Creek at soccer

We have discussed in this blog before some of the unique aspects of Bretton Woods. Not only the property’s size, but soccer fields and adventure activities are especially uncommon among similar clubs. This past week the lower soccer field needed some attention.

The creek that crosses the road as you drive towards tennis and soccer, continues to parallel both soccer fields all the way off our property. The terrain also becomes very flat down near the soccer fields and the creek does not rush past. Because of this, it can sometimes cause issues by not staying within its banks. We have written about this issue in the past- soccer flooding damage and water on soccer field. This time the issue was not so extensive, but down at the far corner nearest the creek, the water was both slowly overflowing the bank as well as seeping underneath it. The lower soccer field is the same Bermuda grass as the fairways and tees on the golf course, so it is currently dormant. The field is also closed until the Bermuda grass greens up. But this work still needed to be done now rather than waiting until the field opens later in the spring.

After our work was complete the creek 
bed is visible again. You can also see
the debris we removed along the banks.

Long before there was a soccer field in this position, the creek used to lose all form before reaching the river and meander in all directions, rather than flow directly into the Potomac. Sometimes it reverts to this habit rather than staying in the creek bed. Lots of debris has washed down to this end and has partially dammed up the creek, slowing its flow down so much that it was finding alternative routes, including out onto the field.

We aren’t allowed to get machines into this area due to its proximity to the river, wetlands, flood plains, etc. Even if we could it is too wet anyway. So, our only option is to do the work by hand. While the creek can find other places to flow, there is a good enough creek bed that if given the chance it will still follow that path. With shovels, rakes, and any other hand tool that could work, we carefully redirected the flow back into the creek bed and removed obstacles.

It is hard to determine exactly how effective our work is during the spring, sometimes it is so wet regardless of what we do, the creek finds it way onto the field. Nevertheless, the work needed to be done.

 

Etiquette Reminder of the Month

Please be careful not to damage the lip of the cup when retrieving your ball after putting out.

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

Golf Cart tips

 

 

See you on the course!

Joe

jvillegas@bwrc.org

Recurring March tasks

Spring is a busy time, not only for the golf course, but also other parts of the property. Like year’s past, the Grounds department uses March for lots of spring cleaning and preparation for the season. Though the weather has been up and down, we have still made progress towards gearing up for the busy months.

We have a few regular tasks that we like to concentrate on in March- pruning shrubs, cleaning and edging flower beds, mulching the flower beds, and working at soccer. There are a few reasons that each of these is well-suited as a March job. First, the weather is usually cooperative enough to consistently get out on the course and not do any damage. But frost delays are still very much a reality so some of our March jobs are easily done without getting on the grass. Another key to the timing of these jobs is that there is relatively little else we must do on the course. The Bermuda grass needs little to no attention, the rough is not growing enough to need to be mowed, and while the greens do require inputs, their relatively small area make them easy to manage. This allows some March jobs that are labor intensive to receive our entire staff or close to it, for extended periods of time, enabling us to finish larger projects in a reasonable time.

The weather is still cool enough that most shrubs on the property have not started growing for the spring. So, we prune off any dead parts, trim it back as needed, and generally clean it up for the season. While we are working on the plants, we also edge and clean the flower beds. If we cut a crisp edge now, it will remain all season. And we also clean out any weeds, sticks, and other debris that has collected over the winter. The flower bed work especially lends itself to cold, frosty mornings because we do not have to traverse in the grass to do the work.

Once the flower beds are fully prepped, we also work on putting fresh wood chip mulch in the beds. Our wood chip mulch comes from on-site. We collect all tree branches, limbs, and other materials in a central location, far to the left of #5. When feasible, we have our tree company come in and use their large tub grinder to chip an entire year’s worth of material for us. We never run out of chips. Similar to pruning and cleaning the beds, mulching is also a great cold morning task.

Knowing that we have lots of work at the pool starting in April, we also use March for lots of work at the soccer field. We aerate, seed, and sod certain sections all at this time. The soccer field is the same mixture of grasses found in the rough on the golf course: cool-season species like annual bluegrass, tall fescue, and ryegrass. These grasses really start to explode with growth in mid-late March and April as the air and soil temperatures warm up. By accomplishing these cultural practices now, the field is ready to for the upcoming soccer season.

