Course Notes, 8/20/2016

A brutal stretch of rain, heat and humidity is looking like it is coming to an end.  Within the last week, the golf course has received over 6.5" of rain, and more is pouring down as I write this.  Many areas to the west of Elcona have received double the amounts we have, so I count my blessings that rainfall has not been greater.  I would like to take a moment and explain what is causing what everyone is observing out on the course, mainly on the greens.

Soil conditions now course wide are quite saturated and currently cannot handle even small amounts of water quickly.  Combine these water logged soils with daytime highs in the mid to upper 80's and heat indexes approaching 100 degrees, and it does not take long to create soil temperatures above 85 degrees.  These conditions create prime environments for disease and turf struggles, as roots begin to die off and they do not come back until soil temperatures consistently stay below 80.  Roots and turf that do not die off are quite easily susceptible to fungal diseases.

Canopy temperature on 2 green, one day after a 4.5" rain event.  This is not good!

Pythium effects, 8 green

The brown areas of turf on some of the greens are areas that have succumbed to Pythium Root Rot.  This disease affects mainly the creeping bentgrass in the greens, as the healthy Poa annua surrounding it depicts.  With the weather and extreme soil temperatures we have experienced in the last 6 weeks, extreme environmental stress has finally shown us the symptoms of probable infection that occur during late spring.  We have treated all greens twice with fungicides to combat this pathogen, and a third will be coming this week.  A regularly scheduled venting of the greens is also coming Monday, which will allow us to poke .25" x 5" deep holes into the greens surface to dry out the rootzone and allow it to drain better, as well as promote new rooting and replacing harmful carbon dioxide in the soil with fresh oxygen.  The good news is that I am seeing new plant tissue emerge from many of these brown areas, a sign that the disease is in check and recovery is coming, which will be helped tremendously by the cooler weather coming this week.

Pythium effects, 3 green

Please note that recovery will take some time in these areas.   Any areas that do not recover will be plugged out from our nursery.  We have two large bentgrass/Poa nurseries that were established mainly plugs taken from our greens.  These nurseries are maintained exactly the same as the greens on the golf course and are an invaluable asset to have on hand.

Many of the collar edges and higher trafficked areas around the greens have also succumbed to the extreme stresses and traffic that the last 6 weeks have brought.  Populations of our old friend Poa trivialis (roughstalk bluegrass) that have emerged in the approaches have gone dormant from this weather.  Again, I am seeing new plant tissue emerging from these areas, so recovery is ongoing.

Rough bluegrass, April 30th on 11 approach

Same patch 8/12/16

While I am not satisfied by any stretch with these current issues and conditions, the overall health of the golf course is good.  We will continue to be diligent with our maintenance practices to aid recovery and utilize all means available to return normal playing conditions as soon as possible.

 Finally, we lost a quarter of the large Burr Oak near 5 green (affectionately known as "Gus") Saturday morning.  This tree is estimated to be about 250 years old, and there are many cables that have been installed over the years to stabilize and balance its weight.  This morning one of the cables snapped, causing the southeast part of the tree to fall.  It has since been re-cabled and stabilized, but the area will be roped off to cart traffic for the time being.

If you have any questions, or would like to discuss the topics I mentioned above with me, please contact me at ryan@elconacc.com, or call me at my office.  I am more than happy to discuss and explain what is happening on the course with you.

Ryan

Think dimmer switch, not light switch.

After a long and very difficult stretch of weather during most of July and the first part of August, many of the stressed areas on the golf course have begun to heal. When we come to the end of stretches like this (not that we have had one this severe before) it must be understood that we cannot, or will not, rush right back into our normal maintenance practices. Currently, we continue to mow at a slightly higher height of cut on the greens, but a rolling schedule is slowly being introduced since the density on the greens is improving.

The damage that occurred happened quite quickly, but it will take awhile to reach full recovery.  The best analogy I could come up with is a light switch.  We can't just flip a switch and be back to normal.  We have to slowly ramp back up (like a dimmer switch) until we reach normal conditioning. If we rush into recovery, we run a very high risk of taking a step backwards.  Obviously, this is not something we want to see happen.

Cutting Bentgrass sod from our nursery for use on the golf course

After the previous paragraphs, this next statement will probably sound a little hypocritical: I am not very patient when it comes to recovery. With that being said, a number of the larger areas in the fairways that were damaged from the Pythium Blight (see previous posts) are being repaired with sod, as opposed to waiting for seed to germinate.

