complete overhaul.

Trees and Gardens

As a result of the storm damage from last month we have removed several trees on the course, including a coral on the left hand side of the second fairway and the tea tree on the 9^th tee, Roundup spraying under trees continues when time permits.

Pathways

With the assistance of the garden party at the beginning of March we were able to top up some problem areas on the pathways on the holes 6, 7,10,13,15, and 17. Thank you again for your help.

Vandalism

The main problem on the course is the Karrela birds that are digging up the fairways and the occasional green in search of food. If possible could the golfers please take the time to scare the birds away from the playing areas.Also we have had several of the small white stakes that I use for traffic control stolen from the 7^th and 16^th holes, these stakes cost $11 each to replace.

Other projects

-          Garden work, trimming and mulching.

-          Round up spraying under pine trees, gardens, course boundaries and dams.

-          Tree maintenance.

-          Pathway repairs.                          

Thank You  Mark Yates

Superintendents Report- December

We had 42.5mm of rain for the month of December and recorded just 4 days of rain. The total rainfall recorded for the year was 992mm. The dry summer is continuing however the course is holding up well considering the dry warmer weather. As I write this report the mercury is tipped to surpass 40 deg

Other courses in the Illawarra are struggling with the drought conditions and a lack of water to keep the grass healthy; this includes Port Kembla who has turned off all fairway irrigation for the past 6 weeks.

We are now 20 weeks into a period were we have had minimal rainfall, including the last 11 weeks were we have recorded just 66mm of rainfall. I have spoken to many members that make the comment, “I have never seen the dams this empty in 30 years of playing golf here at Kiama”. 

Greens  Greens have been on the slower side, however nearly all the comments I receive are that they are still smooth and consistent.

Unfortunately we need to irrigate regularly to ensure the health of the grass over green speed. My growth regulation is continuing well and we are applying the chemical every 3 weeks. We are definitely in the peek disease season and my programs are working well and we currently have no disease problems on greens.

Tees  We are cutting tees twice a week, the Kikuyu encroachment on the couch tees has recovered from the herbicide applications however we have eliminated a lot of the kikuyu from the actual playing area. This control will continue.

Fairways We are cutting fairways twice a week; the growth regulation program is working well and giving the golfer a nice tight lie. I will take this opportunity to suggest that the fairways are in their current healthy condition even in these drought conditions mainly due to my wintergrass control program that I started nearly 3 years ago, the kikuyu is healthier and has less competition, and also the wintergrass would have been struggling in the summer heat.

Bunkers We are currently relocating the sand back into the playing part of the bunker, we try to achieve a flat base with steep sides, I will be making entry and exit points in the bunkers to allow easier access for our golfers, this will continue over the next few weeks, please do not walk up the steeper faces of the bunkers.

Machinery Our new Jacobsen Fairway mower has arrived and we are very impressed with all of its operational features, including easier setting adjustments, easier cleaning, cruise control and overall a better cut.

Trees and Gardens We have removed two large corals and one large pine tree from the right hand side of the 12^th fairway, this is a very time consuming job and is not always a maintenance priority.

Pathways We have enough road base to top up one more pathway, and again this is not a maintenance priority at the moment.

 Vandalism There are only a few burn marks on the 10^th fairway after the New Year fireworks, apart from this we are going well considering we are in the holiday period.

 Other projects

-          Garden work, trimming and mulching.

-          Round up spraying under pine trees, gardens, course boundaries and dams.

-          Tree maintenance.

-          Pathway repairs.                          

 Thank You  Mark Yates

Superintendents Report – November  2012

We had 24mm of rain for the month of November and recorded just 4 days of rain. The dry start to summer is continuing however the course is holding up well considering the dry warmer weather.

Greens

We have been verti-cutting and dusting the greens on a fortnightly basis to maintain a smooth consistent surface. The growth retardant is working well in suppressing the winter grass growth.

 Tees

Tees are being cut twice a week and are relatively weed free after being sprayed with a selective herbicide to eradicate the rye and winter grass, the Kikuyu has shown some recovery after the initial herbicide application and another application will take place in mid December.

Fairways

Fairways are going well with good recovery in some of the bare areas, frequent light fertilizing and growth retardant is continuing to improve the overall surface. Fairways are currently being cut twice a week

Bunkers

We have completed some bunker reshaping on the three bunkers near the 7^th green, this is to allow better access into the bunker for the golfer. More bunkers will be renovated in the future.

Machinery

The board of directors have decided to allocate funds for the purchase of a new Jacobsen fairway mower valued at $50,000, this machine will replace the current Toro mower that is nearly 10 years old and would need several thousand more dollars spent on it to keep it in reasonable working order.

