Green surround rough

We continue to battle the rough surrounding the greens. We are in a better position this year than years’ past, but we still have a long way to go.

We have written before about the deficiencies in the irrigation system. There are also some issues with the irrigation around the greens. The sprinklers water in arcs, aimed away from the greens. The specific rough sprinklers are adjustable, to keep extra, unwanted water from hitting the greens. However, there is an inherent problem with the entire setup: the edges of the arc are straight lines that do not wrap around the curves of the greens. What we are left with is some small and some large triangles of grass that receive no irrigation.

A crude representation of #7 green. The blue
lines represent the straight lines at the
end of the sprinkler arc. The red shows where
the water does not hit. We hand water the red areas.

To combat this, we instituted a hand watering program. This year we spent more time hand watering than we have in any other year. By using a hose and watering the first 10 feet of rough surrounding the green, we saw a definite improvement. However, we are unable to water on every single “irrigation day” (days without rain and separated from previous rainstorm). We watered 2-3 days per week as needed throughout the season and it helped improve the rough, but it was still short of ideal. We don’t currently have the man-power to water every single day required. The rough held up much longer but by the end of the long summer, it is beginning to decline again. We will continue the hand watering effort and look for creative ways to accomplish the watering while still completing all other necessary tasks.

We also will be seeding the rough again this year. Seeding is another of our programs that has helped conditions. We use tall fescue seed which is heat and drought tolerant. As we incorporate more tall fescue, the percentage of other, weaker grasses is lowered. As the weaker grasses are eliminated, more healthy grass remains through the season.

Lastly, we think there may be a previously undetected or newly arrived insect hurting the rough as well. The Annual Bluegrass weevil is a very destructive pest on our collars and sometimes greens. It has become one of the most devastating pests in the entire Mid-Atlantic and East Coast. It is not supposed to eat the roots of taller grass like rough. Our greens are almost entirely Poa annua, or Annual bluegrass, which it loves and finds readily. We also have annual bluegrass in the rough, which it may be using as a supplement. We are not finished testing this theory yet, and may not find definitive proof this season, however we have reason to believe this pest may be doing just enough feeding to aid in the collapse of some of the turf around the greens. Thus, we will be making a few adjustments to our pesticide program for next season as well as increasing our monitoring in the rough.

We are not making excuses, nor do we think the problem is solved. We continue to tweak our programs and adjust based on past observations and current conditions. We are working on the issues regarding the rough around the greens in order to make as good as it should be.

Etiquette Reminder of the Month

When parking your cart at a tee or green, please keep all 4 tires on the path

Also, as part of a Golf Committee initiative to improve course etiquette, we have included links to videos teaching proper on course etiquette. Please take a moment to watch:

Ball Marks - How to properly repair

Bunker etiquette

See you on the course!

Joe

jvillegas@bwrc.org