The Halfway Point-Horticulture Update

We may be just past the halfway point in the season, but summertime annuals are starting to come on strong. Beds are filling in nicely with bright colors and clusters of flowers. While we may not be loving the recent blast of heat and humidity, the plants sure are.

Sun loving and drought tolerant plants are always a good choice for our area. A lot of petunias, verbena, lantana, coleus, and tropicals get used in our landscapes.

We had another quick little field trip with our Hort Intern, Arron, down to Yew Dell Botanical Gardens, just outside Louisville, KY. They had a great collection of perennials and nice shade gardens, as well as a mini arboretum with the likes of magnolias, hemlock, and elms, just to name a few.

Quick update on the horsetail bed. All plant material has been removed from the bed, except for the spruce. The horsetail was proving no match for the plant material already in the bed, as it was growing in all the places it could. After an herbicide application, it seems to be slowing down new growth development. We'll continue to monitor the situation and do whatever needs to be done to stop the spread.

 

 

Enjoy the second half of summer and stay tuned for a post on the evolution of the annual beds, early season vs end of season.

 

-Bryan Miller, Horticulturist

 

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August is here!

As I write this update 2" of rain has fallen at HP! The rainfall was welcome, however 2" at one time is a problem, saturating the soils. The months of June and July have had some extremes with hot and humid weather, typical of the Ohio Valley. The staff continues to move forward with excellent results, our biggest challenges during these hot and humid periods are controlling plant pathogens.

James applying fungicides to the putting surfaces

Our team makes many strategic fungicide applications to all surfaces to reduce the chances of an infection. A difficult plant pathogen to control that infects the roots of Annual Bluegrass is Summer Patch, since early July the Annual Bluegrass in the rough has showing decline from Summer Patch, fungicide applications at this point will not help. Innerseeding of Turf Type Tall Fescue in the rough will begin in the next couple weeks in the rough. Turf Type Tall Fescue is the ideal grass in this area.

Healthy fescue on the left/ Annual Bluegrass on right infected by Summer Patch

During the months of July and August a tremendous amount time goes into the planning process for fall projects and enhancements on the course. Some of the "potential projects" being evaluated include, tee enhancments, installation of additional fans on 6,7, 14 and drainage improvements on 13 and 18 green as well as the 17th fairway.

Added drainage is needed on 17 fairway

Fans aid in cooling the putting surfaces enhancing turf quality as noted on the 3rd green

A quick reminder that the aeration of the putting surfaces will take place the week of August 22nd, pending weather condtions

Thanks again to the entire HP Grounds Team for their hard work and the positive feedback from the entire membership!

Thank-you,

Pat O'Brien

Grounds Superintendnet

 

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