The purchase will ensure a quality cut on the fairways and will be a valuable defense against future disease outbreaks because the grass will be healthier.

Trees and Gardens

We are concentrating on garden maintenance leading into the warmer months; this includes weeding, spraying, mulching and watering. There have been a number of trees and large branches come down over the Past month including a large coral on the 12^th.We have trimmed a lot of lower hanging branches on the 10^th dam, taking the opportunity while there is not a lot of water in the dam.

Pathways

We have completed the concrete pathway extension on the first tee, this will enable us to have better machine access to the tee and practice green.

Vandalism

There has been no reported damage to the course and only two flag sticks and rakes have been placed in the 10^th dam.

Other projects

-          Garden work, trimming and mulching.

-          Round up spraying under pine trees, gardens, course boundaries and dams.

-          Tree maintenance.

-          Pathway repairs.                          

Mark Yates

Course Superintendent

Greenkeepers Blog - October

Greens

Currently are in good condition. The wintergrass seed head is noticeable due to the dry conditions. When the winter grass becomes stressed it will throw out it’s seed heads. This isn’t a great concern it just makes the greens look a little off.

They have been fertilised with a soluble fertiliser and our primo spraying has begun. This will be done every 21 days until mid march. Currently cut at 3.5 mm with the walk mowers and 2.8 with the triplex

Tees

Are looking good for this time of the growing season. They have had two applications of a selective herbicide to take out the rye and winter grass. It also knocks the kikuyu around. We will be trying to eradicate the kikuyu out of the couch tees this summer. Currently mowed at 7.5 mm which is the same as the collars.

Fairways

As you may be aware the barer areas of the fairways are finally starting to grow in. They have just received there second hit of primo and fertiliser for the season. This will be repeated every 28 days as well as a foliar feed of soluble fertiliser. A second application of broadside will be going out on the 19^th of this month. Currently we are mowing the fairways with the triplexes at 7.5mm. We are doing this as our fairway mower is under repair and are for parts from America. That heght of cut is the equivalent of 10.5mm with the fairway mower.

Machinery

Fairway mower is awaiting parts. They should be here by next week or the next. We have had an expensive month in machinery repairs. All our cylinders have been sharpened in the past 6 weeks. This should hold us through till the new year. Cylinder sharpening is the best way to extend the life and quality of the cylinder. As I say, “sharp mower, sharp golf course”.

1^st tee Pathway Widening

Concrete has been pored and retaining put in place. Garden will be extended along the length of the path.

Yours in Golf

Will

Superintendents Blog – September  2012

 We had 9.5mm of rain for the month of September and recorded just 3 days of rain.

The last 3 months have been very dry with a total of 57mm of rain falling over the 111 days from mid June to the first week in October. However the drought broke in the first round of the men’s club championships with a steady drizzle all day producing 17mm.

Greens

Greens are not too bad at the moment with full cover and are reasonably smooth. There is a fair bit of winter grass seed at the moment but I am controlling this problem with regular use of turf growth retardants.

 Tees

Tees are being cut twice a week mainly due to the rye grass growth.

All couch tees will be sprayed with a selective herbicide to remove the rye grass and encourage the couch to be the dominant grass throughout the warmer months. Expect some discolouration of the tees over the next 3-6 weeks, it should not interfere with overall playing conditions.

Fairways

With the recent rainfall and with temperatures on the rise we should start to see some growth in the Kikuyu grass and recovery in the bare patches.

Fairways are currently being cut twice a week.

My growth retardant program will start shortly when I believe there is enough growth to promote horizontal growth. If you have any questions regarding the use of growth retardant products please do not hesitate to ask me for more information.

Machinery

We have recently purchased two milling machines for our work shop; this includes a metal lathe, and a pedestal drill/miller. This purchase will allow Justin (mechanic) to do more of our repairs in-house resulting in time and money savings.

Trees and Gardens

We are concentrating on garden maintenance leading into the warmer months; this includes weeding, spraying, mulching and watering.

Pathways

We will be concreting the pathway on the first tee on the 16^th of October.

Several other pathways have been topped up over the past month.

Vandalism

The only vandalism was from a disgruntled golfer near the cup on the 17^th green during the club championships, I can relate to his frustrations sometimes and I am sure it was just an accident.

Other projects

-          Garden work, trimming and mulching.

-          Round up spraying under pine trees, gardens, course boundaries and dams.

-          Tree maintenance.

-          Pathway repairs.                          

 Thank You  Mark Yates

 Superintendents Blog– August 2012

 We had 3.5mm of rain for the month of August and recorded just 2 days of rain. Greens have recovered well after early August renovations. Fairways are holding up ok considering the lack of rainfall.