Installing Bentgrass sod from the nursery on #18 fairway

When recovering from a summer like we have had, the importance of a good nursery is invaluable.  The Bentgrass that is grown on the fairway nursery (see picture) is the same type that is found on our fairways.  Because of this, when it is installed on the golf course, it is a near perfect match and should blend in immediately. We currently have two greens nurseries (established from plugs of the greens on the course), two Bluegrass nurseries and a very large Bentgrass tee/fairway nursery.  Each one of these nurseries is maintained like their corresponding areas on the golf course so that if the need arises, it can be used and have an immediate impact.

On the disease front, we continue to struggle with the disease Summer Patch (Magnaporthe poae). This is not a new occurrence and we have battled with it before. Luckily, it is not as widespread as it was a year ago. Fertility on the greens has been increased and multiple fungicide applications have been made to help with recovery.

An up close look at the hyphae from the Summer Patch pathogen on a root sample taken from one of our greens.

An area on #14 green that was affected by Summer Patch, but is now recovering. Notice the Bentgrass moving into the voids where the Annual Bluegrass was prior to infection.



Lastly, as we continue our recovery, I would like to thank the membership for their support during a year that nobody would like to repeat.  Knowing that there was support behind the tough decisions that were made and that there was, and still is, support as we heal and repair damaged areas, made the season a little more tolerable. This is not the end of the golfing season, hopefully just the end of the stressful weather, so get out and enjoy your golf course!





Elcona CC Field Guide to All Current Issues

Turf Quality

(Please click on photos for larger view)

When viewing these photos, please know that this has been and continues to be a very abnormal year and it is very rare that we face this many issues in a single season, let alone all at the same time.  Measures have been taken to address all of these issues.  With time and careful management, all of these symptoms will eventually be suppressed.



Physiological Decline (yellowing and thinning of turf) of Annual Bluegrass (Poa annua) in #18 fairway due to extreme heat and moisture.



Dormant Roughstalk Bluegrass (Poa trivialis). Turf still contains healthy stolons and if left in current state would recover, but not until next season.



Localized Dry Spots (LDS).  Notice the proximity and difference in moisture between the two samples.

Despite the fact that we have a fan, we still continue to have thin turf on sections of #12 green due to poor air circulation.



Current Disease Issues

The end result of Pythium in #18 fairway, as well some other smaller areas.  Turf dies in a matter of hours once infected.

Brown patch can be found on several tees.

Summer Patch (as well as a very poorly repaird ballmark) on #14 green.  This disease can also be found on several other greens.

Anthracnose on #16 green.  It can also bee seen on #2, 3, 12 and 15 greens.



Dollar spot from #6 tee.  This is very common and small areas can bee seen throughout the golf course from the tees to the rough.





Sometimes the Best Offense is a Good Defense

I realize that the course updates are starting to be published quite frequently now, and I also realize that this is going to sound like a broken record, but feel it is extremely important to communicate with the membership what is happening on the golf course.

Due to the extreme heat and humidity that we have been receiving for the last week or so, we are starting to see signs of stress caused by heat and disease throughout the golf course.  Within the last day we have seen a few different diseases appear on our fairways, tees and intermediate rough.  Because of the nature of one of these diseases in particular, we now need to take a more aggressive approach in protecting the turf throughout the golf course. On 7/22 all of the fairways and greens will be sprayed with a fungicide to better protect against further disease development.  As of today, we are planning on spraying the tees on 7/23 before play goes off the first tee in the morning.

All of these areas have been sprayed preventatively within the last week or two, but due to the severe conditions some breakthrough in the coverage has occurred. Hence, the need for additional applications.



Pythium fungus in Intermediate cut

   



Close-up of Pythium fungus

An additional change in our current management practices will be the alternating of mowing and rolling the greens.  At least for the next few days, greens will be rolled one day and mown the next.  This will allow for some additional leaf growth which will help the plant better defend itself against stressful conditions.

Dollar Spot

Brown Patch

Please keep in mind that these changes are only intended to be temporary and that the ultimate goal is to provide you with a golf course that you can be proud of during the Walter O. Wells Invitational as well as the rest of the year.  With that being said, until the heat and humidity begin to drop, we will continue to play defense.  As always, I encourage all of you to please contact me with any questions or concerns.