Zoysia grass, Dormancy and Cart Traffic

The zoysia grass continues to prepare for the winter months, the golden hue is becoming more evident. The fairways have stopped growing, in fact the last mowing was almost 3 weeks ago. Wet conditions, shade and cart traffic are the right recipe for damage to the zoysia grass. The recent wet, cool and gloomy days have not been condusive for adequate drying to occur. These limitations have left the carts on the path for most of this week. These conditions are monitored on a daily basis to determine the status of carts. This afternoon, a short trip on 13 fairway revealed that the soil conditions are still wet to allow cart traffic noted by the mud tracks from my cart. This time a year due to the length of day, angle of sun and temperatures most times a single sunny day is often enough to dry the turf out.

Heavily shaded areas on 9 and 18 and similar areas see very little sunlight this time of year. Damage from cart traffic will only enhance the chances for increased winter damage.

Please check with the Proshop or follow us on Twitter @pobrienhpgcc for the latest on projects and daily course conditions.

Thank-you,

Pat O'Brien

Grounds Superintendent

 

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