Greens

The greens have recovered well after turf renovations (coring) in early August with the height of cut back to 3.5mm, we raised them to 5mm after renovations.

We verti-cut the greens in early September (just before the Holden scramble) this smoothed the greens out considerably. The greens have now just received some fertiliser and recovery will continue to progress.

Tees

With the temperatures starting to rise there should be a bit of growth starting on the couch tees over the next 4 weeks or so, the rye grass is still going well however it will be sprayed out just after the men’s club championships in October, this will allow the couch to grow without competition.

Fairways

Considering the lack of rainfall and some irrigation problems the fairways have held up fairly well although we haven’t had very high temperatures yet, my aim is to keep the fairways as health as I can until we get some welcome rainfall. The most noticeable areas are the parts of the fairways that have tree root problems particularly areas that have Eucalyptus trees i.e. 5^th and 7^th fairways.

We are in the middle of our annual broad leaf weed spraying for the removal of flat weeds and clover, for this we use a selective weed killer that does not harm the turf grass. A note to members if you intend on spraying your grass at home do not use roundup or any product with Glyphosate in it on your lawn even if you only spray the weed, the spray will translocate to the surrounding grass and kill it then the first thing to come back will be another weed. If you have any questions about weed spraying feel free to come and have a talk to me.

Bunkers

We have recently been able to screen several tonne of sand for the bunkers and place approximately 3 tonne in the back bunker on the 4^th and also 5-6 tonne in the front bunker on the 14^th.

Machinery

The new Cat skid steer loader has arrived and we have been able to start the clean up in the compound area near the green keepers shed as well as screen bucket and bunker sand.

The machine we purchased is a current model, with only 11 hours on the clock. It has mainly been used for demonstration days, the original price is $40000 we negotiated the price down to $33000 and received a further $3000 off for the trade in of our old machine. Through my research I believe we got a great deal with a lot of second hand machines still having asking prices of $25000+. I would expect this machine to be a 15 year plus purchase. The wood chipper is having a few hydraulic issues and we are currently investigating further so at the moment it is out of action.

Trees and Gardens

New tree plantings through winter are going well however they are requiring a bit of maintenance with watering due to the lack of rainfall.

Vandalism

There has been no vandalism recorded for the month of August.

I went for a dip in the 10^th dam with my waders on and recovered 10 flag sticks and 2 bunker rakes. Approximately $500 worth. 

Other projects

-          Garden work, trimming and mulching.

-          Round up spraying under pine trees, gardens, course boundaries and dams.

-          Tree maintenance.

-          Pathway repairs.                           

Thank You  Mark Yates

Superintendents Report – July 2012

We had 44mm of rain for the month of July and recorded 4 days of rain.

Fairways have shown a degree of wear from a couple of frost and through general traffic. Greens have run consistently for the month until we cored them in early August.

Very strong winds have been a problem with a lot of debris over the course. It certainly justifies the purchase of the Toro debris blower from last year.

Greens

There has been a small amount of the disease “winter Fusarium” in the greens, although not detrimental to the overall playing conditions, the disease was treated and the affected areas recovered in 2 weeks.

On the 6^th of August we renovated the greens (coring) this maintenance took two full days to complete and taking into account we waited for the trainee professionals to play on the Monday it was a great effort from my crew to get all holes back on to the greens for the Wednesday comp.

Tees

Tees are holding up well considering there is very little warmth in the soil to promote growth, the rye grass on the tees are striping up well particularly tee 17 when you drive past it on Federal ave.

Fairways

Spring is just around the corner although I’m not expecting much grass growth until at least mid October. We are in a much better situation than we were this time last year and I am predicting things to continually improve.

We are currently only cutting fairways when needed to reduce wear.

The reduction of winter grass present in the fairways has reduced the mowing requirements by more than half.

Bunkers

The bunkers have been wind blown and are in need of a lot of sand relocation back into the playing zone, this is a very time consuming task and will be carried out during normal hand raking of the bunkers during competition days.

Machinery

We are currently in the process of purchasing a new skid steer loader (bobcat); this will enable me to clean up the green shed compound and 12^th tee area.

Trees and Gardens

We have received several plant donations from our members over the past month and these plant have been used mainly around the 3^rd tee area. Thank you for your support.

Other projects

-     Garden work, trimming and mulching.

-     Round up spraying under pine trees, gardens, course boundaries and dams.

-    Tree maintenance.

-    Pathway repairs.

Thank You

Mark Yates

Superintendents Report – June 2012

We had 77.5mm of rain for the month of June and recorded 7 days of rain.

The course is holding up well so far in winter with the greens running ok, and fairway definition is still evident, although we are yet to have a frost on the course.

Greens

The greens are again running just above 9.5 feet consistently for the month.

