The Summer is FINALLY Over!

Clean-up and Slow Recovery Underway Following a Tough August for Turf Managers Peter H. Dernoeden, Ph. D.

Image 1) Excessive water from thunderstorms and hot days killed a lot of turf in August, 2016. Image 2) Large turf areas on this pocketed green likely were killed by mowing during a wet wilt event; Aug. 2016.

August 2016 was hot and shattered the record for the number of day temperatures exceeding 90ºF. High night temperatures (75ºF +) and high night humidity (70% +) stifled growth and promoted diseases. To add insult to injury, there were numerous heavy thunderstorm events. Excess water kills more grass on golf courses in summer than too little.  Excessive irrigation or heavy thunderstorm activity during summer can lead to problems such as scald and wet wilt. When water saturates thatch-mat (many roots are found in this layer in summer) and soil, oxygen is displaced from pore spaces and carbon dioxide increases. Roots need oxygen to survive and when pore spaces and thatch/mat are filled with water there is not enough oxygen to sustain the root system. Heat stress injury to the root system is accelerated in hot and wet soils.  Scald and wet wilt often occur simultaneously, producing similar symptoms and results. In many cases, damage was intensified by mowing during a scald or wet wilt event.

Image3) Sod is the only way to get greens back in play in a reasonable amount of time; Aug. 2016. Image 4) MSMA killed the bentgrass, but left bermudagrass unscathed in this approach; Aug. 2016.

Excessively hot and wet soils caused preemergence herbicides to breakdown rapidly by promoting their microbial decomposition, and large areas became inundated with crabgrass as well as goosegrass in compacted areas. Loss of turf density released Kyllinga to unmanageable levels. MSMA used to target goosegrass in bermudagrass killed cool-season grasses inadvertently contacted, while having little effect on the weed. On the upside, the drought from late August to mid-late September (regardless of irrigation) delayed annual bluegrass germination. Thus, early Poa competition was eliminated   for those who cored and/or verticut recently. As a consequence of severe turf loss, some greens and tees were re-grassed with sod.

Image 5) Tall fescue seeded into dead Kentucky bluegrass. Photo taken 21 days following renovation showing seedlings struggling with heat stress and rapid thatch drying in full sun areas; Aug. 2016.

I always have viewed late August as the “ugly time” for turf. Normally, the shorter days and generally cooler nights would help to speed turf recovery. Unfortunately, most of September was greeted with continued severe levels of heat stress, and was rain-free for about three weeks in most areas of the region. Overseedings performed in late August yielded weak, open turf and in some cases seedlings failed to survive. Tall fescue seedlings in renovated Kentucky bluegrass lawns and roughs struggled in large part due to dense thatch where the slicer-seeder could not get seed deep and below the thatch layer to make soil contact. Compounding the problem was lack of rain and thatch layers rapidly desiccated – even where irrigation was available.  Every turf manager appreciates that a soaking rain is superior to irrigation because of the uniformity of water deposition, and possibly a little nitrogen in the precipitation as well as better penetration of water and oxygen into soil. Had a few sufficient rain events occurred around Labor Day, most overseedings would have resulted in a much better catch. As a result of the heat and drought, many areas will require hand overseeding and special attention to hand irrigation in thin and/or bare areas to avoid overwatering greener areas. Turf managers must now be careful with their water management and scout daily for threats of damping-off diseases like brown patch and Pythium blight.

Image 6) Pythium damping-off in immature tall fescue. Image 7) Overseeded fairway awaiting rain to promote better germination; Aug. 2016.

The Greens Were Great! Why Aerate?

MID SUMMER UPDATE

Its midsummer update time so I wanted to inform you on course conditions and programs in place to ensure sustainable quality turf.  The golf course has received numerous complements since the start of the season but some summer stress is becoming evident.  We are in our typical battle with Mother Nature having received 12.32” of rain in the past 45 days.  Couple that with high temps and humidity and you have all the ingredients needed for disease pressure and stress on cool season grasses.  With that being said, we are holding our own and continually monitoring for disease activity.  Our standard preventive spray program interval is every 14 days.  Currently we are spraying fairways every 7 days to hold back fungal growth.  With each rain event fungal pathogens gain strength as saturated soils take time to drain and the accompanying high temps create a petri dish.  This is mostly evident in the swales and low spots that transport and hold water. 

The chart below shows the projected weather along with growth potential (GP) for cool season grasses.  A red GP indicates heavy disease pressure.  Let the countdown begin!

