White turf, Aerification and Interseeding- August

August is here and the weather continues to be wet, but with slightly below normal temperatures. The Grounds Staff and I have been engaged in a few projects across the golf course.

Aerification of the putting surfaces will begin on August 19, 20 and 21st. The golf course will be closed on the 19th but open for play on the 20 and 21st with temporary hole locations on certain holes. Aerification has been moved from late September to late August to allow for faster healing of the putting surfaces, reduce Poa encroachment and the golf calendar is slower during this period. A third aerfication of the putting surfaces is scheduled for late October.

Photo below is taken from a test area on south end of putting green- 6 days of healing

The Practice Bunker has been recently renovated, with removing sand on the face and regrassing to Zoysia grass to add resiliency to this area. The sand has also been replaced to mimic t the playing conditions and consistency of the bunkers on the course. This improvement was led in-part by the turfgrass interns.

After

Bermudagrass is considered a weed at HP, over the years the cooler winters and the warmer summers have allowed this grass to flourish. The hillside on 4 continues to be an area where Bermudagrass out competes tall fescue. Therefore, we continue to evaluate new herbicide treatments to reduce and hopefully remove the Bermudagrass. The recent application of the herbicide has turned the Bermudagrass white, this indicates that the herbicide is being translocated through the plant. We will apply two more applications to this area to hopefully cause decline of this weed.

6 days after herbicide application

Interseeding and aerification of the roughs with turf type tall fecsue has begun. With the cooler temperatures this year annual bluegrass has been more prevalent in these areas. This process will take about three weeks followed by multiple herbicide applications in the rough to reduce annual bluegrass.

The Bentgrass nursery on 4 has been expanded and we are patiently waiting for a forecast without flood watches or warnings to insure the seed will stay on the nursery. Two new cultivars of bentgrass will be evaluated in this area.

Bentgrass nursery and vegetable garden located behind 4 green

HP is in full bloom- thanks to Mary Bush

As always, we welcome your feedback on these and other initiatives on the grounds of Hyde Park.

Regards,

Pat O'Brien

Grounds Superintendent