Spring is in the air and the grooming of the golf course has picked up. Obviously when the temperatures increase the grass grows more, but what might not be as obvious the adjustments that need to be made within maintenance to keep up with these changes. 

The biggest priority is keeping the Poa in check. It is going to seed and we have applied pre-emergent herbicides to combat that seed from germinating. Mowers need to pick up the clippings and dispose of the seed laden material off the golf course. Areas around greens that are very high in Poa are being sodded to prevent tracking of seed. And the Poa herbicides are being applied nearly daily to keep the Poa stressed and the rye and fescue strong and growing.

We have waited a long time for the new grass to mature and I am happy where that is today and how the golf course is playing coming off of aerification two weeks ago. It feels good to be moving into the time of year when course conditions are at their best.


Kevin

Post Aerification

This was the only aerification I remember that I was not excited to do, because like a lot of you, I was thinking "the course was just getting really good and then you have to go and do that".

We got through another aerification successfully and I want to let you know what you can expect for playing conditions while the course recovers.

Greens were single aerified and verticut in 2 directions. Extra fertilizer and minerals were applied with the sand to promote rapid growth and recovery of the aeration holes. Weather permitting, and boy did we luck out this week, greens will be back to regular speed and smoothness in 2 to 3 weeks. 

All the green expansion areas will be maintained the same as the rest of the green from this point on.

Tees were aerified, seeded, fertilized, and topdressed. The edges will have some extra sand to help level them. The Poa annua that is coming back into these tees is being treated and they will be off color as the Poa dies and the rye seed establishes in the next month.

Fairways were seeded, spiked, and topdressed. The fairways will be sandy for a week or so and a little wetter than normal to encourage the seed that was applied.

Roughs were aerified and select areas seeded. There will be aeration cores in the roughs for a week or so until they break down with mowing and dragging.

With normal temperatures all surfaces will recover quickly and be back in top shape within a month.  


Kevin

I have been asked if we transitioned the tee boxes at the same time as the rest of the course last fall, and the short answer is yes. The tees received the same treatment last fall, however we did not treat the tees with the same aggressive herbicides as was used on the rest of the course. The reason this was done was that the tees would have become too thin with the lack of growth due to the herbicides and the amount of traffic from play. Now is the time to apply the herbicides and start to kill the annual bluegrass because the desirable grasses will grow in the warmer temperatures. In the mean time tees will be off color for about 6 weeks while the rye grass grows in.

#12 Tee Poa Off Color

Kevin

Cart Path Repairs

During spring maintenance occuring the week of March 11th cart path repairs will be made throughout the golf course. The white paint on the cart paths are to identify those areas.

Kevin

I was thinking about our weather this winter and the difficulty in moving forward with the planning  of our seasonal maintenance. Things like choosing fertilizers, soil amendments, seeding and pesticide applications, and it has been difficult. The reason for my trepidation is largely due to the weather and the lack of growing conditions.

A general rule of thumb is .... if the sum of high and low temperatures is greater than 100 then you will have growth. If you sum up the dates below, there are 13 days over 100. A lack of moisture allows the temperature to drop quickly at night and the precipitation recorded below shows us at about 4.8 inches below normal for the month of February. Having so little precipitation and the cold temperatures is not unheard of here, but it is unusual.

Overall, I think the course is playing well, but it sure has been difficult to plan what may be 'normal'. What has been determined for spring maintenance is that greens and tees will be aerated with half in tines and the tees will be verticut with the graden behind the aerification. Fairways will be spiked and seeded and then topdressed and fertilized. Roughs will be aerated and fertilized and seeded in select areas. Our herbicide applications will be slightly delayed, and conditions evaluated daily for growth of bermuda and crab grass, and any type of insect development.

Right Now Today Hourly Tomorrow Weekend 5 day 10 day Monthly Map
Monthly Planner for Los Gatos, CA (95030) [ English | Metric ] February Next Month Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri   1 OBSERVED Hi  67°F Lo  40°F Precip (in) 0in. Sat   2 OBSERVED Hi  56°F Lo  46°F Precip (in) 0in.   3 OBSERVED Hi  57°F Lo  45°F Precip (in) 0in.   4 OBSERVED Hi  56°F Lo  39°F Precip (in) 0in.   5 OBSERVED Hi  54°F Lo  45°F Precip (in) 0in.   6 OBSERVED Hi  57°F Lo  38°F Precip (in) 0in.   7 OBSERVED Hi  55°F Lo  36°F Precip (in) 0.05in.   8 OBSERVED Hi  52°F Lo  40°F Precip (in) 0.02in.   9 OBSERVED Hi  56°F Lo  34°F Precip (in) 0in.   10 OBSERVED Hi  59°F Lo  34°F Precip (in) 0in.   11 OBSERVED Hi  62°F Lo  36°F Precip (in) 0in.   12 OBSERVED Hi  61°F Lo  38°F Precip (in) 0in.   13 OBSERVED Hi  64°F Lo  39°F Precip (in) 0in.   14 OBSERVED Hi  69°F Lo  41°F Precip (in) 0in.   15 OBSERVED Hi  72°F Lo  44°F Precip (in) 0in.   16 OBSERVED Hi  67°F Lo  44°F Precip (in) 0in.   17 OBSERVED Hi  62°F Lo  44°F Precip (in) 0in.   18 OBSERVED Hi  57°F Lo  41°F Precip (in) 0in.   19 OBSERVED Hi  51°F Lo  42°F Precip (in) 0.21in.   20 OBSERVED Hi  59°F Lo  37°F Precip (in) 0in.   21 OBSERVED Hi  58°F Lo  37°F Precip (in) 0in.   22 OBSERVED Hi  62°F Lo  37°F Precip (in) 0in.   23 OBSERVED Hi  57°F Lo  46°F Precip (in) 0in.   24 OBSERVED Hi  61°F Lo  39°F Precip (in) 0in.   25 OBSERVED Hi  60°F Lo  36°F Precip (in) 0in.   26 OBSERVED Hi  65°F Lo  39°F Precip (in) 0in.   27 OBSERVED Hi  67°F Lo  39°F Precip (in) 0in.   28 OBSERVED Hi  65°F Lo  44°F Precip (in) 0in. FORECAST: Updated Mar 1 10:08 a.m. PT Details Video Text Averages Month-to-Date Totals   Temperatures   Precipitation 80°F Record High Highest so far 72°F  Lowest 34°F  so far  62°F Avg. High  41°F Avg. Low 21°F Record Low Month to Date0.28 in.   Average5.06 in.

 Kevin