Wet times

Well…careful what you wish for! (Though we did not ask for downpours and damaging storms.) Last week we discussed how dry it was, and now we will discuss how wet it is. Since Wednesday, the 22^nd we have received 4.5” of rain (as of writing this on the 26^th).

We had a storm drop 2.5” and another produce 1.25” in short periods. This much rain does not help dry soil conditions much because most of the water just runs straight across the land. We did get a couple slower, soaker-type storms also. But now we are too wet, and this is not the time of year to be too wet.

A picture of the water rushing down
18 fairway during the storm that 
totaled 2.5"

When the rain comes that fast and heavy the first problem is the damage to the bunkers. The sand, and sometimes the soil below the sand, moves with the water from high to low. This is not the first and most certainly won’t be the last time we discuss what heavy rains do to the bunkers. We will be back at it again, repairing and raking this week.

Regular maintenance also becomes difficult or impossible when it suddenly turns this wet. Labor must be used for repair work. Debris cleanup must be done before mowers can cut the turf. And the soil is likely too wet for our machines anyway. We quickly fall behind and are trying to play catch up, and in the case of this last week, just when we think we are caught up, the next storm hits. The Bermuda grass especially at this time of year gets too long very quickly. It thrives in hot, humid, and wet conditions. We will work as quickly as possible to get the main surfaces back into shape.

Probably the most difficult problem with all these storms is the diseases that arise. One in particular, Pythium, becomes active when it is hot (check), humid (check), and when the soil is saturated (check). Pythium can progress from absent entirely to infection and deatht to the turfgrass in just a few hours. Though we treat preventively for this disease, when the conditions are as conducive as they were this past weekend, breakthrough is inevitable. We had some Pythium strike on the putting green that we were able to spot treat to buy time before a blanket application could be made. Nevertheless, some damage was done. We are headed into aeration next week so we should be able to get some recovery and healing.

Radar screenshot courtesy of Bryan Bupp.
The target symbol is BWRC and
notice the location of 1 of the only 2 blips on the screen.

Radar screenshot courtesy of Chris Convey showing the same storm.

I did not take my own screenshot because I wanted no reminder
of what damage might occur!

Lately it seems the weather swings from one extreme to the other. Almost a month with an inch of rain total then 4.5” in 4 days, including what seemed like our own personal storm. We will continue to take it one day at a time to get the course back into shape.

 

Also, please note that we will be aerating 8/3-8/5, with 9 holes closed each day. Thank you

 

Etiquette Reminder of the Month

Golf carts must always remain on cart paths once past the green and white posts, through the next tee complex. This is not weather dependent!

 

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

Dry times

To say that it is dry right now is an understatement. The pond level is low, rough is brown, and even the Bermuda grass is dry in places.

One of the greatest advantages of having Bermuda grass tees and fairways is the ability of the turf to withstand a drought. Bermuda grass is like any other plant; it likes and needs water. However, the key is that the Bermuda can survive on much less water and for a much longer time between watering. Any cool season turf- bentgrass, ryegrass, poa annua- would all need to be constantly watered through this time to varying degrees.

Look closely, the 2 brown lines are where
the old cart path used be.

The rough is also showing signs of drought stress. Under trees, cart path edges, and anywhere irrigation does not reach has lost all its green color. Most of our rough is non-irrigated, the exception being a few rough sprinklers that are strategically located around some fairway bunkers that we do use a little more regularly. So, the rough only gets water from the sprinklers that are in the fairways, so it is accustomed to long stretches of little water. Noted in the previous paragraph, we have severely limited the amount of water we are putting on the fairways, so the rough is in the same boat. Though, since it is trained to use less water, most of this grass will bounce back once we do get some adequate soil moisture.

Our irrigation water comes from the pond on 17. We can refill that pond by partially diverting the creek that runs across the property near tennis. When we are in desperate need for more water, we are also able to pump directly out of the Potomac river. This is how the pond was initially filled and the capability remains. We are approaching time for this action if we do not receive some rain soon.

The other aspect that comes with relying on irrigation alone, is the long-term inefficiencies of the system. An irrigation system is designed to bridge the gap between rain events; not substitute for rain for an extended period. When we rely on the sprinklers for long stretches, we start to see some problems. Areas that get poor coverage start to get dry, even though there may be sprinklers nearby. Conversely, some areas start to get too wet because when trying to water a dry area, we sometimes must also water a wet area at the same time. We minimize this by using hoses and very accurately applying the water exactly where we want it, but we can only use hoses so much.

Hopefully, talking about how dry it is will bring some rain! Otherwise, we will continue to carefully apply water to those areas that need it most.

 

Also, please note that we will be aerating 8/3-8/5, with 9 holes closed each day. Thank you

 

Etiquette Reminder of the Month

Golf carts must always remain on cart paths once past the green and white posts, through the next tee complex. This is not weather dependent!

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

New water cooler stations

Recently we were able to start replacing the water cooler stations on the course. 4 are complete and in place, with another 4 to go.

Not only were the old water cooler stations old, but they were also very unattractive. Due to their age, they had begun to fall apart. We made repairs over the years to hold them together, which helped, but was more of a band-aid than a cure. And doing the repairs all at different times lead to each water cooler looking different from the others. It was time for a fresh start.

The old style

Transporting the new station out,

Setting in place

Over last winter and into the spring, we constructed 4 new stations from recycled plastic material. This material is similar to that used for the trash cans and the benches. We did not build the trash cans, but we did build the benches. We chose to match the color scheme throughout. All of these items are now much more capable of handling being out in the elements year-round.

The design and size of the new water cooler stations is very similar to the old ones. They are slightly smaller overall, and slightly shorter. The shelf that the water cooler itself sits on is slightly lower also. This makes it that much easier for us to get the very heavy cooler up into the station.

Though this does not affect a person’s golf game, we know how important water is to each player. Now the water cooler stations will look better and as time allows, we will get the other 4 built and replaced very soon.

Etiquette Reminder of the Month

Golf carts must always remain on cart paths once past the green and white posts, through the next tee complex. This is not weather dependent!

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

Summer needle-tine aeration

Back in June we started our annual summer practice of venting the greens. Using very small “needle” tines we poke holes to allow oxygen into the soil. Starting today, we are working through the course for a second time.

Critical components to turfgrass health struggle when it gets hot. The plants cannot take up water like they need, root growth stops or even regresses, the plant cannot transpire to cool itself, and the soil oxygen level can get too low. We try to manage or alleviate all these issues through several different tactics. The soil oxygen level is specifically corrected through the cleverly named practice of aeration.

Aeration is something we do several times per year. Springtime is when we open the soil up after the long winter and get microbes working again, water moving through the profile, and air to the roots to initiate spring growth. We also aerate in the late summer. Many courses will time this practice for later in the fall; ours is timed to coincide with Bermuda grass aeration as well as give the greens a needed break after the bulk of the summer. The late summer aeration is less about growth and more about relieving the stress that the plant is under from the heat, etc.

During the summer it is also very useful to give the grass a quick breath of fresh air, without the disruption of a full aeration process. Soils become compacted and anaerobic over time, between many golfers and lots of equipment, the surface can seal up. Water can have a hard time infiltrating and oxygen levels drop. So, we use very small tines to make holes about 2” deep. These holes allow gas exchange between the atmosphere and the soil, allowing much needed oxygen to the roots. And water travels much easier down the small channels.

We will break the work up over the next several weeks. The disruption will be minimal, but the lasting effect will help the greens make it through the summer.

 

Etiquette Reminder of the Month

Golf carts must always remain on cart paths once past the green and white posts, through the next tee complex. This is not weather dependent!

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