	7/29   Wed	7/30   Thu	7/31   Fri	8/1   Sat	8/2   Sun
Max F	89	92	91	93	92
Min F	73	69	68	68	68
Avg F	81	81	80	81	80
Max C	32	33	33	34	33
Min C	23	21	20	20	20
Avg C	28	27	27	27	27
Cool GP	43	43	49	43	49
Warm GP	84	84	80	84	80
Conditions	Chance of a Thunderstorm	Chance of a Thunderstorm	Clear	Clear	Clear

GREENS

The greens are performing extremely well.  We do have some thinning on White #2 and Blue#7 in the back, but is minimal given the weather pattern.  This is better than last season but still not to our standards.  We have implemented the use of hex plugs this season as needed to improve play ability.

Our program for greens/tees continues to include vent aerating every two weeks with small pencil sized tines to promote proper gas exchange in the soil and promote drying.  Turf that can’t breathe can’t grow.

TEES

Tees are showing signs of wear and heat stress.  We will be expanding our tee marker placement to spread the wear across more area.  We found some irrigation head issues that resulted in hot spots.  They have been repaired and with a little TLC they will be a distant memory.

FAIRWAYS

Ryegrass – Ryegrass – Ryegrass      How I Love Thee in July and August.

The fairways to this point have performed as expected.  We have a few areas of disease breakthrough, but minimal impact on playability.  As I stated early, our plant protectant intervals have been compressed to hold off the disease charge.  They are holding steady and overall the ryegrass is performing well.  What used to spell disaster has been met with better performing turf.

Cultural Programs – Coming Soon!

Aerification/Seeding – September

Weed Cleanup – September/October

Fall Fertility - October

Poa Annua control application – November/December

Deep Tine Aerification – Spring 2016

ROUGHS/SURROUNDS

Last season we began a program of treating a 20’ pass outside the fairways with plant protectants.  The discoloration you see outside the fairways is a result of two factors.

1.)    A targeted herbicide application for the weeds: nutsedge and kyllinga.

2.)    Heat Stress on the Poa Annua (Annual Bluegrass) Our ultimate goal is to minimize the poa population on the course.  Poa is just not reliable in this region and we have just about eliminated it in the fairways with years of herbicide treatments and over seeding.  We hope to expand our treatment areas to include Green and Tee surrounds and more rough.  The good news is Mother Nature has helped us out.  The bad news is, it’s on her time table and reseeding will have to wait until temperatures moderate.

Green/Tee surrounds are being treated with granular plant protectants due to the fact a spray machine can’t access the sloped surround areas.  This program has alleviated the damage received in previous years from Brown Patch and other pests.

WEEDS

My weed control program consists of a pre-emergant herbicide application made in early April.  The coverage and timing has been good and I don’t see significant crabgrass/goosgrass breakthrough.  It is designed to last until we over seed fairways in September.  You will see some patches of orange in the fairways/rough that is the result of a post- emergant herbicide for a weed called nutsedge.  Clover will be treated as we get closer to aerification and over seeding to minimize any voids in the fairways.

NATIVE AREAS

Weed control in these areas has been a high priority yielding a much cleaner look.  Multiple applications have been made and more are needed.  These treatments will have to wait until we can lengthen our spray interval on fairways.  Disease control will take priority with the labor and equipment force.  Last fall we performed aggressive weed removal and seeding.  This has given mixed results and I will modify some and return others to Tall Fescue.

PRIORITIES

Exceeding Member Expectations

Disease Control - minimizing turf loss

Native Areas – Weed control and trimming to promote clean appearance.

Minimize Poa Annua in the rough.

ENTER SANDMEN

Part of our yearly program is refurbishing the practice area bunkers.  I really should say bunker in the singular because the front side bunker receives the majority of use.  Each morning the bunker team for that day redistributes the sand with the goal of achieving uniform sand depth.  Over the course of use however the sand is flashed onto the bank.  Players will continue to blast the sand until they've reached the gravel layer and then to the drain itself.  Self maintenance while practicing is required.  I ask that while you are practicing, please rake the sand back from the bank and leave the bunker  
so every member can enjoy the facility.

Thank you for your support

TURF TOOLS - "What is that thing?"

As the weather warms, many suspected pest problems turn out to be drought problems instead. This is not surprising, since the symptoms of drought stress are very similar to the symptoms caused by many turf diseases and insects.

The culprits involved in drought stress range from poor irrigation distribution to localized dry spot to pump failures, to contour issues and/or surface sealing.

