Monday maintenance

 This past Monday we took advantage of our afternoon closure to take care of some routine maintenance practices to our MiniVerde putting surfaces. The first step was to vertigroom the greens at a very shallow depth. The depth is only deep enough to remove fat, horizontal leaf tissue without injuring the crown of the plant.

After vertigrooming, a light coat of green topdressing sand was applied. The sand will work into the channels created by the vertigroom. We topdress with green sand in the wintertime for many different reasons. First, the darker color on the leaf blade intercepts more sunlight than white sand, increasing the temperature of the plant. Second, by using green sand we are helping the greens hold their natural color when they try to go into a semi-dormant state caused by cooler temperatures. And lastly, the green sand blends in much better on the putting surface, so it doesn't appear as if the sand will affect playability. 

Finally, after topdressing, we brushed the sand in using brushes attached to a roller. Brushing and rolling at the same time not only incorporates the sand into the plant with the brush, but also packs the sand into the canopy by the force of the roller. Doing this also forces the leaf blade to grow upright, aiding in grain control.

Ficus Tree Trimming

This week we had a tree company come in to trim some of our larger ficus trees. These two ficus trees are in close proximity to the left side of the 4th fairway. The great root mass of these two trees span into the fairway, stealing essential nutrients and water from the turf. Also, the large canopies of these trees shade out this area of the fairway, preventing the turf from receiving adequate sunlight and air movement. 

The picture above shows a hole that was created in the center of the ficus tree. By doing this, the shapes of these specimen trees are not changed, and also allow for more sunlight and air movement to pass through the tree. Some of the lower hanging limbs were also removed, improving the shape of the tree by lifting the base of the canopy.

The affected section of the fairway is now staked off to prevent further damage from cart traffic. We also needle tined the fairway and will soon sand topdress and fertilize with organic fertilizer to promote regrowth.

Coquina cart paths

This week we did some routine maintenance to our coquina cart paths. These cart paths require more maintenance and labor than asphalt cart paths, but offer a much better look. Over time, the gold color of the coquina fades and a new coat needs to be applied. 

As you can see in the above picture, not only is the bermudagrass encroaching into the coquina path, but the edge offers no definition. The first step of our process is the paint out the new edge. 

Once painted, a sod cutter is used at a depth of 2". Then the path is sod cut, and the encroaching bermudagrass is shoveled up for removal. 

 

After the encroaching grass is shoveled up and raked out, a new edge is established. This edge is more visually appealing and will aid in keeping the coquina on the path instead of the surrounding turf. 

The new coquina is then spread out using a belt style topdresser. Any existing pot holes are filled and the edges are hand ranked-in to ensure there is no coquina being applied over the top of the existing turfgrass. Coquina cart paths are often utilized in Florida because they offer a more natural look than the traditional asphalt or concrete option.

Putting Green Surrounds

This week we are beginning to mow the practice putting green surrounds with a walk mower instead of a Triplex. The Triplex mower has been used in the past for this particular area, mostly because of time savings. The switch to walk mowing was made because a walk mower produces a better cut and the problem of excessive wear and compaction caused by a Triplex are eliminated. We are working to burn in these walk mowing stripes for the season to provide a more appealing playing surface while using the practice facilities.

Burning in Par 3 Approaches

Our Par 3 approaches are finally burned in on two different angles. This look offers a more visually appealing greens complex from the tee. It took about one week worth of mowing in the same directions to give these approaches the checkerboard look. 

Bunker Maintenance

This past week we reintroduced flymowers to the bunker surrounds. In the past, the immediate bunker surrounds were trimmed with weed eaters. Flymowers are much more user friendly, mostly because the operator has less of a chance to scalp and damage the turfgrass as the height of cut is predetermined as opposed to being left in the hands of the user. Our bunkers will be flymowed weekly and edged on a biweekly basis with a stick edger. Following the mowing and edging, any runners are pulled out, the bunkers are blown clean and raked with a machine leaving no disruption to play.

Vertigrooming Greens

One week following the final aerification of the year, we "vertigroomed" greens today. "Vertigroom" is a term used which basically means light verticutting. The vertical blades slice into the canopy of the turfgrass to eliminate thatch and excessive top growth. This tightens up the leaf blade and promotes upright growth. This practice will be done on a regular basis and will aid in thatch and grain control by removing excessive leaf material and providing a smoother playing surface with minimal disruption for optimum playing conditions.