Timing certain jobs for March has worked well for us for several years. Finishing these jobs now will allow us to be ready for course maintenance as more of the course wakes up for the year.

 

Etiquette Reminder of the Month

Please be careful not to damage the lip of the cup when retrieving your ball after putting out.

 

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

Golf Cart tips

 

 

See you on the course!

Joe

jvillegas@bwrc.org

Emergency tree removal

We finished our scheduled tree work in early February. But, due to some windy days and wet ground, some unexpected tree work has come up recently as well.

The tulip poplar at #12 tee. The lean towards
the bathroom is noticeable.

The rotten base of the tulip poplar.

The most pressing issue was a tulip poplar tree to the right of #12 tee. The tree was growing just into the bank of the tee box near the bathrooms. We noticed last week that it seemed to be leaning slightly more than normal. After inspection we saw that the roots had just barely started to separate from the soil and that had caused the tree to lean more than in the past, and it was leaning towards the bathroom. With more windy days forecast, we called our tree company and they stopped by to inspect and get a gameplan for removal in the coming days. However, while we were looking at the poplar we had a few more gusts of wind and we could see the root ball raising and lowering with each gust. It was determined that the tree needed to come down immediately. Luckily, the tree company was able to return that evening and drop the tree to prevent it from falling on the bathroom.

It is hard to see in the picture, but inside the red circles
are gaps where the root ball is pulling away from the tee bank.

The second tree in question has not been taken down yet because it was not quite as precarious as the tulip poplar. There is a pine tree on the right side of #3 fairway, near the cart path, that has been leaning for quite some time. However, over the course of the winter it has seemingly started to lean more. Then, over the last couple of weeks the lean has definitely become more pronounced, and we decided we need to remove the tree before it falls and damages the cart path, fairway, or anything else.

The leaning pine tree on #3

The pine tree removal is scheduled for early this week as weather allows. We will also finish the clean up of the tulip poplar at that time as well. Luckily our tree company was able to help us on short notice and prevent the trees from falling on their own and casing damage.

 

Etiquette Reminder of the Month

Please be careful not to damage the lip of the cup when retrieving your ball after putting out.

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

Golf Cart tips

 

 

See you on the course!

Joe

jvillegas@bwrc.org

Bermuda grass weed control

Winter weed control in dormant Bermuda grass is one of the key tasks we must complete over the winter. We have been working on killing the weeds over the last week and will finish this week.

When the Bermuda grass is dormant it is not competing to keep weeds out like it does when it is actively growing. Opportunistic weeds like Poa annua, clover, and many others, take advantage of this weak time for the Bermuda grass and invade. We work all season to keep the number of weeds that encroach on the Bermuda grass to a minimum.

Our first defense is growing healthy Bermuda grass. If the Bermuda grass is dense, and growing vigorously during the season then there are fewer thin or bare areas for weeds to establish. Our goal for the season is to grow the best Bermuda grass turf we can- this is what we, and the golfers expect. But the second aspect of this goal is that it helps prevent weeds and provides the best dormant turf for the off-season.

Next, we also apply a pre-emergent herbicide to the Bermuda grass in late summer/early fall. This material is applied before the Bermuda grass is dormant, but right when the most weed seeds are ready to start germinating. By applying this product, we are aiming to prevent weeds from even establishing themselves. The chemical creates a barrier along the soil surface and wither prevents the weeds from emerging from the soil or prevents them from sending roots down. This tactic provides a great level of control and without it, the weed pressure would be much higher.

Lastly, we spray any breakthrough weeds during the winter using a non-selective herbicide. Since the Bermuda grass is dormant, it is unaffected by the herbicide, and we can spray right over top. If all of our previous steps were completed correctly and the timing was right, there are not a lot of weeds to spray in the winter. Usually, we can make just spot applications rather than a broadcast application across all the Bermuda grass.

While the calendar is nearing the turn to spring, we are still working on our winter maintenance. But judging by the way the weather has stayed cold throughout spring the last several years, we still have time to get our work done.

 

Etiquette Reminder of the Month

Please be careful not to damage the lip of the cup when retrieving your ball after putting out.

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

Golf Cart tips

 

 

See you on the course!

Joe

jvillegas@bwrc.org