I have scheduled in our annual greens renovation (coring) for either the first or second week in August depending on the weather, we need dry condition for the coring to work successfully. During the coring there will be either 9 holes closed each day or temporary greens on the fairways.

Tees

All Couch tees have been sprayed to remove the kikuyu, and then oversown with rye grass to fill in the bare areas and to maintain a good winter coverage and colour. The tees are currently cut fortnightly.

Fairways

Over the next few weeks there will be more traffic direction ropes put in the worn areas to help the grass to recover.

Fairways are being cut fortnightly.

Bunkers

Bunker maintenance is as normal with bunkers getting raked on competition days. We now only hand rake bunkers.

Machinery

The skid steer loader (bobcat) is the machine with the most problems, everything else is running well.

Trees and Gardens

The garden at the front of the first tee has been wood chipped and planted and now some pathway extensions will be carried out to widen the area for better vehicle and pedestrian access.

Two large branches were removed for safety reasons from the large coral tree between the 8^th fairway and 9^th tee

Pathways

No work on pathways has been carried out. But hopefully we will start some pathway improvements this month. We will be widening the pathway near the 1^st tee for better course vehicle access.

Vandalism

On Saturday 7.7.12 there was the usual flag stick and two rakes thrown into the pond on the 10^th, the culprit is clearly showing some improvement in their technique because they managed to hit the island in the 10^th water hazard, congratulations now stop doing it.  

Other projects

-          Garden work, trimming and mulching.

-          Round up spraying under pine trees, gardens, course boundaries and dams.

-          Tree maintenance.

-          Pathway repairs.

 Thank You  Mark Yates

Superintendents Report – May 2012

We had 11mm of rain for the month of May and recorded just 2 days of rain which was absolutely perfect for me to continue the disease control in the fairways, with the lack of moisture in the top of the soil profile it allowed me to irrigate when required without promoting conditions for the disease.

We have had some very strong winds over the past couple of weeks and although there has been a lot of debris on the ground there has only been 1 tree/vine on the left hand side of the 6^th fairway that needed to be removed.

David Canterbury who was a former apprentice greenkeeper at Kiama Golf Club and has since furthered his career by joining a larger club in Adelaide has recently been named Australian Apprentice greenkeeper of the year and for his efforts he receives an all expenses paid two month tour of the USA including trade shows, golf course tours, machinery manufactures, and study sessions at the Ohio university. I congratulate him on winning this prestigious industry award.

Greens  

The walk behind mowers are working well, with a lot of positive comments from members, the greens have ran consistently at about 9.5 feet for the month.

Tees

All couch tees have been spot sprayed with a non selective herbicide (Roundup) to help control the infestation of Kikuyu. The results have been very positive. Spot spraying will continue on the tee surround areas when weather conditions are favourable.

We are currently cutting tees once a fortnight.

Fairways

With the wintergrass program continuing on fairways there is not much grass to cut because the fairways are now predominately Kikuyu, we are currently cutting them once a fortnight, however this will reduce as the weather gets colder and there is less grass growth. We still have good fairway definition and colour.

Bunkers

Bunker maintenance is as normal with bunkers getting raked on competition days. We now only hand rake bunkers.

Machinery

The John Deere tees mower is now working again after having a few months out of action with engine problems and we also re-built the cutting units with new blades and bearings. Everything else is working well.

Trees and Gardens

The planting of the Casuarina trees on the fourth hole is now complete with only a bit of wood chipping to be finished, this area is to be treated as GUR and relief may be taken nearest point of relief no nearer the hole.

Forty plants were used in this area and they will provide an excellent protective screen for golf balls in the future.The veteran golfers have kindly donated $500 for the purchase of some plants, this money will be used to plant out the front of the 1^st tee (to prevent anyone from walking/driving off the tee, behind the 2^nd green and the 3^rd hill will also receive some new plantings, so thank you to the veteran golfers and their committee for your generous donation.

Pathways

No work on pathways has been carried out. But hopefully we will start some pathway improvements this month. We will be widening the pathway near the 1^st tee for better course vehicle access.

Vandalism

We had 5 flags and sticks stolen on Sunday 3^rd of June, lucky for the club a watchful member found them in the middle of the roundabout at the Oak Flats change over. On the following night 4.6.12 we had 12 flags and sticks stolen with two being found in the garden at Kiama council chambers and we still have ten missing. At a cost of $50 each it is a very serious offence and the police have been notified, so I ask all members or at least the few of you who actually read this to keep an eye out for the golf course and any stray equipment.We also had two ball washers stolen from the 2^nd and 4^th tees at a cost of $300 each, these were bolted to the steel posts but have now been removed.   

 Thank You   Mark Yates