Whatever the causes, it is very important to avoid drought stress — for both obvious and not–so–obvious reasons. The immediate damage is of course unsightly. That is the obvious part. But the hidden problem is that because soils that completely dry out are very difficult to re-wet, drought stress can end up being a gift that keeps giving — throughout the summer — as water-repellent soils remain bone–dry, unable to support turf growth and recovery.  To alleviate this issue, we apply a soil wetting agent each month from April-September to help provide uniform wetting and moisture penetration.

To detect drought stress before serious damage occurs, we use a hand–held TDR 300 soil moisture probe , outfitted with 4.8 inch rods, from Spectrum Technologies. On sand-based greens, we target 15-25% volumetric water content for healthy turf.  I like to irrigate to 35% and let the soil dry down to between 10-15%.  This allows the green surface to remain firm yet provide ample moisture for the roots.  The data collected is mapped and then we are able to target apply irrigation, making better use of our water resources.

We put a HEX on 7 Blue Green

The two main challenges with maintaining the back edges #7 Blue Green are shade and traffic pattern.  Morning sunlight if critical for sustained turf vigor and quite frankly we were allowed to remove as many trees as needed during the CRI project.  The traffic wear is a result of the exit point from the back of the green to the cart path.  Repairs were made utilizing our turf nursery and a hex plugging tool. Hex plugs allow us to repair the area completely by puzzling the pieces together without gaps.  Although more labor intensive to install, plugs perform better than sod during this time of year due their increased root mass.  In a few weeks these plugs will blend in with the rest of the
putting surface.

Repair In Progress

Turf Nursery  Between 1R & 9W

STAIRWAY TO SEVEN

Led Zeppelin would be proud!

After a delay from the sod farm, we have completed the Stairway to Seven.  

The grading and sod installation wrapped up just in time for a nice soaking rain.  This stairway will provide a much safer descent from the back of the green to the cart path. One thing to keep in mind, is that we will have much more wear and traffic on the back of the green as golfers exit.

DAY 1

FINISHED PRODUCT

A View from the Rough

I want to update you with a spring “state of the course” report and address an issue I see currently affecting your golfing experience.  The golf course has received numerous complements since the start of the season but one subject has been consistent from most members I speak with -  ROUGH!

“The rough is too thick”

“I can’t find my ball”

“Have you raised the height of cut?”

And my favorite – “do you hate us?”

Allow me to give you a brief history of our rough.  When I first started at ANCC 20 years ago, the rough was just that – ROUGH.  It was sparse and inconsistent and the desired turf was bluegrass and perennial ryegrass.  These two varieties do not thrive in our Mid-Atlantic summers and are disease prone.  In 2005, I changed our management practices to promote tall fescue.  This included spring/fall aerification and over seeding along with an aggressive organics program to help modify the poor soil.  The height of cut has remained consistent since that time.  The result is what you see today, thick healthy turf that can withstand more environmental stress.

The unintended consequence however is a difficult spring golfing experience.  It bears repeating that we have NOT ‘raised the mowers’ as some have suggested.  Nonetheless, based on generally improved turf stand and conditions, the rough has become too penal and we will be making an adjustment to the height of cut (HOC) until summer temperature take hold.  Depending on the weather patterns, I will raise the height back to current standards in order to maximize plant health and playability. 

  

NOT AN OVERNIGHT PROCESS

Lowering the HOC will take 7-10 days.  Starting on Monday May 18^th the HOC will be lower and clippings will be abundant.  Clipping removal is labor intensive and will take priority over other maintenance activities during this time.  

WEEDS

All maintained turf has been treated with a pre-emergent herbicide application made in early April.  The coverage and timing has been good and I don’t see significant crabgrass breakthrough.  It is designed to last until we over seed fairways in September.  Post-emergent broadleaf weed control will continue as needed.

NATIVE AREAS

Weed control in these areas has been the highest priority yielding a much cleaner look.  Multiple applications have been made and will continue.  As they have matured, some have become too penal and just don’t fit the landscape. These will be modified or removed.  Last season we removed the native grasses between the fairway and #7 Blue Tee and seeded to Tall Fescue.  Although still tough, the golfer now has a chance to advance the ball.  

PRIORITIES

Exceeding Member Expectations

Continue to raise the bar on course conditions.

Native Areas – Weed control and trimming to promote clean appearance. Modify selected areas to promote pace of play and golfing experience. 

Sincerely,

Carmen A. Giannini, Jr.

Golf Course Superintendent