HIGHLAND CC GROUNDS

In an effort to control our thatch levels in our Tees and Fairways we will be beginning core aeration of these areas shortly after the Labour Day weekend. Thatch or Organic Matter is a byproduct of healthy turf grass. The season of 2014 has certainly lent itself to the production of very healthy turf. We core aerate our fairways every September as the weather is typically better and the days are cooler, which helps us avoid drought stress of newly cultivated turf. We will attempt to complete 2-3 fairways per day weather permitting. The process is as follows: 1.Core aerate the entire fairway 2. Once dry, a steel matt is used to break the soil from the cores. 3. With the use of 2-3 blowers, we blow the debris into the middle of the fairway. 4. We then use a sweeper to collect the debris and dispose of the material at our dump area. 5. We then dry mow the fairways to clean up any remaining debris. Tee aerification is a much quicker task due to size. Weather permitting, we will com...

    As some members may have noticed a peculiar "mould" on a few of our greens...it is actually called Silvery Thread Moss. This type of moss can tolerate the very low mowing heights and flourishes in moist, fertile environments. Currently we only have Moss on #6, the Upper Putting green and the Lower Putting green. In recent years a product called Quicksilver was registered in Canada for control of Moss. Last fall we began to make great strides in eliminating moss with applications of Quicksilver, but once the weather in October turned wet, our applications halted. Typically you would begin to apply the product in the spring, but with winter damage, new seedlings and already stressed out Poa we opted to hold off on control. Fortunately the more mild temperatures of August have allowed to start up control earlier than normal. This week we will start applying Quicksilver on a bi-weekly program to eradicate moss from our putting surfaces.

On Friday, August 8th we will be applying a light dusting of sand to our greens. This application will help to firm up and smooth the surface that has been softened by the recent rains. Once the sand dries we will matt it in with a cocoa fiber matt to help knock it down into the canopy. During this task there is virtually no disturbance to ball roll or play.

The weather in recent days has certainly provided some pluses and minuses!!! Consistent rain has kept the golf course growing nicely through the start of August, but also challenged our bunker management program. An incredible amount of labour has been sectioned to the bunkers. Removal of contamination, working the bottoms and raking the sides have eaten up the majority of our work force. Members will find the golf course playing a little softer and  slower over the next couple of days. Wet conditions and humidity are a recipe for lush conditions. Every effort will be made to provide consistent green speeds during these times. Disease pressure is on the rise as wet humid weather continues, but our plant protection program is designed to minimize any infection or occurrence.

I think that the season of 2014 will be known as the "catch up" season. At this point in the season we are still a bit behind. Herbicide applications used to control Broadleaf weeds that are typically done in early June, are just being applied this week. Clover has really "blossomed" with all of this wet weather, but we will have good control shortly. We will be slicing/solid tining our fairways in the coming weeks as the weather and golf schedule allow. This will help to relieve any added compaction from  traffic (mowing and general wear and tear) on the fairways. Soils will typically compact in a shorter period of time when wet conditions persist. As always our topdressing and venting programs will continue on greens as needed. We will be applying a light dusting of sand to our greens following the Senior Ryder Cup on Monday evening (July 14th). The sand will then be dragged in with our Cocoa Matt, knocking it down into the canopy. Just a quick reminder about b...

We have had a great stretch of weather recently and the grass is really starting to grow. The golf course is beginning to resemble summer conditions and aesthetics. Along with summer conditions comes summer cultural practices. These tasks are required to continue optimal playing conditions while keeping the turf happy and healthy. Next Monday, June 30th we will be topdressing and venting our greens before play. This is a very non-disruptive practice that reaps huge benefits for our greens. Venting and sand incorporation helps to keep our greens breathing and smooth for play. Following this process the greens will be rolled and the 1/8" holes will be virtually unnoticeable to the eye and golf ball! As you can see from this picture, the tines are half of the size of a pen.

It finally feels like the golf season is upon us. The poor weather this spring has delayed a lot of routine practices. I truly feel that we are still a few weeks behind in our typical routine. Below is an update on our most recent projects and tasks: Sodding and repair work: As most will notice we have completed a lot of sod work on our tees. The winter injury that we experienced was not recovering as we had hoped, so we decided to force mother nature's hand and sod the affected areas. We are fortunate to have a decent sized turf nursery to strip the sod from. We will now begin the process of growing in a new T1 Creeping bent grass nursery for future use. We have also completed the sodding of the area adjacent to the 11th green. Previously this area was thin and spotty due the pine/spruce trees that were once there. Capital Drainage: Phase 2 of our Capital drainage project was also completed in early June. Once again TDS Drainage did an outstanding job  on site. One woul...