Course Notes, 8/4/17

The weather this summer (so far) has been quite different that the last 2 summers.  Instead of a solid 5-7 day stretch of hot, humid weather, we have held relatively around normal each day.  Rainfall has been very timely, and with exception to last night's 2" rain received in 45 minutes, the amounts have been manageable and not overbearing.  While the turf at Elcona is healthy and in great condition, I wanted to take a minute and update you on other happenings around the property.

The staff has been busy with our annual sand replacement on 3 greenside bunkers.  This year, the back right 2 bunkers on #3 and the far left bunker along 7 green are the targeted bunkers.  There is much more to this refurbishment than just adding sand.  First, all the older sand is removed.  Since this sand is still usable, we select areas in fairway bunkers to add this too.

Sand removed

Jose spreading used sand in 4 fairway bunker

Compacting new sand

Finished product

After adding fresh sand to the greenside bunker, the sand is lightly watered down before a vibratory plate compactor is ran over the surface multiple times.  This compactor helps lessen the fluffy effect new sand can have and make it as consistent as possible to the other bunkers.  

Bumblebee enjoying flowering Joe Pye Weed 

Honeybee on Black Eyed Susan

We have also noticed many of our winged friends enjoying some of the beautiful wildflower areas as well.  15's pond bank has exploded in color, as well as the smaller pond on #3.  The swamp milkweed in the Rain Garden has grown to over 10 feet in height and is flourishing, all the while helping filter out any possible impurities in our equipment wash water.  Creating and maintaining these pollinator habitats continues to be a focus of the club's Audubon efforts.

Eastern Carpenter Ant

A few of you have asked me about another insect visitor that has made its mark lately at Elcona.  During the day, some greens have small soil mounds appear on them.  These are mainly due to the Eastern Carpenter Ant.  These ants are worker female ants looking to form new colonies with their burrowing.  They mainly feed on seeds and honeydew from aphids and mealybugs.   Normally treatment is not required, since this ant provide beneficial natural control of other pests to turf, such as the cutworm.  We try to set high thresholds when it comes to evaluating whether to treat or not, to limit the footprint we set on the environment.  If the mounds start to significantly impact playability on the greens, we will treat.

Eastern Cicada Killer

Cicada Killer in 6 bunker

Finally, many of you have noticed large “bees” burrowing into the bunkers and fairways.  These are actually Eastern Cicada Killer Wasps.  Although their large size and swarming can be intimidating, they are a non-aggressive wasp that avoid direct contact with humans and will not sting you unless you really agitate them for a prolonged period of time.  They are much more interested in finding cicadas for lunch then spoiling your day.  Control of these wasps is quite difficult and unless they are burrowing into greens and fairways causing damage, is not necessary.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at the maintenance facility.  Have a great week and I hope to see you out on the golf course!

Ryan

2015 Audubon Review

October is the time of year where I start to take stock in all of our programs, review my notes from throughout the year, and begin forming plans for 2016.  One area that is always on my thoughts is Elcona's Audubon program.  This year our goal was to complete 4 main projects, two of them were centered around increasing pollinator populations.

Nesting evidence on #14 

This past winter, my assistant Kyle and I built 3 wood duck homes and placed them along ponds on #'s 3 and 14, as well as deep in the woods north of 13.  Both houses had evidence of bird activity this year, as the picture on the left shows, but this nest building was from other birds.  One observation from a member was that #3's house was located too close to golf traffic and made it unattractive for wood ducks, which I agree with.  We will be moving it farther south away from #4 tee.  My hope is that someday ducks will utilize these as safe havens to produce their offspring.

Seed to Feed Garden, June 15

Yellow squash

The Seed to Feed garden that I have mentioned multiple times over the past year was a dual achieving project.  One obvious achievement was that, thanks to all members who volunteered their time to maintain it, 6,129 pounds of cucumbers, yellow squash, zucchini, and Dickinson pumpkins were harvested and given to our local food pantries.  That is an awesome amount of produce for our first year.  Also, the garden also served to increase the area for pollinating insects.  One third of our world's food supply is dependent on the help of pollinating insects.  Their populations have decreased some 30% over the last few years, due to multiple biotic and abiotic stresses.  By planting many areas of flowering plants, Elcona can help sustain the local bee population and continue to be a good steward of our community's ecosystem.

Milkweed stand left right of 17

Monarch caterpillar on Milkweed

There were spots in our native areas that we left unmown all year that contained significant milkweed populations.  Milkweed is the main food source for Monarch butterfly caterpillars.  This provided some nice habitat areas for these butterflies to flourish and complete their transformation to butterflies.

Rain garden, July 25th

Bee on a Purple coneflower

We have also multiple areas of wildflower plantings that are in various stages of maturity.  The rain garden that was built in 2012 thrived again this year, with some plants (swamp milkweed) reaching 10 feet in height! There were days that over 100 bees and other pollinators could be seen flying flower to flower, a neat sight for sure.

Area for 2015 plug plantings

Butterfly weed plugs

Wildflower plugs, consisting of cone flower, butterfly weed, and foxglove beardstongue species, were planted west of 12 green.  These plus will, over time, spread via their seed and also provide some great color for that area of the golf course.

Designated OP area on #16

We also seeded additional wildflowers to the left of 16 in our designated "Operation Pollinator" area, as a test of establishment in this fashion.  While this area does not look like much is going on except for fox tail and thistle populations going wild, we are seeing 8 species of different wildflowers taking shape, as the pictures below indicate.  The areas that I planted plugs in last year produced some flowers this year, and began to spread in area, albeit very slowly.

Greg Stump pointing out Coreopsis plants

Black eyed Susan

Gallardia species 

Bachelor Button species

My plan of attack in this area for next year is to renovate the areas that have weeds and grasses in them, and reseed with a wildflower/bluestem seed mixture.  This will decrease the thick grassy weeds and thistle and hopefully provide a more uniform stand of grasses and flowers.  Also, we will be much more proactive in removing any weeds in this area that do germinate.  Finally, we will widen the area of play to create a little more space between the native area and the fairway for any wayward lay up shots, as currently there is only 12 yards between the two.

Our final project was to invite a local birding group for a nature walk along the club's nature trails.  In late May I hosted two individuals from the South Bend/Elkhart Audubon Society, and while they were impressed with Elcona's property and efforts, we were not able to get on their calendar for this year.  Tentatively, we are on their 2016 calendar for a group visit.

Speaking of 2016, Elcona's Audubon committee is meeting this month and will consider many ideas that I will share as the year draws closer to an end.  You can be sure that all will further emphasize Elcona's commitment to both its local ecosystem and the well being of our community. I appreciate your continued support and participation in Elcona's Audubon program, and for giving me the opportunity to learn and grow as a steward of this great property.  If you have any questions, please contact me at ryan@elconacc.com.

Ryan