Turf loss

The weather impacts the turfgrass more than any other single factor. Unfortunately, the very hot stretch of weather last week was very stressful for all the cool-season grass, and too stressful for some particular spots of turf.

The weather dictates what maintenance we can and cannot do, as well as the health of the turf. Sometimes we can do everything right and Mother Nature can still win. We always strive to keep all the turf alive across the property, but last week we failed. The 3-day stretch all over 100 degrees was simply too hot for some of the grass. Coupled with slightly less water than the turf needed, and the plants died within a few hours. No excuses, we did not do the things we needed to do to keep the grass alive.

So, what is next? Most of the grass will eventually heal or fill back in with healthy turf. The downside is that this will take time. Part of the reason the grass died in the first place is because the environmental conditions have been so difficult for growth. Although the temperatures have dropped some, in general, the weather is still not conducive for good, cool-season turf growth, which means it is an uphill climb to get recovery.

The areas that don’t heal will be reseeded. Again, this will have to wait a few weeks also. We are just over two weeks away from aeration and it would be counter-productive to put new seed in the ground just before we start aerating and potentially damage the new seedlings. Two-plus weeks further into the year will also mean 1-2 degrees lower average temperatures, likely a few cooler nights mixed in, and shorter days, which all will benefit healing turf and new seed.

Patience is the key, which is very hard for us. Our goal is to have the course in as good a shape as possible, every day, and dead turf is very difficult to endure. We are not using the weather as an excuse, but there is no doubt it played an outsized role in the turfgrass decline. Nevertheless, we can’t change the weather or what happened, but we will continue to work diligently to preserve the turf that is still viable, and work to improve the subpar areas as quickly as possible and get the course back up to our standards.

 

 

 

Etiquette Reminder of the Month

Please do not apply any spray sunscreen or insect repellent while standing on the grass, especially the greens. The chemicals kill the turf.

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