Summer Bermuda grass update

We continue to work on improving the Bermuda grass across the course. Luckily, most of the turf is very healthy and growing vigorously. Our focus has been on the areas that are still struggling.

Additional fertilizer is still being applied to all weak areas. Based on recommendations from our agronomic consultant, we are feeding the turf every week. Making sure that the grass has enough food to grow as much as possible is key. Without energy, healing will take much longer.

We also recently sliced 5, 7, 8, and 11 fairways again. This was our 3^rd time across these holes. You can read more about the process here and here. While it easy to focus on the damaged areas (we do it too), the turf is improving. Stolons, the new growth of the Bermuda grass that is on the surface, are moving towards the center of the damaged areas. Every day the bad spots get smaller and slicing the healthy grass creates more growing points. Although the fairways look bad for a few days immediately after the slicing work, the progress gained is worth it.

Plugging healthy Bermuda grass directly into the bad spots is also ongoing. Though it is a slow and tedious process, over time it does provide a benefit. We will continue to plug until the Bermuda grass ceases growth for the season.

Lastly, we are already planning for our Spring Dead Spot (SDS) chemical applications for this fall and beyond. We stay up to date on the most current research. We monitor soil temperatures, which are the key to timing when the applications are actually made. We have also started looking at alternative chemicals for our SDS sprays in 2023, as new chemistries become available and university research concludes if any are better options than current products. The chemicals are just a small part of our program because we cannot actually prevent SDS with the products, but severity can be reduced, so it is still a beneficial aspect of our defense.

The weather plays the biggest role in what happens to the Bermuda grass the entire year. We must take whatever weather cards are dealt for the season, and give the Bermuda grass all the advantages we can. From the moment the Bermuda grass breaks dormancy, until it goes back into it, we are using many different tactics to make the Bermuda grass better.

 

Etiquette Reminder of the Month

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

This is the same etiquette reminder we posted in April, but after seeing carts all over the grass around tees and greens it felt like time for a reminder.

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

 

 

See you on the course!

Joe

jvillegas@bwrc.org