La Nina in Control

Making Hay

With the amazing weather pattern we've enjoyed for over a month we're seeing another year of extended golfing conditions and excellent working weather.  Leaf drop is almost over as we wait for the oaks and some of the maples to let go. We appreciate you bearing with us as we try to keep up with leaf work - it seems never-ending and an extra challenge working temporarily short-handed.   

Not all that glitters is green

Although mild weather is great for your game and mental health, the jury is out on how it affects winter hardiness of Poa annua on greens. As the picture above reminds us (9 green in April 2022), Poa annua does poorly when it's 'woken up' mid-winter and then rapidly refrozen.  This isn't a new phenomena, it's well-known for the species.  What's new for our latitude is trying to gauge how much a delayed dormancy (warmer autumns) might help or hurt the plants winter hardiness.  In a perfect world the plants harden off slowly as cold weather arrives in October/November (in our region) and enter a state of suspended animation for the remainder of the winter. Since 2014 that's not been the case. 

Last year we got lucky as many courses in our region suffered extensive winter damage through no fault of their own and some escaped without a scratch, again, through primarily good luck.  There's some correlation with how high greens were mowed going into winter (too low-too late increases damage) but it's anecdotal evidence for now.  Unfortunately without a real crystal ball we get to wait to see what's in store and hope for a colder than normal, no-thaw winter. 

New Digs

It's been there a while...judging from aerial photography from the 1930's the original shop looks like it's been standing on or near the same foundation for around 85+ years.  It's served its purpose dutifully and was adequate for what was required of it. 

Tuscarora's history is rich in character and lore. As the club was finally able to purchase the land and have a hand in their destiny, improvements flourished, and they still do. The latest of these 'upgrades' coming on-line in spring 2023 is a turf care facility that can truly be called state-of-the-art.  

The plan for this facility has been a work in progress since 1999.  It was never a secret the golf club needed a new maintenance facility.  We knew there'd be a time and place for it given the aspirations of the members.  As we bring it up out of the ground and into reality I'll be doing more posts on the benefits and features it adds to the property and how those things improve the golfing experience and the clubs place in the community. Not only will our maintenance staff have a home they can be proud of but they'll have a place that is truly able to provide the technical support and safety a workplace should provide.

Still Waiting

 

 Remember those awesome practice mats for the range we ordered in February?    It's been an experience this year dealing with it and trying not to blame the company for things out of their control.  If you're in manufacturing, or a distributor for a manufacturer who's dealing with supply chain and labor issues - hats off to you. It's supremely frustrating to have folks  completely prepared only to have to tell them there's yet another delay.  Our latest update from this company was 'before Christmas' after postponing three separate times through the season.  Hope is we'll have them by opening day in 2023. Fingers crossed. 

A Wormy Situation

It's far and away the worst attribute of the property. Of any disease, weed, insect, or winter injury - worm casts are the final boss.  It's sparked debate over grass type, mowing schedules, height of cut, and management acumen. The list of remedies from the course across town, or the self-proclaimed turf expert who likes to give their opinion seems never-ending and it's all well intentioned. What I've settled on for the time being is a solution that I'm certain works and works universally.  Namely it's mowing when the turf is dry. It's the way forward. 

To accomplish this we've added a third fairway mower to our fleet and will be coordinating with the Pro Shop to fit our fairway crew in during slower times of the week. What that may look like from the outside is fairways being mowed during early afternoons. We won't be making golfers wait and will schedule this to minimize contact with play. 

Other plans are using some new growth regulators during the wormy seasons to reduce the need to mow as often. This lessens the smearing that the mowers do which is where the  cycle of damage starts.  It also gives the fairways a tighter denser canopy that can improve the ball lie in spite of the castings. Notice the difference in the picture below of turf treated from 200 yards in on #5.  It has a slightly different color and texture than turf from 200+

 

We're going to find a solution for this problem without resorting to measures that are unsustainable if not vaguely illegal.  The talk of bentgrass fairways isn't dead, but there's much more to be discussed and prepared for before we embark on that voyage. 

In the interim, there's a mechanical fix here that will be explored.  It's affordable, safe, and sustainable without resorting to chemically nuking the worms from orbit.

Platform Change

The grounds department doesn't have a big social media footprint by design. We keep it impersonal and drama-free because nobody needs that. We try to provide information on all things turf and golf course adjacent, especially relating to Tuscarora.  As twitter goes through whatever its going through I decided to take the account over to Instagram for good.  The sharing and production tools are better and I hope the engagement and usability is too.  As the curator of the account I wanted something that's more attractive to use and experience. 

Without opining on twitters latest foibles it's enough said that we have a new social media home for the Tuscarora Grounds Dept. on Instagram @tuscaroragroundsdept 

https://instagram.com/tuscaroragroundsdept?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

Please visit us, interact, and don't hesitate to DM us for any burning questions about why greens are slow, omg who cut the pins, why people won't fix ballmarks, and whether DeeDee ever gets tired.